BringBackThatOleTimeBoys
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A little background first.
General Motors had 54% of all car sales in the 1950s. By the time of the bailout (TARP) - it was 15%. What is amazing is it took nearly 50 years for mismanagement to catchup with them. They had a string of lemons:
How did GM cope with their shortcomings? Spin, spin, spin. Told everybody the Suburban was the new Impala - found ways to put whipped cream on cow chips. Times in the 90's were good enough they could ignore they bought Accords and Camrys instead. GM execs prayed $1.50 a gallon gas and cheap interest rates would go indefinitely - it came to a screeching halt in 2008. They did not even have a contingency plan and in a face-losing reversal begged for a bail out. The board and the CEO changed along with the culture.
Most companies can't remotely coast for fifty years downhill and survive. GM had great customer loyalty, but eventually it ran out. Apple might be able to coast longer than most, but not nearly as long.
If it's not already obvious, Jerry Jones is taking advantage of the Cowboys fan base. Fans live in the past of a storied history, but it's been 20 years since the last SB with a team that has been .500 since - a bigger fan base than the Yankees, Bulls, Manchester United, Packers, Steelers, Patriots. They have done nothing to earn it lately, but Jerry thinks spin, spin, spin, and soap opera will keep fans coming.
Like GM, it may take a long time but people will tire of this. They younger generation will not remember the championship days, Staubach and Lilly may be dead - they will follow somebody else. They will conclude this team is just like the Browns or Jaguars, only in a larger market with a nice stadium. The hubis will eventually end.
General Motors had 54% of all car sales in the 1950s. By the time of the bailout (TARP) - it was 15%. What is amazing is it took nearly 50 years for mismanagement to catchup with them. They had a string of lemons:
- Corvair
- Vega
- diesel Olds (many would assume all diesel cars would be like GM's for years)
- The front-wheel drive cars of the early 80's that fell apart
- The Caviler pretending to be a Cadillac Cimeron (sp)
- Not using the EV1 tech to either put out the Volt a decade earlier or pioneer hybrid/EV tech in fleet vehicles...Toyota fearfully rushed out the Prius in response
- Gave up on the sedan and compact market
How did GM cope with their shortcomings? Spin, spin, spin. Told everybody the Suburban was the new Impala - found ways to put whipped cream on cow chips. Times in the 90's were good enough they could ignore they bought Accords and Camrys instead. GM execs prayed $1.50 a gallon gas and cheap interest rates would go indefinitely - it came to a screeching halt in 2008. They did not even have a contingency plan and in a face-losing reversal begged for a bail out. The board and the CEO changed along with the culture.
Most companies can't remotely coast for fifty years downhill and survive. GM had great customer loyalty, but eventually it ran out. Apple might be able to coast longer than most, but not nearly as long.
If it's not already obvious, Jerry Jones is taking advantage of the Cowboys fan base. Fans live in the past of a storied history, but it's been 20 years since the last SB with a team that has been .500 since - a bigger fan base than the Yankees, Bulls, Manchester United, Packers, Steelers, Patriots. They have done nothing to earn it lately, but Jerry thinks spin, spin, spin, and soap opera will keep fans coming.
Like GM, it may take a long time but people will tire of this. They younger generation will not remember the championship days, Staubach and Lilly may be dead - they will follow somebody else. They will conclude this team is just like the Browns or Jaguars, only in a larger market with a nice stadium. The hubis will eventually end.
