“As GM goes, so goes the nation.” the old adage goes. So perhaps it’s not surprising that with the United States economy teetering on a precipice amidst record high oil prices, that Merrill Lynch analysts described a General Motors bankruptcy as “not impossible” yesterday. The Wall Street investment bank said that the American automaker could need to raise up $15 Billion in capital to stay solvent should the auto market continue to slump. In accompanying news GM’s share price slumped to a 54-year low on the New York Stock Exchange Wednesday.

Honestly, I’m having a hard time feeling bad about this. GM is now experiencing what’s commonly known as a market correction. The company that for years pushed big, boxy, unconscionably low mileage SUVs onto the American market and stifled any sort of innovation whatsoever when it came to fuel efficiency in their cars is now getting the brunt of what analysts for years have been predicting; increased demand and declining supply in the oil market. Who could miss the GM of today? Gone is the ‘57 Chevy and the other dream cars of America’s postwar boom with their gorgeous tailfins and brilliant designs. In their place we’re given gas guzzler boxes with lower average mileage than even Chinese automakers produce.

Perhaps this will be the wake up call that GM needs to finally move off their decades old business model and into a cleaner, brighter, more profitable future. Until that time comes though you can takepart in finding the environmentally responsible cars of today on AutoBlog Green.

Forbes: Merrill says GM bankruptcy possible, shares drop

CNNMoney: 2nd UPDATE:Merrill:GM Needs $15 Billion,Bankruptcy ‘Not Impossible’

SmartMoney: Merrill: GM bankruptcy “not impossible”