The SoapBoxers

Digital Transition

The digital TV era officially began at midnight Friday/Saturday, as analog TV signals ended.  The FCC received 300,000 calls on Friday.  I can fully understand any confusion about the transition, since it came upon us suddenly, with very little information from to the government.  Perhaps the government could have delayed the transition, forced TV stations to have messages about the transition on the bottom of the screen every day for an incredibly long amount of time, and given away coupons for a discount on the converter boxes.  If they had taken all those steps, perhaps there would not have been as much confusion.

(sigh)

Many of the calls were questions about how to set up the converter box.  Just a thought, but maybe it would have been a good idea to get the box set up a week or two before the transition date?  I really have a hard time feeling sympathetic for these people.  I’m not sure how anyone could have been unaware of the transition.

Holocaust museum killing

On Wednesday, 88 year old  James von Brunn shot and killed security guard Stephen Tyrone Johns at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.  Other security guards returned fire, and von Brunn was shot and remains in critical condition.  von Brunn is a white supremacist who denies the existence of the holocaust and spreads anti-semitic messages on his web site and in his book.

von Brunn served six years in prison after attempting to kidnap members of the Federal Reserve Board in 1981 as a protest of the high intest rates rates of that time.  I guess he didn’t mellow as he got older.

The holocaust occured.  I’m really not sure how people can argue against it.

I’m always a little surprised that so many people pour so much time into spreading hatred.  It seems like such a poor use of the limited resource of time.  “Spreading hatred” doesn’t crack my list of  favorite things to do in my spare time.

Cat killer

18 year old Tyler Weinman has been arrested for killing 19 cats in south Florida.  Weiman was also charged with 4 counts of burglary – apparently the result of break-ins on his canapping expeditions.  Residents ofthe area have been fearing for the safety of their cats, as cats have been found stolen and have later turned up dead, with their bodies mutilated.  Police have indicated that there are multiple suspects, so we may see other arrests in this case.

I’m not much of a cat person, but nonetheless I find this very appalling.  These cats were harmless pets and did not deserve the die in this manner.

It’s also worth noting that many serial killers tortured animals when they were younger, and they escalated to violence against humans.  This is not to suggest that Mr. Weiman was destined to become a serial killer, as the vast majority of people who torture animals do NOT escalate their activity to homocide.  However, because of the animal cruelty, there is a greater possibility that he would have escalated his activity – particularly since Weiman apparentlt stalked some of the cats.  Needless to say, it’s much better to put a halt to the activity in the earlier stages.

Another bankruptcy filing

Six Flags has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Six Flags does not expect its visitors to see any changes as it seeks to reorganize its debt load.  Six Flags is attempting to reduce its debt from $1.8 billion to $600 million.  Six Flags  operates 20 theme parks in the US, Canada, and Mexico.  It recorded record profits last year, but has been unable to refinance its debt.  My guess is that there will be a debt-for-equity swap with some creditors.

I really hope that they are able to reach a quick resolution.  Nothing would be sadder than a roller coaster sitting idle.

David Carradine

David Carradine, most famous for his roles in Kung Fu and Kill Bill during a long and successful acting career, was found dead in his hotel room in Bangkok.  He was 72.  He was found hanged, and the police are saying that it was a suicide.  Carradine’s manager and wife are very skeptical and believe that foul play was involved.  I would tend to agree with the foul play angle, although we’ll certainly find out more about this in the coming days.

Ocotomom

Nadya Suleman, a/k/a Octomom, is calling Jon and Kate Gosselin “attention seekers”.  We see a lot of case of hypocrisy in the world today, but this one has to take the cake.  In case you’re one of the two people who doesn’t know, Jon and Kate (plus eight) are having marital problems.

On the topic of Nadya, the Octo family will be featured in a reality show.  Nadya’s autobiography will also be on the shelves soon.  My suggestion would be to boycott everyone involved.  I plan to boycott all companies that advertise on the show, and well as the publisher of the book.  I buy a lot of books, so my boycott could hurt the publisher a bit.  Vote with your wallet.

