GM exec Bob Lutz won’t back away from denial of global warming.
GM exec Bob Lutz won’t back away from denial of global warming.
In February, GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz defended his previous remarks dismissing global warming as a “total crock of shit.” “My thoughts on what has or hasn’t been the cause of climate change have nothing to do with the decisions I make,” Lutz alleged. Yesterday, Lutz was interviewed by CBS, and again refused to back away from his remarks. CBS reports:
“Well they don’t like what you said about global warming,” Stahl says. “Do you want to repeat what you said about global warming?” “Of course not, because this is a family network,” Lutz says.
“You don’t think there’s global warming? Is that really true?” Stahl asks. “I’m not going to get into this. Because…,” Lutz replies. “Because you got into so much trouble when you said it the first time?” Stahl asks. “That could be right. Yeah,” Lutz admits.
“Well, actually some of them like me,” Lutz said of environmentalists. Watch it:
“Speaking about his own personal carbon footprint, Lutz acknowledges he and his wife own two helicopters and two jets,” CBS noted. “And remember, this guy is just a heartbeat away from the chairmanship of General Motors,” writes Joe Romm.
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Sweet Jeebus… w/ idiots like Lutz in charge, no wonder GM is losing money hand over fist these days.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:54 amAnd I’m sure he has a stack of marketing reports and strategic documents from the Petroleum Institute to back up this viewpoint.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:55 amNo wonder there kicking so much @ss in selling cars! What a futuristic and innovative frame of mind this guy has!
October 6th, 2008 at 11:57 amWow, two helicopters and two jets! I’ll bet the Cindy and John McCain are jealous.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:57 amSo this is the guy that GM puts in charge of its electric car program—a global warming denier who oversaw the development of the Hummer and owns two helicopters, one for himself and one for his wife, as well as a World War II fighter plane painted in Luftwaffe colors. He also was responsible for bringing the Merkur to the US, which I can tell you from personal experience, rivals the Edsall for the Auomobile Manufacturing’s Most Disasterous Marketing Decision. Way to go, GM!
October 6th, 2008 at 11:57 amFor him to admit that Global Warming is made made is the same as admitting personal guilt. He can’t do that and sleep at night, so he rationalizes away his enormous culpability, as do all criminals of his caliber.
Even his electric car still relies on coal-burning electricity that emits greenhouse gases.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:58 am“GM exec Bob Lutz won’t back away from denial of global warming.
– - The livelihood of GM and the thousands of people it employs and affects depends on CEO Bob Lutz. What the hell would you expect him to say? At least he wasn’t the one that killed the Impact and he’s trying to bring the Volt to market asap. Fossil burning engines are in the DNA of people like Lutz.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:58 amI don’t care whether he believes global warming is man-made or not, or even if he believes that global warming is real.
What really proves his lack of fitness for the position he holds is the pathetic corporate strategy he’s mapped out for GM — relying on high-profit, high consumption vehicles when all the signs of future consumer demands were trending toward more fuel-efficient and alternatively-fueled vehicles.
It shouldn’t matter to this guy that people want electric cars because of their carbon footprint. All that should matter is that they want them, and they’re gonna want more of them.
GM, Ford and Chrysler paid lip service to developing this new technology, and left the door wide open for Japanese car makers, who now dominate the American marketplace.
That’s just a flat failure of corporate leadership.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:01 pmMeanwhile, stealth congress critters routed $25 Billion to Detroit as a part of the financial fix.
The ‘Big 3′ have watched the market change for 2 decades while sitting on their fat assess, collecting obscene pay.
They’re a lot like McCain…sit on big money while accusing others of not ‘playing fair’, while they ignore the reality of global warming, increased fuel efficiency & lean inventories.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:02 pmLutz is living proof that the rich are no different than…. other rich folk.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:05 pmthat guy has enough money to fix his teeth…
i hope he does, before going on the teevee again…
quite the jerk too…
these people make me ill… they wait till the need is dire to do anything, and then it will be years for any real action…
October 6th, 2008 at 12:06 pmBeing a heartbeat away from the chairmanship of GM is slightly more significant that being in line for the chairmanship of Studebaker. The latter is gone, the former is going. Someday, quality cars will be built by Americans in America under the guidance of American managers. It will not however be under the stewardship of the current crop of morons running Ford or GM — or what is left of Chrysler.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:07 pmI should correct an error in my post above—the fighter plane painted in Luftwaffe colors owned by Mr. Lutz is actually a 70s-era jet, not WWII era. I’m not sure whether that’s an improvement or not.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:07 pmJust amazing to me that this guy is making millions of dollars a year while destroying his company. Just proof that CEOs are bulletproof – making money regardless of the prospects of the company.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:14 pmWill somebody call Thom Hartmann, who’s getting paid to shill for GM and the car for which GM is pursuing a fuuking huge Fed subsidy, even though they’re only gonna build ‘demonstration’ numbers of the thing.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:14 pmWe all know that what’s really important, tho, is who was this guy associating with when he was 8????
