The Spamden Resolution
Posted at 4:46 AM on March 31, 2009
by Dale Connelly
(42 Comments)
Official Press Release
Wendell Wilkie High School Student Council
Bubby Spamden, press secretary
Monica Hooper, president
Abdul Muhammed, vice president
Jake Spivley, secretary / treasurer
The Wendell Wilkie High School Student Council today voted mostly unanimously with one dissenter (who always says cool stuff is "not practical") to approve the following resolution to go to the President of the United States, immediately.
WHEREAS, we, the people of the United States of America pretty much own all of General Motors or soon we will, and the same with Chrysler, which has a lot of minivans but oh, well. ...And WHEREAS most of us in High School who are looking for summer jobs right now have to compete with our grandparents and our unemployed moms and dads who are showing up to all the same interviews at fast food places and movie theaters ...
And WHEREAS, we, the students of Wendell Wilkie High School will have to work most, if not all of our lives to pay back the debts that have been run up in the past few years, and this year, and on and on into the future ...
And WHEREAS, if the Baby Boomers ever do retire we'll have to listen to them complain about how worthless we are while we take care of them ...
And WHEREAS, all these conditions combined make it seem like we're probably going to have miserable lives and will look back on our teenage years as the golden times when we were young and beautiful, especially right now with summer coming and most of us likely to have lots and lots of free time to kill ...
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Wendell Wilkie High School Student Council believes the U.S. Government, under the direction of President Barack Obama, should use the bailout money being given to American Auto Companies to give every American 16 year old a new car on his or her birthday. This free gift should be given to 16 year olds this year and every year following until General Motors and Chrysler run out of all the extra cars they made and can't sell, or are back on their feet, or defunct, or owned by Fiat, or whatever.
FURTHERMORE, these cars should come with no strings attached, and should be solely for the purpose of cruising around and having fun and being teenagers who are free go to the beach and to hang out in parking lots and to totally dig rock and roll, which is a very American way to be and is, in fact, one major part of our culture that makes us the envy of the world, if we still, in fact, are.
"We're really serious about this," said Bubby Spamden, press secretary for the WWHSSC and author of what is being called 'The Spamden Resolution'.
"The president really had the support of our age group even though a lot of us weren't able to vote for him (or anyone) in the last election on account of being underage, but things will be different in 2012 so he'd better pay attention."
WWHSSC president Monica Hooper elaborated on these points, but basically agreed with Mr. Spamden, though in a more wordy and not so hardball-like way, politically-speaking.
Vice president Abdul Muhammed also echoed Mr. Spamden's sentiments, adding that the teenage car giveaway program should be run by a government appointed czar. "Oprah knows how to give stuff away because she does it all the time, and it would totally rock if she was the one who handed me the keys."
"The Spamden Resolution is super-historic," said Mr. Spamden, "because it would be so cool if the president really went along with it. And it goes without saying that it would make the author of the resolution some kind of hero for 16 year olds for probably, like, forever."
Comments (42)
probably makes as much sense as anything, Bubby. it's the "chicken in every pot" thing only, like, cooler. but i'd like to add one stipulation: that it'd be nice if these cars and the owners would transport us oldsters to and from our jobs at McBurger. jobs we'll probably have well into our 90s.
"Here Comes the Sun" - Richie Havens would be cheering this morning, please, Dale. thanks
and good morning to All
Morning Heartlanders. I know what Bubby feels like -- because I'm feeling like I've woken up to a cruel world as well. I'm originally from St. Louis, where March almost always goes out like a lamb. No matter than it's been decades since I've lived there, I still think the end of March if the time for spring to truly begin. It's a morning for comfort music I think. I'd love to hear Stan Rogers doing "Mary Ellen Carter" this morning - always makes me feel a little stronger to face a cold, rainy, sleety day!
Greetings Heartlanders:
Since teenagers get their car for free, may as well forgive all mortgages and just give us our houses for free -- seeing as how they've all lost half their value, the mortgage is more than the house is worth and can't be sold anyway.
