by Esteban Camacho

The “Cash for Clunkers” program is officially over, and the American public has questioned if it had any success. Well, in my opinion, it did… and it didn’t. The world of economics is a complex one, and because of this, it is quite difficult to state anything as 100% correct in the field of economics.

Once the clunkers program came to an end, I began to think more about the ideals of the American company. Noting that over 75% of all cars sold from the program were of foreign make, it struck me that perhaps Americans have forgotten about the successes of their own domestic companies and businesses.

Well, here I am to name just a few and also to compare between that of the foreign make and domestic make. Since cash for clunkers is what led me to write this, I will be focusing mainly on the automotive market. When I say successes of the American company, I mean the modern American company.

There are those that point out the success of our private markets by noting key innovations in the 1960′s. I respect this, yes, but for the efforts of an argumentative essay, the modern American company will be in focus. Take note that it is a global economy, and companies from different countries rely on each other to essentially survive, so the Japanese or Chinese company is still very important to our economic system here in the United States.

Ford and General Motors are great companies. Ones that know how to satisfythe American market with their respective makes and models, as well as maintaining innovation that is above the standard in the vehicle manufacturing areas.

Throughout the past decade or so, the American market has asked for strong, reliable, quality trucks and SUV’s. As always, the American company delivered with top of the line V8 engines that moved the market. Ford’s own line of F-150′s became even stronger in the past decade as the company introduced vast improvements to the line of trucks. Also, GM released new and improved versions of their Sierra and Silverado engines and trucks.

When one tries to compare an American truck vs. one of foreign make and model, the quality and strength differences are apparent. Just recently, Ford and GM both revamped their truck lines, offering a more fuel efficient line up of trucks. What surprises me is the lack of confidence that the American public has about their own corporations. In my knowledge and research, I have found our trucks and SUV’s to be better in nearly every way than our foreign competitors trucks and SUV’s.

Take for example the Honda Ridgeline. A truck whose consumer cost is comparable to that of our American ones, and yet offers much less performance. It’s V-6 engine cannot tow or carry much in the ways of pounds, and it’s 21 mile per gallon rating is equally as unimpressive when compared to our standard trucks. The Ford F-150 now achieves 20-21 miles per gallon in a V-8 engine in their 2009 model (20 in their 2008 and below), and a maximum tow rating of 11,300 pounds which the Honda cannot hope to match.

The GMC Sierra and Silverado offer similar tow ratings with V-8 engines, and also a 20-21 miles per gallon rating. The Toyota tundra, which is the size of an F-250, offers tow and capacity performance that are worse than the F-150 and GMC 1500, and also offers the same 20-21 mile per gallon rating. The engineering, features, price, value, and efficiency all goes to American companies.In the car segment, which has become the most popular in recent months, the American market has asked for one major feature: efficiency.

Ford Motor Company recently released the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, the most fuel efficient mid-size sedan in the United States, averaging 41 miles per gallon of city driving. Also, the battery technology in the vehicle can power acceleration up to 48 miles per hour. The Honda Civic Hybrid, a compact sedan, comparable mileage even though the car is considerably smaller.

Also, both the Honda Civic Hybrid and Toyota Camry Hybrid achieve up to 28 miles per hour of acceleration. Bravo Ford. General Motor’s introduction of the Chevy Volt is so revolutionary, it is challenging the standard “miles per gallon” measurement, and pushing the creation of a new standard: Miles per Kilowatt.

When translated into miles per gallon, the Environmental Protection Agency has converted the kilowatt hours into an amazing mileage: 230 miles per gallon. Of course, this can greatly vary based on the amount of driving per day, however, the idea is the innovation in battery power of the American company. Lets also mention a few other types of markets.

The Apple iPhone has become the biggest mobile device IN THE WORLD, selling millions of units every time a new model is launched. The foreign cell phone markets do not match the innovation of the markets here in the Unites Stated, and they will not match the efficiency of the device.

Japanese cell phones are feature-rich, and technologically advanced phones, yes, but the efficiency of the devices is considered very low, and user interface sluggish. This is the reason Japanese phones have not hit the world market yet. Palm Inc. has also posted several kinds of innovations just recently with the introduction of their webOS platform.

The innovation comes from a smartphone operating system that does not rely on a computer as it’s host, but instead uses the large information “cloud” to gather different information. It uses the internet, or what I call the “modern invisible hand” to allow different sources to put information into one device and one view. Genius. Microsoft is the leading software company in the world with their Windows line.

Not only are they known as this, but Microsoft constantly reshapes the computing world with newer, more powerful innovations in software technology. Google is a world leader in the computing world as well, strategically placing releases of their technological advances in places that are needed most.

Their innovations with cloud computing will be used for years by both domestic and foreign markets. In fact, I doubt there is any industrialized country in the world whose population does not know the word “google.” Intel and AMD put considerable advances into microprocessing technologies.

This is very important since without this, cell phones, laptops, and other mobile devices would be unheard of. Intel especially is a world leader in microprocessing chips and technology, and I’m sure their innovation is unmatched anywhere in the world. In contemporary America, it seems like the common man is now under the influence of Japan.

I mention Japan especially because it seems like that is where the market looks towards. Now, all we see is bias and propaganda for the support of foreign markets. I do understand that some of the labor and money does remain in the states, however, it helps most when the money trail ends in this country.

Esteban G. Camacho is a contributor to HipHopRepublican.com he was born in 1989 in Bayamon, Puerto Rico. There he lived in a lower class family with his single mother for 11 years before moving to the contiguous states. Esteban became involved with politics when he reached his senior year of high school. When he got to college, he immediately pursued further education in the fields of government and economics. A staunch conservative and an advocate of the free market economies of the world, Esteban spends his time researching political backgrounds, economic titles such as Wealth of Nations, and strengthening his conservative base. Esteban believes in personal responsibility, individual liberty, equal opportunity, and in the American dream. Among his favorite quotes is: “What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?” Esteban resides in Las Cruces, New Mexico and is currently pursuing a degree in Political Science.

Esteban’s YouTube Video Page - http://www.youtube.com/user/ConservativeE