GM May End up in Bankruptcy Anyway

Glad we poured all that money down that rathole:

DETROIT (AP) -- General Motors Corp.'s auditors have raised "substantial doubt" about the troubled automaker's ability to continue operations.
The company revealed the concerns, raised by the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche LLP, in its annual report filed on Thursday.

GM has received $13.4 billion in federal loans as it tries to survive the worst auto sales climate in 27 years. It is seeking a total of $30 billion from the government. During the past three years it has piled up $82 billion in losses, including $30.9 billion in 2008.

GM says in its report that its auditors cited recurring losses from operations, stockholders' deficit and an inability to generate enough cash to meet its obligations in raising substantial doubts about its ability to continue as a going concern.

What's happening in the auto industry today? Take a look at this item from the Dilbert blog:

How bad is the economy? My wife and I have been shopping for a vehicle this week, out of necessity. I didn't see another prospective buyer at the dealerships we visited. Not one. It was a hassle trying to test drive vehicles because the batteries were dead, and even the electronic keys didn't work because they hadn't been used for so long.

He didn't indicate the manufacturers he visited, but it may not matter. I think most of them are struggling at this point.

I've said all along that we would have been better off putting GM through bankruptcy so that some of their problems, like ridiculous union contracts, could be set aside and renegotiated. Too bad we had to waste so much money before it became obvious that bankruptcy was the only way out.