I am constantly amazed (even stupefied) by the capacity of human beings to frequently do the wrong thing.
I refer to the lemming-type reaction to the current Toyota debacle. It appears that hysteria and panic, and maybe even greed on the part of those filing lawsuits, rules the day.
Some of us recall the Ford Pinto fiasco in the 1970s, when more than 1.5 million vehicles were recalled for problems associated with exploding gas tanks from rear-end collisions. This, of course, was very serious, but Ford survived, even prospered.
Those who would have Toyota written off are a little premature. Toyota will come back stronger than ever. It seems, however, that not too much has been learned from past mistakes in the field of damage control. Toyota tried to manage this event in the best interests of its customers, and the company, but they were torpedoed by the media, to some degree, and by the U.S. and other governments.
In a few years, this event will become a textbook example on how things can get out of control at the speed of light and how things should not be done.