Somehow, I just don't think it's that simple, but it's a nice thought, Bubby. I'm in need of serious cheering up today -- how about the Bobs or Beau Soleil?
Have a great day everyone!
Go Bubby!!! As good a plan as any! I agree with the need for comfort music today, Beau Soleil will do just fine. Good morning to all.
thanks for the sun music, Dale and Mike - and "Green" always makes me cry, but in a happy way. bet it helps poor Sherrilee think of spring soon. comfort music needed indeed.
i think Joanne needs her "funky" song....
Good morning!
Does anyone remember their car when they were 16?
Growing up in a family with several older brothers, all I remember is hand-me down cars. The first being a blue 74 Ford station wagon---a hand-me down from my mother! That gal liked new cars, too (Dad had new Mercs every year from work).
My 14 year old thinks a new car would be cool---as long as it's not a minivan.
I think they should all get little pick-ups (then we could borrow them to haul manure for the WH Gardens West).
Just received the recording of the last radio show from RH ancestor. It was wonderful to hear the songs I missed when I gave up my seat at the Fitz to go eat pancakes.
Go shake seed packets today--think planting season!
Good morning RH,
Yea - give those 16 yr. old cars, but first develop a competency test they have to pass. Let boomers take it as well. I want a new car too, damn it! Think I could outscore Bubby? Lora - don't answer that!
Anytime you could play, "I'm a Hog for You", I'd take it!
I-hay ay-Kay H.
That song totally does it for me! Mercy boo coo Dale!
Good Morning...slow going here...rain/sleet/snow blowing out of the east. The birds are hunkered down close to the seeds on the ground.
The first car I drove was a 1950 Ford...I think. I also remember a 1950 something Mercury with a stick shift that I learned to drive in a desperate move to get to the A & W Drive In...back streets jerking along...parents weren't home.
The first car I actually owned was a red Falcon convertible I named "Independence" --- sold it sometime in the 80s with 150,000 miles on it for the same price as I paid for it.
Hunkering down myself...do I drive into to work or not?
The alphabet of positive words is sticking. Started the day with a gift from a coworker of an Angel so that meant I better concentrate on the rest of the alphabet -got to G ( plus O for oatmeal, W for walnuts but seemed like C had way too many candidates)
I too brought a baby chick home from embryology class- turned into a big barred rock hen named Esmeralda. She was sweet but I had lost the urge for training. Will check out the links.
If every teen gets a car then A&W and frozen custard stands should also grow their business. I did not have a car as a teen, but had to negotiate borrowing the family car. Love Beau Soleil and Neal and Leandra esp their song Rich played at the Morning Show finale.
Thanks for Beau Soleil, Dale -- and some more French Cajun music! Great stuff -- I'm starting to feel a little better now. Thanks for thinking of me, Barb.
Sometimes, I think I pick up everyone else's sadness, depression and fear in these uncertain times, because I don't normally feel this way. Cheers everyone!
My first car was a 70s vintage Honda Civic (the ones that look like a high-top tennis shoe) - it was a rust bucket, but it got 35+ MPG, and better on the highway. I miss that car...not exactly a Little Deuce Coupe, but a good little car. (And I didn't get my own car 'til college - not like these whipper snappers who insist on a new car at 16...maybe my life would be different if my brother would have given me his '66 Mustang as soon as I got my license - not new, but woulda been pretty cool.)
Speaking of - any chance we can get some Beach Boys to brighten the gray icky day? I only caught the tail end of the Beau Soleil. Thanks!
Thanks for taking Bubby's declaration in this interesting direction, Bob.
The car I drove at 16 was a gold Chevy pick up truck, bench seat, manual transition.
This came after the gold Chevy Corvair that I wrecked by driving it in front of a Plumbing and Heating van. I think my parents wanted to put me in something a little tougher that was able to take a direct hit.
