On Monday, BizPacReview posted an article detailing an ongoing problem with the supply chain crisis and automobile manufacturing.
The article reports:
As congressional leaders refuse to get out of the way and allow the free market to sort out the supply chain issues, instead quibbling over legislative responses that will most benefit them, American consumers are faced with ongoing degradation of the quality and quantity of available goods that may put lives in jeopardy.
Though many industries have bounced back since the COVID pandemic response rocked global supply chains, the semiconductor chip shortage has gone unresolved leaving auto manufacturers scrambling for solutions to maintain vehicle production. Where at first, amenities like heated seats and touchscreen displays couldn’t make the cut, Fox Business reported that some car companies have resorted to the removal of optional safety features like blind spot monitoring systems, semi-automated driver aids, and proximity alerts sensors.
“Automakers are in a tight spot when the materials aren’t available for some of the safety technology,” Jessica Cicchino, Insurance Institute of Highway Safety vice president of research, told the outlet. “It really shifts the burden on the consumers who are already having a hard time shopping for a car.”
The article notes that many of the current safety features in cars that save lives are having to be eliminated. Heated seats may be considered a luxury, but some of the proximity alerts sensors save lives.
The article also notes the insider trading aspect of this crisis:
However, lawmakers’ latest move to address the shortage through the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act, looked more to be a blatant display of insider trading than an aim to solve the problem. As previously reported, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) husband Paul Pelosi had purchased 20,000 shares of Nvidia, a leading manufacturer of semiconductors, ahead of a vote on the bill that would see the largest portion of a $52 billion handout handed over to the company.
What an amazing coincidence.