Heh, the health care memo hasn't really reached Whoaccio's door, but he has google and if he's interested he can research how health care legacy costs are what bankrupted Detroit.
I think I have mentioned in numerous posts before that health care costs are significant in the USA and a big contributor to the current situation. What you seem incapable of grasping though is that, once the UAW's current contract runs it's course, all in (including legacy costs, health care costs) costs will be 27$/hour lower in Ohio (let alone Mississippi) than Ontario. In case I am not clear;
All in labor costs by 2011 (when the UAW's contract expires) will be 27$ an hour cheaper in the USA than in Canada. Just in case you still don't get this, Canadian labor (get this, even factoring for marginally higher legacy costs in the USA) will still be 40% higher than UAW labor.
And that is ignoring all the other strikes against auto manufacturing in Ontario; we are on the wrong side of a congested border, we have higher taxes, we have higher land values, we have stricter regulations, we are very far away from SW USA (the fastest growing region) we have anemic local car ownership and, just to reinforce the point, our labor costs (including legacy costs) are 40% higher.
EDIT: Our dollar is also very volatile, it is down atm but the past year has shown how volatile this can be. Even assuming that long term oil prices is flat (which most people on this board disagree with, hence the need for public transit right
?) it makes no sense for GM to invest billions in an auto plant, that exports 90% of it's products to the USA, to expose it's self to such currency instability. If 90% of their produce is going to end up in US showrooms, it would make more sense for them to assemble in US dollars rather than risk the CAD going back up to par and entire operation becoming unprofitable.
EDIT EDIT: Further, why would we try to out subsidize the USA? Fine, lets assume that it is economically imperative that we keep manufacturing jobs ect.. ect... Does anybody really think Canada can out subsidize the USA? Are we really going to play shot for shot with a country which routinely gives stimulus packages larger than our entire economy? Does anybody think this is a good idea? How can we possibly win this?