Comments on: Report: GM Considering Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filing

By: Bob

Bob — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 01:16:06 +0000

I hope GM burns to the ground. Let Toyota take over!
P.S. they make least realiable vehicles on the market (after chrysler, dodge and jeep)

By: Jeff M

Jeff M — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:57:31 +0000

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Tuesday, February 17, 2009 — 6:11 PM ET
—–
G.M. Increases Federal Loan Request by $12 Billion

General Motors told the federal government Tuesday that it
needs another $4.6 billion in loans within weeks and an
additional $12 billion in financial support in order to stave
off bankruptcy.

By: Mike in Colorado

Mike in Colorado — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:34:50 +0000

GM should do it. Just sell Chevy and Cadillac brands. Buick — gone. Pontiac — gone. Saturn — gone. GMC truck — gone. Unions — gone. A $40k Volt is too much money, unless it includes the installation of the next generation EV powerplant.

By: George

George — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:00:28 +0000

Greed is alive and well in America! Not only on Wall Street up home towne USA. The UAW’s greed to force GM into bankruptcy and keep thier ill-gotten gains safe on the backs of the tax payers.
Unfortunatly Obama looks like he will not let that happen and fund the UAW via GM in unprofitability mode just to keep them directly off the tax payers books. This does not look good for product quality or competitiveness or a future for GM.
Maybe some UAW members will contact thier union officials and ask them save the jobs of it’s working members and just maybe it can be a great organization again.

By: Paul-R

Paul-R — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:26:02 +0000

To those recommending Ch11 as the answer, wouldn’t that further destroy consumer confidence in GM, and destroy the assets of all those who have invested in GM (triggering a slew of new bankruptcies), and destroy the GM supply chain (triggering a supply chain reaction of bankrupties), and possibly collapse the entire US auto industry (including Honda and Toyota that depend on the same supply chain)?

If so, that seems like recommending suicide as a cure for cancer.

Please help me understand what I’m missing. Thanks.

By: Red HHR

Red HHR — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 21:41:44 +0000

#135 carcus1
I would suggest that you add to your list the requrement that the goverment makes of banks to make loans to people that can not affford them.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123457562896186709.html

Red HHR (I pay my loans!)

By: George K

George K — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:18:12 +0000

re #64 DonC comments
I think so too. The Dems are not going to let all those union jobs be replaced by non union jobs. Chapter 11 is not going to happen. Tuesday will come and go, and GM will still be limping along.
#118 Statik said
“Your right tuesday will come and go…however GM can’t keep limping along….”
- – - – - – - – -

Statik, good comments and they make sense. I didn’t mean GM would go on forever. Just that Tue. will come and go, and we still won’t have a direction.

I’m not sure what will happen. To me, chapter 11 would be the cleanest solution.

By: Dave K. =D~

Dave K. =D~ — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:14:49 +0000

hi carcus1 #134,

I stand with the simple explanation I presented. Don’t let the talking TV heads pollute your understanding.

=D~

By: carcus1

carcus1 — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:48:43 +0000

#134 add,

Calling Credit Default Swaps the root cause of the financial meltdown is too strong. I should have said they are the #1 contributing factor, as I see it.

On a top 4 list, I’d rank them like this:

#1. Credit Default Swaps (greedy, sneaky, wall street guys)
#2. Over reaching home buyers/ speculation.
#3. Central banking policies that encourage too much lending/borrowing.
#4. Lack of government oversight (failure of attorney general, SEC, congress to recognize the impact of Commodities Reform Act of 2000)

By: carcus1

carcus1 — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 14:39:06 +0000

#123 Dave K.

“In 2006 woman takes a home loan which cost her $3000 a month to pay. Her income is $4000 a month. Fuel cost then triple from $250 a month to $750 through the excessive profit scheduling of Big Oil.
The lady can’t pay the bank which foolishly and greedily made the shaky loan.”
___________________________________________________________________________________________

You’re missing the point.

In your scenario, gas prices are merely a catalyst (plus, what’s she driving, a kenworth?) I’m talking about the primary cause.

Before Credit Default Swaps and the like were developed, this lady could never have gotten a $3,000/mo loan on her income. (especially with little or no money down, which would probably be the case here). It would be way too risky for the “bank”.

Many of those mortgages were financed through mutual funds and hedge funds. These fund managers sold the funds to the buyers under the false security that “hey, these things are virtually risk free, home loans have traditionally been very safe and they’re backed by AIG” (the Credit Default Swap, sometimes called mortgage related assetts, or CDO’s.). CDS’s and the like made the availability of easy credit possible. Easy credit fueled the housing bubble. Once the bubble finally burst, the whole humungous ponzi scheme came down like a house of cards, and now we’re watching history play out.