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Heckuva job, GMie!

by Mr. Chuckles

Apr. 15, 2008

PERMANENT LINK

This is stunningly, breathtakingly, interesting Unknown News. In my humble opinion...

General Motors is dead, like New England Wire & Cable in Other People's Money, but worse, because it does not have a pristine balance sheet. GM is hopelessly insolvent. They owe so much money that it is hard to understand why they are still in business -- part of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow 30) to boot.

As of 12/31/2007, GM shareholders had negative equity of $37 BILLION. At the end of 2006 the number was negative $6 billion. For 2005 it was positive $10 billion. Clearly something has gone horribly wrong -- something Katrina-like, but no one wants to put this beast out of its misery. REFERENCE

As with many other things, GM was at an all time high shortly before Bush took office -- up over $90 a share.

After 7+ years of our first MBA president, GM is down to $19 a share, and the only reason it is still alive (I'm guessing) is that they're hoping for a government bail-out.

OR... the Bush Regime doesn't want to preside over the bankruptcy of General Motors.

In the trailing twelve months GM lost $68 per share with a profit margin of -21.38 percent -- and they are not "making it up in volume" because that is decreasing. REFERENCE

They still pay a dividend of over 5% a share, but that is blood money siphoned from the carcass, which should be reserved for the survivors of the wreck ...

How did all this happen? Well, look at the long term chart.

That doesn't exactly explain it, but as with many other things, GM was at an all time high shortly before Bush 'took' office -- up over $90 a share. After 7+ years of our first MBA president, GM is down to $19 a share, and the only reason it is still alive (I'm guessing) is that they're hoping for a government bail-out. OR... the Bush Regime doesn't want to preside over the bankruptcy of General Motors. For reasons of sheer hubris, they'd rather be able to blame a Democrat.

Part of GM's problems are self-inflicted -- big cars and trucks. But also they had pension and health insurance problems. They have been called "A pension plan that owns a car company."

Another explanation is that their main business, making vehicles, became a small part of their circus when they got into the business of loaning money Heard of GMAC? Ditech?

That's right, my loves! GMAC Mortgage proudly proclaims, "GMAC Mortgage is one of the largest mortgage lenders in the US. Apply for a mortgage, compare home loan programs and rates, refinance your current mortgage, ..."

Do any of y'all wonder what the pundits would say if GM went bankrupt... on top of everything else that is going on?

This is really, really ugly. Someone, please, call a veterinarian and put this beast to sleep.

Someone, please. 'Fess up. Start truth-telling to America. Explain why you fucked up our country so badly, and why anyone in office -- Republican, Democrat, or Board of Directors -- should be re-elected to anything, instead of being prosecuted for treasonous conspiracy!

Mr. Chuckles

As General Motors goes, so goes the country...

Helen & Harry

I came across the GM problems in the normal course of following my Inquiring Mind...

But as it turns out, the likelihood of GM going bankrupt is obviously well known (note: bankruptcy might allow GM to continue as a business, but the share price of common shares would surely go to zero and bond holders would get back just part of their money):

Clinton says she'd support Ford, GM, Chrysler bailouts

Excerpt: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said that if confronted with the prospect of a bankruptcy by General Motors or Ford, she would extend the resources of the federal government to help keep them afloat. ...

It sure seems like average people get cornholed by government when they ask for help, but rich executives and corporations are treated lavishly and with highly compassionate care designed to nurture their dignity and self-respect.

If a car company that gets into the home mortgage business and fucks up everything deserves a taxpayer bailout, then the US is doomed. We're definitely going broke. I will personally be taking additional steps to insure against what appears to be the inevitable catastrophic decline of the US monetary system.

Meanwhile...back at rip-off HQ:

The Pentagon's $1 trillion problem

Excerpt: The Defense Department has spent billions to fix its antiquated financial systems. So why does the Pentagon still have no idea where its money goes? ...

Since 2004, the Pentagon has spent roughly $16 billion annually to maintain and modernize the military's business systems, but most are as unreliable as ever -- even as the surge in defense spending is creating more room for error. The basic defense budget for 2007 was $439.3 billion, up 48 percent from 2001, excluding the vast additional sums appropriated for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to federal regulators and current and former Pentagon officials, the accounting process is so obsolete and error prone that it's virtually impossible to tell where much of this money ends up. While the department's brass has made a few patchwork improvements, billions are still unaccounted for. The problem is so deeply rooted that, 18 years after Congress required major federal agencies to be audited, the Pentagon still can't be. ...

Mr. Chuckles

P.S. Hillary is not a suitable candidate. just because she appears to be better qualified than GW Bush. She has outed herself as a chronic liar without a sound ethical and moral foundation, who will do literally anything to gain control of the United States. That is so scary, so repugnant. She ought not be given that power.

If it comes down to McCain vs. Clinton I will just leave that spot on the ballot blank. I'd rather vote for McCain just to punish the Democrats for their complicity in Bush's crimes and incompetence, but per our previous discussions, as you explained, that would be wrong, so I won't.

Chris N. replies, Siskiyousis replies

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