Detroit
Boston Globe
Even the most casual observer here at this week's North American International Auto Show can't help but notice the schizophrenia that marks the auto industry. American automakers are moving in two extreme and opposite directions that seem to mirror competing and often contradictory visions for America itself.
Just beneath the glitz that permeates every aspect of the nation's largest auto show lie some fundamental questions about America's view of itself. Of course, Detroit has long served as a powerful metaphor for America. As our election season heats up, however, this year's auto show offers a compelling glimpse of the "two Americas" that emerged from the 2000 election. Call it "Red and Blue America," conservatives versus liberals, the heartland versus the coasts, or Bush lovers versus Bush loathers, the politics of division are readily apparent in Detroit this week.
On the one hand, there is the proud and loud America that likes to flex its muscle. This America is easily provoked by real or perceived infringements on its individual rights. This America will fight to its last breath to ensure that we are free to drive gargantuan earthmovers that pass these days as SUVs. In this America, size and muscularity really do matter. And boasting about size matters, too. Is it any wonder that the new Ford Freestyle SUV has 12 cupholders or that the company claims its new Five Hundred sedan can hold eight golf bags? Who needs 12 cups of anything in their car, let alone eight golf bags?
It's reminiscent of gangster-turned-car-salesman Robert DeNiro's line in the movie "Analyze That": "Look at the size of that trunk; you could put three bodies in there."
It's also the automotive equivalent of the Bush doctrine of preemptive war. A kind of feel-good security comes to those who anticipate trouble, whether it has a real chance of occurring or not, and through great size and power seek to make themselves safer. Too bad that SUV accident and injury statistics tell a different story of death and destruction. Still, the "proud and loud" approach feels and sounds good, and besides, most of its downside won't be felt for years to come.
On the other hand, there is the sensitive America that thinks much more about our collective good, our threatened environment, and our finite energy resources. This America worries and occasionally whines about the need to balance individual rights with individual responsibilities. This America also likes to condemn the other America without making much of an effort to understand it.
For this America, the auto show has newfound appeal. There are numerous hybrid vehicles on display here touting the advantages of a combined gas and electric fuel system. Promotional materials for the hybrids underscore the societal benefits of low-emission, fuel-efficient vehicles, while these same vehicles are displayed adjacent to the gigantic, gas-guzzling land yachts.
Automakers are also showcasing experimental hydrogen-fueled vehicles in Detroit this week.
They're teasing the sensitive America with images of an environmentally safe, post-hydrocarbon world where we will finally be free of our reliance on foreign oil. Of course, that's about the last thing Detroit really wants to see happen. Some claim that the automakers are touting hybrids and hydrocarbons, as well as small cars and vehicles made from recyclables and agricultural byproducts, simply because it's good PR. Sure, it helps them with lawmakers, regulators, environmental groups, and skeptical journalists, but there's more to it than that.
Detroit is finally starting to take this other America seriously. Why? Money! American automakers see a growing market for high-quality, low-emission, and energy-efficient vehicles that can actually fit on our streets and in our parking garages. With so much trouble in the Middle East foreshadowing another energy crisis, they don't want to be left out of this potentially lucrative market.
Besides, their remarkably successful run with SUVs and light trucks is coming to an end. With so much competition from the Japanese and others in these markets today, American automakers can no longer generate the record revenue and profit margins they once made from SUVs and light trucks.
The simple truth is that Detroit is schizophrenic because we are schizophrenic. We are every bit "two Americas" when it comes to buying vehicles or, for that matter, in choosing our political candidates, reading material, or popular music. Until the next energy crisis forces our hand collectively, however, it will be up to each of us to look at ourselves in that rear-view mirror and decide how best to balance our own rights and responsibilities.
Boston Globe
Even the most casual observer here at this week's North American International Auto Show can't help but notice the schizophrenia that marks the auto industry. American automakers are moving in two extreme and opposite directions that seem to mirror competing and often contradictory visions for America itself.
Just beneath the glitz that permeates every aspect of the nation's largest auto show lie some fundamental questions about America's view of itself. Of course, Detroit has long served as a powerful metaphor for America. As our election season heats up, however, this year's auto show offers a compelling glimpse of the "two Americas" that emerged from the 2000 election. Call it "Red and Blue America," conservatives versus liberals, the heartland versus the coasts, or Bush lovers versus Bush loathers, the politics of division are readily apparent in Detroit this week.
On the one hand, there is the proud and loud America that likes to flex its muscle. This America is easily provoked by real or perceived infringements on its individual rights. This America will fight to its last breath to ensure that we are free to drive gargantuan earthmovers that pass these days as SUVs. In this America, size and muscularity really do matter. And boasting about size matters, too. Is it any wonder that the new Ford Freestyle SUV has 12 cupholders or that the company claims its new Five Hundred sedan can hold eight golf bags? Who needs 12 cups of anything in their car, let alone eight golf bags?
It's reminiscent of gangster-turned-car-salesman Robert DeNiro's line in the movie "Analyze That": "Look at the size of that trunk; you could put three bodies in there."
It's also the automotive equivalent of the Bush doctrine of preemptive war. A kind of feel-good security comes to those who anticipate trouble, whether it has a real chance of occurring or not, and through great size and power seek to make themselves safer. Too bad that SUV accident and injury statistics tell a different story of death and destruction. Still, the "proud and loud" approach feels and sounds good, and besides, most of its downside won't be felt for years to come.
On the other hand, there is the sensitive America that thinks much more about our collective good, our threatened environment, and our finite energy resources. This America worries and occasionally whines about the need to balance individual rights with individual responsibilities. This America also likes to condemn the other America without making much of an effort to understand it.
For this America, the auto show has newfound appeal. There are numerous hybrid vehicles on display here touting the advantages of a combined gas and electric fuel system. Promotional materials for the hybrids underscore the societal benefits of low-emission, fuel-efficient vehicles, while these same vehicles are displayed adjacent to the gigantic, gas-guzzling land yachts.
Automakers are also showcasing experimental hydrogen-fueled vehicles in Detroit this week.
They're teasing the sensitive America with images of an environmentally safe, post-hydrocarbon world where we will finally be free of our reliance on foreign oil. Of course, that's about the last thing Detroit really wants to see happen. Some claim that the automakers are touting hybrids and hydrocarbons, as well as small cars and vehicles made from recyclables and agricultural byproducts, simply because it's good PR. Sure, it helps them with lawmakers, regulators, environmental groups, and skeptical journalists, but there's more to it than that.
Detroit is finally starting to take this other America seriously. Why? Money! American automakers see a growing market for high-quality, low-emission, and energy-efficient vehicles that can actually fit on our streets and in our parking garages. With so much trouble in the Middle East foreshadowing another energy crisis, they don't want to be left out of this potentially lucrative market.
Besides, their remarkably successful run with SUVs and light trucks is coming to an end. With so much competition from the Japanese and others in these markets today, American automakers can no longer generate the record revenue and profit margins they once made from SUVs and light trucks.
The simple truth is that Detroit is schizophrenic because we are schizophrenic. We are every bit "two Americas" when it comes to buying vehicles or, for that matter, in choosing our political candidates, reading material, or popular music. Until the next energy crisis forces our hand collectively, however, it will be up to each of us to look at ourselves in that rear-view mirror and decide how best to balance our own rights and responsibilities.