It's nice to have some rainy, grey weather. It makes it easier to stay inside and just look out the window while trying to make sense of nonsense- nonsense like mandatory days off combined with mandatory overtime. I suppose that makes sense in someone's world. Is there a song for cognitive dissonance?
back in from the barn where the goats are ordering popcorn and movies for a snowy day. if you need an excuse to stay home, i think you can purchase one Cynthia..... how about "the coyotes ate my tires" ?
i didn't get my first car until i was 19 but my friend and i dreamed of buying a 53 Studebaker and putting a 57 Cadillac engine in it. i remember when we were in the TC for a school clothing trip or something that she and i stole away to the Studebaker dealership, i think on Hennepin or somewhere near Dayton's, to oogle the cars we loved. never happened but we sure had fun dreaming while i drove my parents 1960 Ford Galaxy (NOT a hardtop, so embarrassing) which had no guts at all. we always took the hubcaps off when we got away from the house a bit so that it would look a little more cool.
My first car was a 1969 Pontiac Station Wagon. I bought it from my grandfather for $200. All my friends wanted to ride around in it..very spacious and solid. Grandpa was a Funeral Director, and had used it to pick up business. My friends seemed to think that was fascinating. I'll bet that Bubby could find it in a used lot somewhere.
If car's could talk...oh, the stories it would tell.
Keep dreaming, Bubby.
Thanks Dale and Mike for great music, 24/7.
As someone just too young be one of the greatest generation and just too old to be a Boomer, I'm with Bubby in being impatient with generational cohorts bragging about themselves or complaining about people younger or older than they are. And I think today's teenagers probably deserve some breaks, since their parents are probably boomers.
However, I think those of us who are neither the greatest or the boomerest, ought to get the new cars and Bubby and his buddies get cars like the 11-year-old Mazda sedan that I'd give up for a new Buick.
I just remembered my first car (I think) -- kind of bought/took/inherited it from my parents when I moved out of house. It was a blue Omega sedan -- was it an Oldsmobile/Buick thing? Car makes and models are meaningless to me unless they're exquisitely cool (think Mustang or Corvette).
Another interesting car I had after getting married, we bought a junker '67 Buick LeSabre (nearly 15 years old when we bought it). It was a tank with a "stonewashed" looking red exterior and bench seats -- the kind of car you can cuddle w/sweetie while he's driving, hang fuzzy dice and generally cruise around with. Nobody messes with you when you drive a car like that -- because it's obvious a few scrapes and dents don't matter, that 8-cyclinder Buick would win in any race to a parking spot!and would crush any little import in its path.
It would have been a cool car to fix up and mint out, but that's not our thing. Good times ...
My first car was a brown 1965 Rambler Classic 660 with a 3-speed manual transmission on the column. The dashboard was all metal. I was so proud because I paid for it myself with my caddy earnings and it cost a whopping $300. This car was famous for having the front seats that folded down to make a bed but on mine the driver side was broken and wouldn't fold down.
Just remembered -- that '67 Buick was more like 25 years old, because after a while we were able to buy cheaper plates; because after a certain amount of time you can get collector plates or something like that.
Oh yes, now I remember, I wrecked that Mercury...light blue...when my history teacher's wife ran into me. I still had just a learner's permit with a friend "guiding" me...I got a C that term...
Thanks, Dale, for that memory refreshed. (smile)
The first car I drove was my parents' '56 Chevy Bel Air.
I didn't have a car of my own until I bought a '68 Fiat 850 Spyder. The 850 in the name stood for 850cc engine. Tiny, cool convertible and it got over 40 mpg on the highway. It also was very sensitive to cold and damp weather. I got stuck in Marshall during a blizzard and, once I had it towed to a garage, had to pull, clean, and dry all 4 spark plugs myself since no there knew enough Italian to deal with the engine.
The car also had severe electrical problems. Fuses kept blowing. The St. Paul dealer put in bigger fuses.