Missing plane

An Airbus plane traveling from Rio De Janeiro to  Paris dropped off radar and is presumed to have crashed in the Atlantic Ocean.  Searchers thought that they may have found the wreckage earlier this week, but authorities now say that the wreckage is not from the aircraft.  I am a bit curious about what the wreckage IS from.  I’m hoping that the plane simply landed on a remote island and has not been able to open a line of communication, but that seems rather unlikely.  The locator device within the plane’s “black box” will only emit a signal for 30 days – after that point, it may be impossible to find the plane.

Cars

GM filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy this week and has been selling off some of its brands.  Hummer was sold to Chinese company Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery Co., Ltd.  and Saturn will be sold to Penske.  Pontiac and Saab are still on the block.  The core GM will see its ownership change – 60% of the company will be owned by the US government, 12.5% by the Canadian government, 10% will be owned by creditors, and 17.5% will be owned by the UAW.  It is expected that the governments will only be short term investors  until a more permanent buyer (Fiat?) can be found.

Obama in the middle east

President Obama is in the middle east this week.  He gave a speech in work he advocated both sides working together, rather than letting our difference define us.  Peace in the middle east is a tall order – if Obama can establish lasting peace, clear room on Mt. Rushmore!  I think it would be great if people COULD get beyond their differences.  We’re on the earth for a short time – why waste so much of it squabbling?

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A reporter recently discovered the fact that Detroit city council member JoAnn Watson had been paying just $68 in annual property taxes for about a decade.  Her home was incorrectly classified as a vacant lot by the city, when in fact there had been a house on that property since 1926.

Watson said that she noticed the change in taxes, but believed it was due to the fact that a tornado had hit the house.  Let’s digest a few points of the story.

Did she know?

If Watson had escrowed her taxes (as many people do) , then it would be somewhat believable that she simple wasn’t aware of the amount of property taxes she was paying.  Although I can probably guess my property taxes to within $50, I suspect that a lot of people don’t pay a lot of attention to what individual amounts make up their escrow payments.  Watson did not escrow her taxes, though, so she would have been very aware of the amount, since she would be physically writing a check for the taxes.  Watson does freely admit that she was aware of the amount of her taxes.

I find it a bit strange that her tax accountant wouldn’t have pointed out a disparity when comparing her mortgage interest deduction to her property tax deduction – but perhaps she did her own taxes.

The tornado

The tornado is a fascinating aspect of the story.  Watson says the the tornado did great damage to the home, specifically to the roof and foundation.  She felt that this damage caused her home’s assessment to be lowered.  A few question about the tornado remain unanswered:

• Watson says that the tornado occurred in either 1993 or 2002.  I have never suffered a direct hit from a tornado, but I have come frightening close.  I sincerely doubt that I’ll ever forget that the tornado that passed about a block from my house before ripping through another part of town was in 2006.  It made enough of a lasting impact that I doubt I’ll err by nine years on an estimate.
• Watson also says that she never informed the city (assessor), nor did she file an insurance claim.  Why on earth would you NOT file a claim?  I understand the logic of not filing small claims for fear of higher premiums.  However, a tornado directly hitting your house is a near worst case scenario – it’s the reason why you would buy insurance in the first place.  If you aren’t going to file a claim in such a situation, why ever bother to have the insurance?

Mortgage

Watson obtained a mortgage in 2002 (after the tornado, apparently) for $60,000.  It never dawned on her that the fact the  the appraisal was high enough to warrant the loan was an indication that it had regained value (for reference, she paid $40,000 for the home in 1990).  Watson says that she thought that appraisers used their “financial wizardry” to help her get the loan.  That’s a great quote, because I wasn’t aware of the fact that appraisers used financial wizardry, nor did I realize that it is their job to try to get you a mortgage.  I thought they were simply trying to estimate the fair market value of the house.

The future

First of all, Watson should probably stay away from neighborhood barbeques.  The neighbors are not happy that they were paying roughly 40 times what she paid in taxes.  I suspect that her time on the city council (along with the $80,000 salary and use of a car) is also coming to an end.  Watson has informed the city of the error and is prepared to pay back taxes that are owed on the property.

You can read more about this in the Detroit Free Press.

