On Sun, 7 Dec 2008 00:08:56 -0500, "Eisboch"
wrote:


"Canuck57" wrote in message
...

"Tom Francis - SWSports" wrote in
message ...

I still say that this is a great opportunity for some capital
investment firm to step in and build a new car company from scratch
designed to compete with Honda/Toyota, etc.

I'd be willing to bet that it could be done, start to manufacturing
and distribution, in less than five years.

Chapter 11 would allow that to proceed. I wouldn't even doubt some
billionaires' private equity cash is sitting and waiting and watching.
But they know, to get the meaningful change needed to make GM viable,
means they need chapter 11.

There is also a mater of equity here. GM's market cap is what, $2.5
billion?

GM is asking for $25 billion?

WTF. In my books that makes their debt to equity obscenly stupid. No
wonder that can't borrow a dime.


One of the financial experts interviewed on CNN commented on this. He said
that even if GM received the full requested government bailout ... *plus*
an additional 50-75 billion that he figured will be necessary in the future,
GM will still be an insolvent, bankrupt company.

It makes absolutely no sense to pour money into it without stepping back and
completely reorganizing it's business base. It will be painful for sure.
Jobs will be lost. Benefits will be cut back. Dealerships will close. But
reality *has* to be faced and the sooner it is done, the better chance it
has of surviving.
IMO, anyone who thinks that simply dumping billions of dollars into a
company like GM is going to benefit anyone in the long run has lost touch
with reality.

Rick Wagoner is so out of touch with reality, it's scary that a guy
like him could actually be running a major manufacturing firm.

GM is a UAW benefits company who just happens to make cars as a side
line. Until they get rid of the UAW contracts plus the umpteen
zillion dealerships they aren't going to survive and no amount of
taxpayer money is going to save them. It's money down the UAW rat
hole.

TANSTAAFL and GM/UAW leadership is trying to hang on to the free lunch
as long as possible.

--

"An idealist is one who, on noticing that
a rose smells better than a cabbage, concludes
that it will also make better soup."

H.L. Mencken