Keeping an eye on GM over the weekend:
I read:
“Deadline passes for GM bondholders”
Sat May 30, 2009 7:28pm EDT
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN3044658620090530
Hmmm. Logical, if bondholders had wanted a company stake they likely would have bought stock - not bonds.
But then I read:
“GM Bondholders Approve Plan, Paving Way for Bankruptcy”
http://www.cnbc.com/id/31027525
Reuters and AP | 31 May 2009 | 09:54 AM ET
If they had done so according to the deadline, wouldn’t GM be releasing press statements instead of “…GM refuses to comment on bondholder decision.” Apparently the businessmen ignored the “deadline” and made an agreement over night…
Then it was Sunday and:
“GM’s Bankruptcy Plan Wins Support From Majority of Bondholders”
May 31, 2009 12:54 EDT
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=avrrLPvtmg7k&refer=home
However…
Only 54 percent bondholder’s “accepted” (link: representing only $14.6 billion). Typical chapter 11 filings are approved by holders of two-thirds of the claims and a majority of the number of individual creditors who vote.
Then I did some math…
Creditors hold $27 billion in bonds, for which they will own 10% of the new company.
So, bond holders paid $2.7 billion for every percent of ownership they’ll receive.
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The US and Canadian governments have (or will) invest $50 billion, for which they will own 60%.
So, the government paid $834 million for every percent of ownership they’ll receive.
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The UAW’s VESA is owed approximately $20 billion, but according to the filing, they will receive $9 Billion in notes and preferred stock - total investment $11 billion. for which they will own 17.5%.
So, the UAW “paid” $629 million for each percent of ownership…
I am left with questions…
Does this plan equitably accommodate all of the company’s STAKE holders?
Does this seem like outside influences may have been at work?
Does this seem like a huge warning to bond holders the world over?
If a union’s primary job is to represent workers, can they do so as management?
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THB
Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy, John Roberts, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, are all Roman Catholic.
If Sonia Sotomayor is confirmed as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, six of the nine justices will be Roman Catholic.
In her words she “was raised Catholic and attends church for family celebrations and special events.” Of course, she is divorced…
In spite of everything going on in North Korea, Joseph Nye, former assistant secretary of defense, and specialist on the Japan-U.S. security alliance has been snubbed as nominee…
Instead, John Roos, a virtually unknown lawyer & “…one of Obama’s top fundraisers during his presidential campaign…” has been submitted.
“…The Japanese media have reacted to the Roos nomination by calling it a “ronkokosho,” a reward post given by Obama for his support during the presidential campaign…”
So I looked.
My conclusion is that Bill Clinton’s “nomination” puts another nail in the coffin of U.S. sovernty. Que Bono?
—
HIS NOMINATION WAS U.N., not U.S.
UNITED NATIONS - UN CHIEF Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday named Bill Clinton as his special envoy to Haiti, a choice immediately hailed by the former president’s wife, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/World/Story/A1Story20090520-142706.html
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From Monkeys With Typewriters, definition of Ambassador <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambassador> EMPHASIS MINE:
“…An ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary is the highest ranking diplomat who REPRESENTS HIS OR HER COUNTRY. They are usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of their country…”
“…RANKING BELOW FULL AMBASSADOR ARE THE RANK OF ENVOY, MINISTER RESIDENT AND CHARGÉ D’AFFAIRES. THEY REPRESENT THEIR GOVERNMENT RATHER THAN THEIR HEAD OF STATE…”
But where did the people, the United States of America or its Senate confirm or deny his appointment?
Current reading…
”There’s a statistical theory that if you gave a million monkeys typewriters and set them to work, they’d eventually come up with the complete works of Shakespeare. Thanks to the Internet, we now know this isn’t true.”
–Ian Hart
“They can’t even make an encylopedia.”
–T.H. Burley
Wet sidewalks cause rain.
”Even when the bulbs of the hourglass shatter, when darkness whitholds the shadow from the sundial, when the mainspring winds down so far that the clock hands hold still as death, time itself keeps on. The most we can hope a watch to do is mark that progress. And since time sets its own tempo, like a heartbeat or an ebb tide, timepieces don’t really keep time. The keep up with it, if they’re able.” - In ”Longitude” by Dava Sobel.