Auto dealers

Nearly 2000 auto dealers were informed by GM or Chrylser of the manufacturer’s plans to terminate franchise agreements.  The impact to GM and Chrysler is not likely to be very large.  For example, 90% of Chrysler’s sales volume come from about 50% of their dealers.  Stand this stat on its head, and it tells you that Chrysler could terminate agreements with half their dealers and lose only 10% of their revenue.  For the dealers affected – many of them longtime family businesses – the impact will be much larger.  Some dealerships were diversified with agreements with multiple manufacturers and should be able to make up some of the shortfall by focusing on selling the other brands.  Others, however, had all their eggs in one manufacturer’s basket and will simply be unable to sell new cars unless they are able to procure a franchise agreement with another manufacturer.

Gay marriage

Gay marriage continues to be a hot topic.  California’s supreme court is set to rule on whether or not to overturn the state’s ban on gay marriage that was enacted by proposition 8.  The court overturned the previous ban on gay marriage last May.  New Hampshire’s governor has said that he would approve a gay marriage bill if the legislature changes the bill to allow certain protections for churches.  The legislature will vote on the altered bill this week.  Gay marriage is being debated in several other states.  Currently, gay marriage is legal is 6 states – California, Connececticut, Iowa, Maine, Massachussetts,and Vermont.  Once this numbers gets to about 15, I think there will be a tidal wave of states that pass bill allowing it.  With Democrats (who are bigger proponents of gay rights) in control in many states, this would be the ideal time for them to move forward with gay marriage bills, expecially with a currently high level of public support.

Governors and Senators

Republican senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson has decided resign in order to run for governor in 2010.  On the flip side, Florida governor Charlie Crist has decided to run for senate in 2010.  As critical as Florida has been in recent elections, a Democratic pickup in the Florida governorship could be just what the Dems need to tilt the balance a bit more to the left.

On the Bunning front, Kentucky Republican senator Jim Bunning has decided that he will indeed run for re-election, in spite of previous reports to the contrary.  Ron Paul’s son, Rand, may join in the fray in the Republican primary.  Circle this one as a race to watch.  Hall of Fame pitcher Bunning has become an embarrasment for his party, and his won party make seek to undermine his efforts at re-election.  Bunning narrowly won in 2004 and would likely lose to a strong Democratic challenger.

Farrah Fawcett

There’s another reason to like Farrah Fawcett.  She became convinced that someone at UCLA medical center was leaking her medical records to the press.  In order to confirm her suspicions, she intentionally withheld news from her family and friends when her cancer returned in 2007.  When the information found its way to the National Enquirer, Fawcett knew that someone at UCLA was the source.  An investigation found that employee Lawanda Jackson was responsible for the leaks.  Jackson was convicted, but died of cancer before she could be sentenced.

Fawcett’s actions have raised awareness of the seriousness of patient privacy and the need for harsh penalties for those who breach that privacy.

Note: inaccurate information regarding the California Supreme Court has been corrected.

Alleged Nazi deported

The story:

89 year old Cleveland resident John Demjanjuk, a Ukrainian immigrant and retired auto worker, was deported from the United States to Germany to face charges of accessory to murder for 29,000 deaths at the Sobibor concentration camp in Poland.

Demjanjuk moved to the United States in 1951.  His legal troubles began in 1977, when he was indentified in a photo lineup by holocaust suriviors.

In 1986, he was deported to Israel to face charges that he was the infamous “Ivan The Terrible” of the Treblinka camp.  He was convicted in 1988 and sentenced to death, but his conviction was overturned by an Israeli court in 1993 on the basis of reasonable doubt that he was actually Ivan The Terrible.

The newest charges against Demjanjuk originated in 2003.

Demjanjuk’s attorneys claim that he was a POW at the camp – and essentially a pawn of the Nazis.  They also argued that  his poor health had the impact of making the deportation torture.  Initially, Demjanjuk will be held at a prison hospital.

Kosmo’s opinion:

Truly, it is sad to see an 89 year old man separated from his family.  The charge of accessory to murder carries of penalty of up to 15 years, meaning that a conviction will likely result in him dying in prison.  However, if the charges against him are true, Demjanjuk must pay the penalty for his crimes.  It is refreshing to see that the wheels of justice never stop turning, even 65 years after the crime.

Solider kills others

The story:

Army sergeant  John Russell is a veteran of three tours of duty in Iraq, as well as previous deployments to Bosnia and Kosovo.  Recently, Russell felt that some people were trying to force him out of the military.  His commander had referred him to counseling and ordered that his weapon be taken away.  Russell had an altercation at the stress clinic on Monday.  He later took a weapon from another soldier, returned to the clinic and opened fire, killing five.  Russell has been charged with five counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault.

