Food for Thought: Auto Manufacturers' Contributions

[TNT]

Hmmmmm . . . This is the second time in recent past when I found something on my high school reunion web site that was quite profound. (I don't quite see the relevance to a high school reunion, but it is relevant to this forum, so I thought I'd reprint it here . . .)
__________________

CNN Headline News did a short news story listing regarding the contributions of automobile manufacturers to the relief and recovery efforts in New York and Washington. The findings are as follows:

1. Ford: $1 million to American Red Cross, matching employee contributions of the same number, plus ten Excursions to the N.Y. Fire Department. The company also offered emergency response team services and office space to displaced government employees.

2. General Motors: $1 million to American Red Cross, matching employee contributions of the same number, and a fleet of vans, SUV's, and trucks.

3. Daimler Chrysler: $10 million to support the children and victims of the September 11th attack.

4. Harley Davidson motorcycles: $1 million and 30 new motorcycles to the New York Police Department.

5. Volkswagen: Employees and management created a Sept 11 Foundation funded initially with $2 million, for the assistance of the children and victims of the World Trade Center.

6. Hyundai: $300,000 to the American Red Cross.

7. Audi: Nothing.

8. BMW: Nothing.

9. Daewoo: Nothing.

10. Fiat: Nothing.

11. Honda: Nothing, despite boasting of their second-best sales month ever (August 2001).

12. Isuzu: Nothing.

13. Mitsubishi: Nothing.

14. Nissan: Nothing.

15. Porsche: Nothing, except for a press release with condolences via the Porsche website.

16. Subaru: Nothing.

17. Suzuki: Nothing.

18. Toyota: Nothing, despite claims of high sales in July and August 2001, except condolences posted on their website.

Whenever the time may be for you to purchase or lease a new vehicle, keep this information in mind. You might want to give more consideration to a car manufactured by an American-owned and/or American-based company.

Apart from Hyundai and Volkswagen, the foreign car companies contributed nothing at all to the citizens of the United States. It's okay for these companies to take money out of this country, but it is apparently not acceptable to return some in a time of crisis. Perhaps we should not forget things like this. Say thanks - in a way that gets their attention.

[EXCESS]

That is true in this case, but the numbers would have been very different if the attacks happened in another country. Of course, it isn't a surprise to see American auto companies donate the most money because the attacks happened in New York and Washington. If Tokyo was attacked I'm sure that Honda, Toyota, and Nissan would be major donaters. If support for a company becomes linked to the amount of money they donate to foreign charities, guess what? Companies like GE and Microsoft would receive very little support.

Yes, I believe it is great that some companies donated millions (you wouldn't believe how much money I donate every year), but donations are a choice - not an obligation. I hope that other companies view those stats and are swayed to donate.