Comments on: Happy Iacocca Day http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2008/10/13/happy-iacocca-day/ Chrysler, car, and other discussions by Allpar contributors Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:22:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: DaveAdmin http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2008/10/13/happy-iacocca-day/comment-page-1/#comment-76681 DaveAdmin Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:39:48 +0000 http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/?p=454#comment-76681 I agree. However - there are good and bad ways to work hard. Putting people into slavery and/or killing them - bad way. (It's worth noting that Columbus was jailed and later fired as governor of the conquered territories by the Spanish Crown, and had his royalties of the goodies taken away.) His achievement was rather amusing in fact - by totally miscalculating the size of the globe, he was able to make a trip that others would not dare to try, because he "knew" he'd reach Asia before supplies ran out. It was a great serendipitous mistake. That said, as someone pointed out, his great achievement ended up not being discovering America (which others appear to have done first -- not counting the natives), or conquering the natives, or crossing the ocean... as much as it was staying around, and coming back with samples of the local population. I agree. However – there are good and bad ways to work hard. Putting people into slavery and/or killing them – bad way. (It’s worth noting that Columbus was jailed and later fired as governor of the conquered territories by the Spanish Crown, and had his royalties of the goodies taken away.) His achievement was rather amusing in fact – by totally miscalculating the size of the globe, he was able to make a trip that others would not dare to try, because he “knew” he’d reach Asia before supplies ran out. It was a great serendipitous mistake. That said, as someone pointed out, his great achievement ended up not being discovering America (which others appear to have done first — not counting the natives), or conquering the natives, or crossing the ocean… as much as it was staying around, and coming back with samples of the local population.

]]> By: Chryco fan http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/2008/10/13/happy-iacocca-day/comment-page-1/#comment-76680 Chryco fan Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:07:26 +0000 http://www.allpar.com/weblogs/?p=454#comment-76680 We should honor Iacocca. We would do well to examine what he has written about leadership especially given the political and economic challenges we are faced with. CEO's would do well to note his example of taking $1 a year until the company was on track--not leaving with $90 million as the company and employees swirl down the drain. We need to remember his example of tackling tough problems with real solutions and consensus rather than pandering or partisanship. We should honor Columbus for his achievment, and for opening up this hemisphere for exploration that followed--sailing across the ocean in 90 foot wooden vessels was that generation's equivalant of going to the moon. Was there a negative side to that? Yes, but a lot more positive. We should learn from that can-do spirit--that is what Americans, and Canadians as well, came to hold dear as a unique American quality as our nation formed and came together. That spirit made America unique-as opposed to the tradition, class structures, and rigidity of the old world. We have to apply that spirit to our present challenges as well. But we seem to be going into an age of apathy and stagnation and class warfare--that old world spirit. We need to regain our mentality of rising to every challenge--or face descent into the shadow of the dynamic people of India and China. I would be willing to wager that few Americans could tell you much about Iacocca; or about WP Chrysler or KT Keller--and that is a tragedy given the need to return to the values of hard work, responsibility, and loyalty that made the American economic system what it was and can be again--as opposed to the buy on margin speculation, reckless spending and mentality of selling out employees and country to make another buck, that got us in the mess we are in now. We should honor Iacocca. We would do well to examine what he has written about leadership especially given the political and economic challenges we are faced with. CEO’s would do well to note his example of taking $1 a year until the company was on track–not leaving with $90 million as the company and employees swirl down the drain. We need to remember his example of tackling tough problems with real solutions and consensus rather than pandering or partisanship.

We should honor Columbus for his achievment, and for opening up this hemisphere for exploration that followed–sailing across the ocean in 90 foot wooden vessels was that generation’s equivalant of going to the moon. Was there a negative side to that? Yes, but a lot more positive. We should learn from that can-do spirit–that is what Americans, and Canadians as well, came to hold dear as a unique American quality as our nation formed and came together. That spirit made America unique-as opposed to the tradition, class structures, and rigidity of the old world. We have to apply that spirit to our present challenges as well. But we seem to be going into an age of apathy and stagnation and class warfare–that old world spirit. We need to regain our mentality of rising to every challenge–or face descent into the shadow of the dynamic people of India and China.

I would be willing to wager that few Americans could tell you much about Iacocca; or about WP Chrysler or KT Keller–and that is a tragedy given the need to return to the values of hard work, responsibility, and loyalty that made the American economic system what it was and can be again–as opposed to the buy on margin speculation, reckless spending and mentality of selling out employees and country to make another buck, that got us in the mess we are in now.

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