Kosmo’s opinion:

Russell seems to have a solid foundation for a defense related to insanity or stress.  His commander actually clearly indicate that there were some concerns about Russell’s mental and emotional states.  This may make it difficult for the prosecutor to discredit similar claims by the defense team.

Foxy Knoxy

The story:

In Italy, 21 year old Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito are charged with sexual assault and murder in the death of Knox’s roommate, Meredith Kercher.  Prosecutors maintain that Kercher was killed when she refused to participate in sex games.  Knox and Kercher were college students in Italy.  Knox was from Washington state and Kercher from Britain.  Knox’s good looks (and perhaps the incredibly long trial) have made her a tabloid celebrity in Italy (hence the nickname “Foxy Knoxy”), where she has been referred to as the “devil with an angel’s face”.

The case against Knox appears to be strong.  Perhaps most damning so far was the evidence of bloody footprints introduced into evidence last week.  Expert witnesses claim that these prints were left by Knox and Sollecito.  An alleged collaborator was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison.

The prosecutor in the Knox case is facing charges of abuse of power, unrelated to the Knox case.

Kosmo’s opinion:

Yikes – killing the woman because she refused to participate in a sex game?  That’s incredibly twisted.  Throw the book at them.  Kercher probably felt safe with her roommate, who was also a “foreigner” in Italy – only to have that trust betrayed in the worst imaginable way.

This week, Chrysler announced plans to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.  This is not liquidation (chapter 7).  The intent of chapter 11 is to give a company time to restructure its debt.  In the case of Chrysler, it appears that it will emerge from bankruptcy under joint ownership of Fiat, the United Auto Workers union, and the United States Government.  Current majority owner Cerberus Capital Management will cede its share of the company

In another corner of Detroit, General Motors may be preparing for a bankruptcy filing of its own.  While GM’s 1st quarter loss of $6 billion was better than what industry experts had expected, $6 billion is still a huge quarterly loss.  GM’s book value (assets – liabilities) is now about -$90 billion.  Once again, Fiat is being mentioned, this time as a possible buyer for GM’s European subsidiary.

Earlier in the year, I was talking with friends and mentioned that I would not be surprised if a foreign company jumped in and bought GM and Chrysler.  My thought, however, was that it would be a Japanese company.  Mitsubishi – a huge corporation with operations in several industries – was the company that I thought was most likely.  Toyota also seemed like a possibility.  I must admit that Fiat never entered my mind.

What is Fiat, exactly?  Fiat is an Italian company that was founded in 1899.  The most stunning revelation I discovered was that I was that Fiat owns a substantial stake in Ferrari – and has since the 1960s!    Fiat has won the European car of the year award 12 times in the last 40 years, more often than any other manufacturer.  Fiat is also the second largest agricultural equipment manufacturer in the world behind Deere (Fiat owns companies such as Case IH) and third largest construction equipment manufacturer, behind Caterpillar and Komatsu.  Fiat has additional interests in several other industries.  In short, it is a huge multinational corporation that manages operations in many industries and actually turned a profit last year – a net income of 1.7 billion Euros last year on just under 60 billion Euros in revenue.

The deal Fiat made with Chrysler was that Chrysler would give Fiat a 35% stake in exchange for access to some Fiat technologies (in particular, technology related to hybrids).  Certainly Fiat gave up some competitive advantages by allowing Chrysler access to the technologies, but on the flip side, they were able to acquire 35% of Chrysler for no money out of pocket.  Don’t be surprised if they do indeed pick up GM Europe for a song – and don’t be surprised if Fiat turns the GM and Chrysler units into profitable businesses in the course of the next decade.  Interestingly, GM once owned a stake in Fiat.  Fita had a “put” option, meaning that Fiat had the option of selling itself to GM at a particular price (market value, in this case).  GM declined to honor the option and paid $2 billion to Fiat (this was a penalty that was specified in the put option).  In essence, Fiat can use some of GM’s own money to buy GM Europe..