One day, I found two big bolts in the driveway beneath the car. Turned out they were supposed to be holding the transmission in place.
I hope Fiat quality has improved. Doesn't sound like the kind of partner that Chrysler needs. But the Daimler connection didn't seem to help much.
The car that I drove when I was 16 was a hot 1956 Mercury. My dad had died by then but his last purchased car remained in the family. It was the car that I drove from Alexandria to Saint Paul in under two hour before the interstate existed. And this clearly indicates a serious problem with under 25s and automobiles.
Good Morning!
I learned to drive on a bright red Chrysler that was total while parked (I had nothing to do with it). I think it was my dad's midlife crisis but it was a pretty snappy car but I didn't have my own car until my mid twenties and it was an International pickup truck with a sliver geodesic dome on the back and I only took out the awning on one drive through with it and the truck didn't have a scratch.
I'm not so much a fan of the automobile, no surprise right? I would like to see at least some of the automakers manufacturing be turned over to bicycle manufacture! The bicycle improves health, has no emissions and doesn't contribute to our traffic problems.
Great set of tunes this morning!
Well I'm in favor of the idea that the cars given to 16 year olds should be pickups so that they could be borrow by their parents to haul stuff like manure for gardens as Bob suggest. It would also be good if the 16 year olds could take "oldster's" to their jobs at McBurger as Barb suggests. My wife thinks 16 year olds with new cars would make the roads preaty hazardous, but the would generate more work for car repair shops and insurance claim adjusters.
Good morning RH world,
My 'first' car was a 1971 VW Super Beetle. We traded it for the car I drove in college, then after I was out of college and back in Albert Lea working, I saw my VW sitting at a local repair shop for several weeks. I finally stopped and asked about it and was told the owner had decided not to fix it. $65 later, the car was back in my possession. I had a used engine put in it, it's still sort of driveable and rusty but currently in storage. I hope to restore it eventually.
BTW Joanne, the Omega was the Oldsmobile variant of the Chevy Nova - a friend of mine had a 2-door Omega - kind of the tail-end of the muscle car era.
First car was a 1975 orange AMC Hornet wagon (the wagon is what made it really cool) not really. I mostly remember the black and white "woven" seats that made your back look like a waffle in the summer.
Off topic, nice choice of the old B-52s song at 8:00. Nice stretching the play list a little.
Hi all,
My first car was my Grandma's '67 Plymouth Valiant. No heat and the doors didn't lock but it was built like a tank. My friends called it the 'Ben-mobile'...
We live on a farm so I had been driving since I was about 10? Learned stick on a '67 Chevy pickup; shift lever seemed to be 3' long or is that just fuzzy memory?
Our 16 year old son just inherited our 1990 Taurus Wagon and he's OK with that...
Fun stuff everyone!
I hope Bubby and his classmates have some source of income for gas. Dale and Mike, do you have any songs about "running on empty"? That's kinda how I'm feeling this morning at work.
On my way to the barn, but I have to comment on Jearlyn Steele (thanks for that tune, btw...in Duluth she sang it to a bald-headed man while rubbing his head)...She had another terrific concert in Houghton...so. if you are anywhere near Brainerd, go to see/hear her! Then at the Fitz!
She's the best.
Good day all, safe travelin' out there.
I grew up in Detroit and my first car was my grandmother’s; a 1963 Chrysler Newport with a V8 engine.
I loved that car….it was fast, I got a speeding ticket in Canada going 100 mph on the freeway!
Then the first car I bought was a 1972 Orange Super Beetle I drove that until the floor rusted out. That was after the engine was replaced and there was no heat for a couple of years, yikes it was cold……..
well, bubby, i think you're on to something with giving away the "extra" cars...but golly, you sure precipitated a boatload of "i remember when i was your age" nostalgia--eek!
i do think it would be better to have something for everyone, so let's have those car manufacturers convert to wind turbine production--new jobs! and get free long-term care insurance for the oldsters, and yeah, forgiven mortgages, that would be cool...and free preschools and books for the little ones, and and and....and take all the money for it away from those billionaires and millionaires and stop the wars and and and!
daydreaming and watching the snow fall as i consider getting to work now that i've had my blog fix...
