Ideology in My Controversey

Kumm, Michael "General Motors" July 8, 2009 via Flickr
Attribution 2.0 Generic

Looking at the different ideologies present in this controversy can afford us more insight into both sides of the situation. So without much ado, let's dive right in...

• The two primary parties in the GM recall controversy are the company itself and it's customers. Secondary parties involved include the media, federal investigators, and Congress.
• The primary speakers for the owners are law firms like Morgan and Morgan and Hagens Berman. Kenneth Feinberg is the settlement negotiator for General Motors and thus is the point of contact for owners with GM. CEO Mary Barra is the primary speaker for GM with federal investigators and Congress which in turn are represented by the NHTSA and Special Investigator Anton Valukas on the investigative side while by Senators like Claire McCaskill on the legislative side.
• The General is one of the largest American corporations and thus wields enormous economic clout (enough to have been rescued from bankruptcy on the dollar of the US taxpayer). Meanwhile, the average car owner has little to no power but should be protected by the regulatory power of the NHTSA.
• The best resource available to both groups is the courts as that is where GM is seeking protection on the basis of a bankruptcy shield while that is where car owners are seeking settlements.
• General Motors simply seems to want to get out of this mess as easily as possible while owners are trying to get some sort of settlement for the injured and killed drivers and for having been exposed to the risk of their cars for years before GM started a recall. Ultimately owners just want to drive cars that are safe.
• There is essentially no evidence in question here as it is very clear that the cars in question are potentially unsafe and need to be fixed. What sort of settlement the owners should get is ultimately a legal question.
• There is a significant power differential between the two primary groups, the corporation and its customers. GM is a vastly powerful organization with money to pay lawyers and lobbyists whatever is necessary. Each car owner does not have anything near these resources though individuals do have a fairly good resource through class-action lawsuits filed by the companies mentioned earlier.
• The common ground between the two groups is limited to both the recall and some settlements but some owners are furious that tort reforms limit the amount of money GM is liable for.
• The groups listen to each other to a degree however they are still inherently antagonistic which leads General Motors to naturally fight new suits as they do not want to pay out money unless it would already be necessary under previous settlements.