Op-Ed: Bye Bye Miss American Pie....

Today I mourn the passing of an icon of Americana, as I read about GM's bankruptcy filing and the subsequent government ownership of this automotive titan. Where cars are concerned, I have always been a GM man. Sadly, those days are gone for me.

I, like many of my friends, grew up admiring the GM muscle represented by the GTO, Chevelle, Camaro, Nova, Firebird, etc. Who could help but fall in love at first site with any of the 55-57 Bel-Aires or Nomads? What teenage boy didn't dream of owning a beast propelled by a 327, 350, 400 or 454 power house of gas guzzling, oil burning, tire shredding adrenaline? There is nothing to compare to the ear busting, chest pounding rumble of an open-headered monster tearing up the street when the light turns green on the main drag of anytown USA. It saddens me to think of what the new models produced by Government Motors will be like. You can bet they'll be eco-friendly, alternate fueled, little pod-like vehicles that they'll say are good for us and good for the planet. This may be a slight exaggeration but you better believe that the new designs will be a reflection of what the government wants as opposed what we the public want. Guess I'll have to take a good look at Ford.