GM and the Imperial Federal Government

Looks like GM is headed for the toilet, as bondholders decided yesterday that they would not accept an offer to convert over $27 billion (yes, billion, with a b) into a 10% ownership stake in the company. They needed 90% approval from the bondholders, and the story in USA Today said that they got 'considerably less' in approval. Can't say I am surprised. You know its a bad sign for the company when people holding debt are too leery to convert any of it into an equity position. If I was them, I probably wouldn't either. And that is mostly because our lovely federal government is involved, taking a stake in the company on behalf of all of us as taxpayers. So we are going to bail out GM instead of letting them fail. Guess what people? We need cars. We always will. If GM goes away, someone else will step in and produce them more efficiently as demand dictates. Instead, we will continue to prop up a failing company with taxpayer money and continue to support a federal government policy to keep idiots in business. In my humble opinion, its all about the union, but that is another story that would take all day.

On a separate note, I am absolutely enthralled with the NBA conference finals right now. I hate the NBA and most of what it represents, but the defense and hard-nosed play comes out in the postseason, and the conference finals have been great, aside from one thing... the officiating. If I hear anyone say that the refs don't have an agenda, I will immediately label you an idiot. Certifiable. I'm sitting here watching the Cavs-Magic in game 5 and I have had to just laugh about 15 times at the calls. LeBron-Kobe in the finals is the mandate, and the refs are doing everything they can (especially in the East) to make sure it happens.