Of course, the picture is very different if you compare it to what would happen if all the 2001-2010 tax cuts had been allowed to disappear.

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Speaking in balmy Palm Desert California, this week, Nardelli said that if you judged by consumer demand, Chrysler and Ford Motor could disappear with minimal disruption to the car market, and few tears shed by bailout-weary taxpayers.

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If you slide your observation period forward or back, those bad returns often disappear fast.

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But you know, that's if the entire industry were just to disappear tomorrow.

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"You need to go with your own gut instincts and not let people around you push you into things, particularly if they're consultants, because when the campaign's over, they disappear, " Huckabee said.

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