I love hearing everyone's car stories. When I learned to drive, I pretty much had custody of my mom's beige VW beetle convertible. I'll never forget the night I got my license, way back in 1972. My mom gave me the keys and $5 and sent me off (in the rain) to get gas before I went to the movies with friends. I drove down to the Shell station and when the attendant came out (that's right kids, in the old days someone else pumped the gas!) I said to him "$5 or fill it up, whichever comes first." He laughed so hard I thought he was going to fall down - at the thought that anyone could think that you could even fit $5 of gas in a Beetle!
Kay...blog fix it is...Saturdays and Sundays are so lonely...
Is anyone else having trouble with the site holding "personal information"? It just won't do it for me.
My first was a '76 Pinto with Firestone radials...the model was known to be a firestarter if hit from behind, the tires were recalled due to blowouts, and with only $2 to spend on gas, I drove through high school and college on fumes-and-a-prayer. But it had mag wheels!
It was nice to meet so many of you at the Duos! I thought Mark was a bit odd when he offered me a goat picture in the car on the way over....
Cynthia -- I think that's more a function of your browser. Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox usually remember logins and passwords on different web sites you visit (depending on their security level). I'm not entirely sure, though.
Kay H - you are so right on! And, and, yeah, so cool! Right on!
Joanne...perhaps it is my browser...though I have Internet Explorer...should be good. Thanks for the suggestions.
I'm at work after a gruesome drive in...folks who can't remember or don't care how to drive when it is low visibility and slippery. Guess they had a twelve car plus school bus pile-up on I35 in Duluth...when I drove by there were only 3 cars left to tow away.
Happy spring storm.
Cynthia - go home now.
although all of this car stuff is entertaining and fun, it is eerily similar to the "reminisce" sessions at my 90 year old Mom's memory care assisted living! :-)
there you go, Boomers (my birth year was the very first of the boom, so i'm there with ya)
Ah, fun stories! My folks bought a 2nd car when I turned 16, a 1950 Plymouth (not unlike your firsts, Cynthia?), that we called the Tan Bomb. I only got in to two minor scrapes that first year, but was not allowed to drive the big beautiful 64 Chev. The first I owned was a 72 Beetle, Texas Yellow to show up in the San Francisco fog, and it cost $1995.
When our son was 14, we told him not to expect a gift car at 16, and he'd have to work and earn $ for one. He bought his first car for $75, a 91 Ford Escort that I later discovered was dubbed The Death Trap by his friends -- if you took a full 90 degree turn the back of the driver's seat would lie down flat... Guess that kind of backfired.
My first car was a used 1960 Chevy Biscayne complete with fins and a 6 banger that was great on gas... or so it seemed at that time. Plenty of room to pile in the gang and cruise the highways and byways of New England. Only problem was the salt and sea had rusted out the bottom of the Chev so it was mostly plywood and tattered bits of rust.
It seems that Mother Nature has her own stimulus package going on here in Red River Valley of the North. Our neighborhood in Moorhead may need some of those Detroit cars the kiddos are bidding for. Looks like the 09 flood will provide plenty of remodeling jobs, hardware purchases, appliances, and landscaping. Lord works in mysterious ways indeed. Thanks again to all our MN/ND/SD neighbors who have come over to help us out. You give us hope.
had to work yesterday so i missed this conversation
my first car was a 66 mustang, drove it my first 2 yrs at the U, then my parents gave it to my sister and she wrecked it - it was SO cool, had an 8 track tape player
then i bought my own car in 71, a baby toyota corolla, yellow, it cost $2000 and i loved it , it died when it hit a deer several yrs later
lots of other good car memories too, but it's crazy out there now and i try to drive as little as possible
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