the late 1970s is a good anchor point. By the end of that decade the country was engulfed in what sociologist Greta Krippner describes as a simultaneous social, fiscal, and legitimation crisis. The United States had overextended itself trying to manage both its domestic and overseas geopolitical projects. Military defeat, unrest at home and abroad, and increasing competition from European and Japanese firms led to skyrocketing inflation and rising unemployment.

Looking back at the past seventy years of production, both globally and in the United States, it is clear that the industry is never up nor down for long. Hypercompetitive battles to win customers in America’s “replacement” market and the current dominance of “localized” production models undergird a landscape of perpetual creative destruction.

The Left should resist the temptation to pronounce the present morass a foregone conclusion guaranteed by globalization or the internal drives of capitalism or competition.

Situating the auto-industry restructuring in the context of multiple intersecting processes — globalization, neoliberalism, and financialization — also highlights the central role of class struggle.

Situating the auto-industry restructuring in the context of multiple intersecting processes — globalization, neoliberalism, and financialization — also highlights the central role of class struggle.

Yet the feeling that the working class is lucky for the crumbs it gets is ubiquitous; the neoliberal mantra of “there is no alternative” shows no signs of quieting.