Say goodbye to the "GM" badge. You know that little square on the quarter panel that reminded all Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC and Pontiac owners that they were part of one big happy General Motors family?

The General has decided that the general public might not see that as much of a plus these days, so it's planning on slowly phasing out the small silver squares. Few people are likely to notice, but the fact that GM is that conscious of its public image says quite a bit about where the company is right now.