Another company that could come out of this mess as a winner is Ford.  A portion of the country has a strong desire to buy an “American” car.  It is quite possible that there will soon be just one choice – and this could allow Ford to significantly strengthen its market share.  I’m not suggesting that they would immediately pick up the entire market share of GM and Chrysler, just that they could carve out a large chunk of it.

From the perspective of the consumer, the one good bit of news is that the US government is providing a guarantee for the warranties of any US automakers that go bankrupt.  Surely there were some people who were delaying a purchase over fears that the warranty would be worthless if the manufacturer went bankrupt – they can now buy without that fear.

From an entertainment perspective, it will be interesting to see what sort of impact this will have on NASCAR.  The auto manufacturers provide financial support for team that race under their emblem.  Will the Chevys and Dodges continue to race in NASCAR in 2010?

Obama

We are past the 100 day mark in Barack Obama’s presidency. The country continues to find itself in a recession. The housing market slides further downward, and more Americans find themselves unemployed.  Detroit finds itself at the epicenter, with Chrysler filing for chapter 11 (reorganization) bankruptcy and GM taking drastic steps of its own – planning to shut down 16 of its 21 plants for 9 weeks during the summer and also planning to buy out 40% of its franchise agreements.

The country is divided on the job that the administration is doing. On Saturday, billionaire Warren Buffet said that he felt the government was taking the right steps to move out of the recession, although Buffett was not sure what the immediate future might hold.  On the other side, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh continues to criticize the vast majority of moves that the Obama administration makes.

The central them that I have observed, however, is that the discussion of the administration has been centering on the policies they are implementing or intending to implement.  The fact that our president is African-American – something that were were constantly reminded of during the election – appears to be completely lost in the melee.  For that, I am pleased.  I feel that this does not diminish the importance of this step in our country’s history, but instead enhances it.  I optimistically believe that we are judging the president on his merits (or perceived merits) with little regard to the color of his skin.

On an Obama tangent, singer LaShell Griffin, who sang for Obama on the campaign trail, is giving free concerts.  Griffin asks that concertgoers donate to the homeless instead.  I know absolutely nothing about this woman, but that sounds pretty cool.

Arlen Specter

Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania turned a few heads by switching parties and becoming a Democrat.  Specter had actually been a Democrat in long-ago days, but had been a Republican since 1966.  Assuming that Al Franken eventually prevails in the Minnesota senate race, and furthing assuming that all Democrats follow party lines on cloture votes, the Democrats would have a filibuster-proof majority, as 60 Senators can invoke cloture to end debate on a bill and force a vote.

The wife of a co-worker was quite disappointed in Specter, saying that this should not be allowed, as people had voted for him as a Republican, and were now getting a Democrat instead.  I am an unaffiliated voter, and would hope that people would have voted for Specter based on his stance on the issues, rather than simply his party (although I realize that this is hopelessly optimistic).

So, why did Specter switch parties?  Most likely, because he was afraid of losing a primary contest to Pat Toomey, who is considerably more conservative.  Pennsylvania has been trending more democratic lately, and his views are moderate enough to win as a Democrat but probably not conservative enough to win as  Republican.

Jim Bunning

In news that is likely to make Republicans happy, Kentucky Senator Jim Bunning (a former Major League pitcher who threw two no-hitters, including a Father’s Day perfect game) appears to retiring at the end of his term, choosing to support Secretary of State Trey Grayson in the Republican Primary.  Bunning has exhibited some erratic behavior in recent years, and the GOP leadership has been trying to get him to agree not to run in 2010 for fear of losing the seat that Bunning narrowly defended in the 2004 election.  He had responded by threatening to step down immediately (which would allow Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear (a Democrat)  to appoint his replacement.  Beshear would likely have appointed a Democrat.  It appears that Bunning has decided to take the high road.

Jack Kemp

Jack Kemp,  former MVP of the American Football league and longtime congressman from New York, has died of cancer at the age of 78.  Kemp was a long shot to ever have a meaningful football career, being drafted in the 17th round of the NFL draft and being cut by several other teams before landing with the Buffalo Bills of the AFL (a league that competed with the NFL before they eventually merged).  He led the Bills to titles in 1964 and 1965.  After retiring from football, he ran for congress.  He served 9 terms in the House of Representatives before serving as secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President George H.W. Bush.  Kemp ran unsuccessfully for president in 1988 and vice president (with Bob Dole) in 1996.  For further information on the interesting life of Jack Kemp, check out his Wikipedia page.