October 6th, 2008 at 12:19 pmralph the wonder llama Says:
GM, Ford and Chrysler paid lip service to developing this new technology, and left the door wide open for Japanese car makers, who now dominate the American marketplace.
That’s just a flat failure of corporate leadership.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
_______
Thanks to people like Lutz, countries like India and China are going to jump way ahead of us in developing clean transportation and power-generation technology.
October 6th, 2008 at 12:41 pmGee, Bob, speaking of “Crocks of Sh*t”:
Apparently, denial is Lutz’z business strategy. Mr. Lutz is strapped to an anvil and banging his gums all the way down. Heckuva job, Bobby!
October 6th, 2008 at 12:48 pmguess what my next
car isn’t going to be?
*
October 6th, 2008 at 1:14 pmIf you happened to see the piece on 60 Minutes, they also interviewed Elon Musk, the head of Tesla Motors in Silicon Valley. Their electric cars are still really expensive, but this guy made Lutz look like a caveman.
October 6th, 2008 at 1:23 pmNo wonder GM is in such trouble! Maybe Lutz can “believe” his way out of the cocked up business plan they’ve developed over the years!
October 6th, 2008 at 1:42 pmSo, anyone think we should have voluntary industry-determined standards for green-house gas emmissions from automobiles? Anyone think that just “letting the market take care of it” is a good idea? Anyone???
I didn’t think so.
October 6th, 2008 at 2:02 pmThey don’t make ‘em executives cuz they’re smart.
October 6th, 2008 at 2:10 pmYes, by all means, let’s take our environmental cues from this guy.
October 6th, 2008 at 2:53 pmPut him in an LSD summer school…
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October 6th, 2008 at 3:01 pmLutz comes across like a stupid, inbred hick.
October 6th, 2008 at 3:18 pmMaybe Lutz hasn’t checked the price of his stock recently (around a whopping $8.00 per share and dropping). Even if global warming isn’t real (it is), a real capitalist(cynical or opportunist) would take advantage of the growing market demand for energy efficient and smart (hybrid, electric,hydrogen)cars.
This guy is either stubborn as hell or simply stupid. Maybe the shareholders should ouster him.
October 6th, 2008 at 3:19 pmI’d much rather have a Camaro than a Prius. And before anybody brings out the inevitable “must be compensating for a small wang” line… don’t, please don’t. No college kid in their right mind would decorate their dorm with a poster of a soulless POS Prius. And to anyone wanting to see GM go bankrupt, tell that to the hundreds of thousands of workers whose jobs depend on the auto industry.
October 6th, 2008 at 3:35 pm29. ferrarimanf355 Says: I’d much rather have a Camaro than a Prius…No college kid in their right mind would decorate their dorm with a poster of a soulless POS Prius.
Obviously, in prioritizing image over substance, you are compensating; much as are Hummer drivers. When republicans lack class, they try to buy it…like a pimps in cadillacs.
And to anyone wanting to see GM go bankrupt, tell that to the hundreds of thousands of workers whose jobs depend on the auto industry.
I’ll type this slowly for you, f-m: No one posted anything about wanting GM to go bankrupt. However, observing that Lutz is driving the company over a cliff via extreme shortsightedness and massive incompetence, thereby forcing those thousands of workers out of jobs, isn’t a criticism, it’s a probability due directly to Lutz’s craptacular judgment. You bias, however, is apparent when you read your prejudices into others’ posts.
CLutz’s judgment further revealed in his global warming ignorance, though he could still serve a useful purpose: have the board secure his view on the next trend; at least then they’d know, at all costs, what not to do…
October 6th, 2008 at 5:33 pm#29: Must be compensating for a small wang.
October 6th, 2008 at 5:38 pm#29: Tell the hundreds of thousands of auto industry workers that their myopic Vice Chairman is running their jobs into the ground.
October 6th, 2008 at 5:40 pmbob hussein lablah Says: #29 Must be compensating for a small wang.
Wow. ferrarimanf355 even asked “please” not to bring that up. You’re a hard man, Bob!
Speaking of hard, ferrarimanf355 must not be lately if he needs a Camaro to compensate…
*rimshot*
Thankyewthankyewverrymuch…
October 6th, 2008 at 5:45 pmhanshiro Says:
Wow. ferrarimanf355 even asked “please” not to bring that up. You’re a hard man, Bob!
Yes, that’s why I drive a Prius. (rimshot)
Sorry to reiterate your points in #30, by the way. I thought you nailed it.
October 6th, 2008 at 5:52 pmGreat job, GM, promoting people who have such foresight, and their finger on the pulse of what people need.
October 6th, 2008 at 7:16 pmAnd BY THE WAY Ferrariman:
ferrarimanf355 Says:No college kid in their right mind would decorate their dorm with a poster of a soulless POS Prius.
Soulless? I advise you to go find a soul. And just so you know, money ain’t gonna buy it like it did your wang-compensating Camaro or Ferrari or whatever you drive.
October 6th, 2008 at 11:22 pmbob hussein lablah, I asked politely not to have that pop up, and you ignored me. Great way to miss the point of where I was going, jackass.
October 7th, 2008 at 2:46 pm