In a piece I wrote earlier this week, I openly grieved over the way I feel America has unfairly ridiculed the giant auto maker Toyota and exploited a recent rash of recalls. I also stated on Chattanoogan.com that I thought Toyota's greatest strength was the simple fact the company makes what many believe are the safest and most reliable cars in the world.

I was wrong. I am now convinced that Toyota's greatest "trump card," the one thing that will determine a brilliant rebound and further solidify its position as the largest automobile manufacturer in the world, is its people. Oh, the cars are every bit as well-made and consistently trustworthy as I stated, but I was hardly prepared for the stunning response my recent opinions have stirred from those who know the company best - its own employees.

After I've received hundreds of emails from enough different states to assure me the response was neither a public-relations ploy nor an organized attempt to further curry favor, I can safely say that Toyota is today darn-near invincible. What company president Akio Toyoda doesn't yet realize is that when he was bashed last week at a congressional hearing, there were literally hundreds of thousands of his very own people who, to use a military term, "had his back" during each and every moment of the ordeal.

The humble and gracious Akio held a huge rally in Japan on Friday at what he called "An Urgent Meeting For All Toyota." He wore a gray workman's jacket and, in a voice racked with emotion, he told 2,000 assembled workers and a far-greater audience that was gathered in front of live television monitors around the world, "Let's go with high spirits, have fun, and be confident while staying humble. We are making a (new) start today."

I love that, so help me I do, but what he doesn't know is that in the past few days my email is already threatening to tilt. The stories I have written have wound their way onto the Internet and been focused by Google, Yahoo and other huge search engines. Brother, the loyalty and dedication to Toyota is nothing short of magnificent and it is so powerful it defies description.

Several asked me if I was a stock holder, if I owned a Toyota. I do not. Then why take a stand? My history will show my mantra was forged long ago when I found I could speak out for the underdog, take up for the struggler, reach for the fallen. I am convinced Toyota has been wronged, this despite acknowledging evidence there have been issues with gas pedals, floor mats, transmissions, leaky oil lines or whatever.

Making cars is just like anything else. Any company in the world that makes millions of anything in a given year is going to constantly be faced with challenges. That's how life works, no matter the venue. But the greater fact is that Toyota, just like Ford and General Motors and Honda, for example, will recognize its faults and fix them.

Sadly, I suspect there was more to the hysteria than the recalls, that some scurrilous souls probably poured some political gasoline to the fire. Be that as it may, what matters is the end result and there is no doubt, in any opinion I can find anywhere, that Toyota will quickly emerge even stronger and even better.

But what has absolutely boggled me is the flood of gratitude I have received from Toyota dealers, factory workers, systems engineers, schedulers and others from all across the country. I even got an email from a company executive in Jacksonville, Fla., who wrote, "and, by the way, I rented a garage apartment from you 21 years ago when I was a student at Covenant College."

Among my emails were others who urged me to "Buy American," to not overlook the valiant efforts General Motors is making and Ford's recent triumphs. I heartily agree, but, in my way of thinking, when 175,000 Americans are employed each day by Toyota and the company continues to invest literally billions of dollars in our nation, only a fool - or a misguided member of Congress - would fail to recognize such a significance.

During yesterday's "Urgent Meeting," North American president Jim Lentz warned the determined Toyota workers to prepare for criticism during "the long road ahead." His remarks were met by a near-universal feeling among the gathered company loyalists like Hideki Watanabe, a 51-year-old Lexus engineer, who told the Associated Press minutes afterward, "It breaks my heart to think that the cars we are making to bring joy to people might cause sorrow and accidents."

From the email I have received, the engineer's comments were echoed in a seemingly continuous stream because the American workers' concern is equal to that on public display in Japan; every single employee is united in the "fun" yet fierce determination to build great cars.

Not just that, the immense pride they all share in wearing the Toyota patch is obvious and, thusly, that spirit is so wonderfully refreshing at a time when America's greater workforce sometimes appears lackadaisical and more engaged in management-versus-workers arrogance or the very real dread of more crippling layoffs.

Finally, it has been repeatedly pointed out almost 60 people have allegedly died over a six-year period from various malfunctions. I feel Toyota has made it quite clear this is not only unacceptable but tragic if, indeed, the company is to blame. But it took our nation's eye off the fact that during the same time frame a reported 267,000 Americans have died due to a lack of health insurance.

No, I haven't any answer for the health insurance dilemma, but rather than find a blemish on another's face, our time and effort would be far better served if we let the biggest automobile manufacturer in the world rely on its own triumphant army to solve its problems while we maintain focus on our own.

Toyota's loyalty, pride and earnest concern has touched me deeply this week. I believe that same unfailing spirit is what makes America what it is today and for us to try "to fix it" is, quite frankly, not who we are.

royexum@aol.com