[Kevin]

Also, let's not pretend that all of these jobs will be lost. That's just unsupportable. Will some jobs be lost? Absolutely. Will some of GM's many brands go away? I'm sure they will. Will there still be Chevrolet and Ford pickups? As our should-have-been VP would say, you betcha.

The present worst-case scenario is that some of the auto companies might be forced into Chapter 11 reorganization. In that, all contracts will be again open to negotiation, and the companies will essentially be able to take the painful steps necessary in order to become solvent again.

Americans will still be buying around the same number of cars, so dealerships will find a way to make it.

Sometimes, due to a number of reasons, businesses do fail, and they should be allowed to do that. Our system of government and economy will not be viable if our major industries, if poorly managed, can always look to the government to bail them out in the event of failure (assuming they're big enough).

We'll be fine. Maybe Detroit won't, but that's the risk a city takes when it puts all of its eggs in one poorly positioned basket.