The intent of this post is to encourage people to share their thoughts on the swine flu.  I’ll start with my own.

Should we be afraid?

Sure, we should be somewhat afraid of a virus for which there is not currently a a vaccine.  There is, however, a fine line between preparedness and paranoia.  Just because a person has visited a location where there are verified cases does not mean that person will contract the swie flu. In fact, the odds are strongly against it.  Let’s take New York City, for example.  If there was one person with the swine flu in NYC and you traveled to NYC, what are the odds of you coming into contact with the person?  Not very good.

Mortality rate

People are dying from the swine flu; this is definitely true.  However, I really don’t think we are looking at the second coming of the black plague.  In fact, I seriously doubt that the death count will even be as high as the number of annual deaths from normal flu viruses (about 35,000 per year in the US.)

Pork products

The swine flu is an airborne virus.  You simply cannot get it from eating pork products.  There is no reason to avoid eating pork products (and, indeed, there are many good reasons to continue eating pork – the sensational taste of bacon being one great reason.)

How to avoid it

In general, people are being strongly encouraged to wash their hands frequently.  People who are sick – even if they do not have the swine flu – are being asked to stay home.  Doctors are being asked to test their patients if they have any reason to believe that the person might have the swine flu.  All of these are great suggestions, albeit simply a repitition of common sense. What is my point?  You should definitely be vigilant, but don’t go into panic mode.  This is not a disease that is going to wipe humanity from the face of the earth.

What are your thoughts?  I’d love to hear them – please leave a comment.

A couple of news stories grabbed my attention today.

GM was unable to negotiate concessions with some of its bondholders and will have to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy.  This is reorganization bankruptcy, not liquidation bankruptcy.  The prevailing thought is that GM will emerge from bankruptcy in the hands of Fiat and the UAW.  Chryler will halt vehicle production for (at least) 60 days.  Their leasing arm will be folded into GMAC finance.  They will receive and additional $8 billion in bailout funds, which hopefully the taxpapayers will see returned to them at some point.  I have not seen any word on how this may affect the money that Chryslers spends on manufacturer support of Dodge teams in NASCAR (Dodge is a Chrysler brand).

On the bright side for buyers, this might be a good time to buy a Chrysler vehicle.  Demand will likely sag on the news, but the warranties will now be guaranteed by the government.  With the recent news of GM “temporarily” closing 16 of its 21 plants and planning to buy ou 40% of its dealers, Ford looks to be in prime position to pick up some market share from the segment of the population that will only buy American vehicles.

The other story came out of Los Angeles.  A 72 year old sex offender gave his DNA sample, as required by state law.  The DNA got a match with a rape kit from murder victim Ethel Sokoloff, a 68 year old woman who was killed in 1972.  As a result,  John Thomas Jr. has been charged in two murders (Sokoloff’s and another crime in 1976).  Police believe that Thomas may be the “Southland Strangler” who may have killed more than 30 women (and raped many more) since 1955.

This has to be the mother of all cold cases.  Even if you were able to crack the case of a serial killer who began his reign of terror 54 years ago, the odds of the perpetrator still being alive are not very good.  I have an interest in crime, and I intend to write a bigger article on the story next week, after getting a chance to sesearch it a bit more.

USA Today is reporting that GM will shut down 15 of its plants for 9 weeks between May and July.  GM has a total of 21 plants.

Clearly, by any measure, GM is in a world of hurt.  At the end of 2008, they had a book value (assets – liabilities) of  -$85 billion.  This number has been sinking even lower during 2009 as they chew through bailouts funds given to them by the government.

Here are a few things that will help put this into perspective a bit.

1. If GM were to begin making $10B in profits annually – something they have never done in their history) -starting in 2009, it would take 9 years until the balance sheet was positive.  A more realistic (but still overly optimistic) expectation of $5 billion in profits would result in a positive balance sheet in 17 years.
2. If you, and each of the 300 million residents of the USA, were to give GM a check for $283, this would just barely wipe out the $85 billion in negative equity.

I’d love to see GM turn things around, but they are quickly running out of time (and money).  If GM still exists at the end of 2010, I think it will either being a division of a Japanese manufacturer or it will be a much smaller GM.