I have a confession to make

[Tilted]

I did something that I thought I would never again do, and something I'm not particularly proud of. I did it twice and, though I hope I never do it again, I can't be sure that I won't. And yes, I'm just stalling now because this is not easy to admit.

I bought GM stock.

There. I've said it. On two separate occasions within the last month, I have purchased GM stock. I had originally intended it as a long term investment - I thought the valuation had reached a point where it was just too good to pass up. However, when that (possibly good) long term investment turned into a (known-to-be good) short term trade - i.e., when selling it immediately meant a significant and quick profit - I sold it. I then repeated the process a week or so later.

So, I am happy to say that as I write here today I am clean again - no longer the owner of stolen property, no longer the peddler of contraband. Still, I am ashamed of what I did. I fear that know-ers of right and wrong, decry-ers of governmental subjugation of rule of law, villify-ers of theft, will not easily forgive me. For that matter, I fear that I may never forgive myself and that decades from now, lying on my death spot, the few extra bucks in my bank account will provide little solace in light of the taint that my actions will have left on my integrity. Perhaps, by the grace of all that is holy in the Universe, my fears will prove unwarranted.

I go now to reflect longer - and deeper - on what I've done. And, to pray that my purchase of GM stock will not in the end represent just the first step in my descension into the ethical abyss - that it will not be a gateway drug of sorts, one which emboldened me to commit the ultimate act of depravity: actually buying a new GM or Chrysler vehicle.

I can't say I feel better now for having gotten this off my chest. After all, I still have my family and friends to fess up to. But, maybe this will represent the first step in a long journey that eventually leads to self-forgiveness.

Tilted: Buyer of post-bankruptcy GM stock, profiter from government tyranny. If ever I can face the world knowing I'll forever carry that scarlet letter on my back, I may one day rejoin you fine folks in meaningful conversation.

 

[EmptyTimCup]

I bought GM stock.

is there a 12 step program for this .....

give away your ill gotten profits, to cleanse your soul .... purchase some Gerber Daisy's .....

 

[vraiblonde]

Tilted, help me understand.

The government took some of your money and gave it away, and now you feel guilty for trying to get some of that money back?

Is this anything like resenting being forced to give your money to some stranger's retirement fund, then feeling guilty because you take money when it's your time to retire?

 

[vraiblonde]

If some thief came and robbed you, stole $200 out of your wallet and ran off, would you chase after them and shout, "Hey, you dropped a $20!"?

 

[Gilligan]

Wow. I see you in a whole different light now. I never had you pegged as a wild and reckless taker of risks. You go boy!

 

[awpitt]

So, for a while, it wasn't Govt Motors. It was Tilted Motors.

 

[Larry Gude]

He said taint.

 

[Larry Gude]

I often wonder what I would do if some Muslim Sheik came on the scene and offered me $20 million for my gorgeous place, lock, stock and barrel.

Would I tell him "#### off, pal. This is 'merica."

Would I say "Make it 40 and you got a deal."

Would I just start shooting?

Would I recognize it as an elaborate joke?

Or, would I whore myself out to all my long held principles and beliefs and go work out my psychological problems in Key West in the only straight heavy metal band in the Key's, diving every day, flying a Cirrus 22 Turbo, riding to get more limes on my new 2011 Roadglide Ultra listening to CF-Lo?



At least I know there would be Tilted on his bike listening to that stupid, vapid ditz what's her face as loud as he could get it.

The shame of it all.

 

[ladyhawk]

I did something that I thought I would never again do, and something I'm not particularly proud of. I did it twice and, though I hope I never do it again, I can't be sure that I won't. And yes, I'm just stalling now because this is not easy to admit.

I bought GM stock.

There. I've said it. On two separate occasions within the last month, I have purchased GM stock. I had originally intended it as a long term investment - I thought the valuation had reached a point where it was just too good to pass up. However, when that (possibly good) long term investment turned into a (known-to-be good) short term trade - i.e., when selling it immediately meant a significant and quick profit - I sold it. I then repeated the process a week or so later.

So, I am happy to say that as I write here today I am clean again - no longer the owner of stolen property, no longer the peddler of contraband. Still, I am ashamed of what I did. I fear that know-ers of right and wrong, decry-ers of governmental subjugation of rule of law, villify-ers of theft, will not easily forgive me. For that matter, I fear that I may never forgive myself and that decades from now, lying on my death spot, the few extra bucks in my bank account will provide little solace in light of the taint that my actions will have left on my integrity. Perhaps, by the grace of all that is holy in the Universe, my fears will prove unwarranted.

I go now to reflect longer - and deeper - on what I've done. And, to pray that my purchase of GM stock will not in the end represent just the first step in my descension into the ethical abyss - that it will not be a gateway drug of sorts, one which emboldened me to commit the ultimate act of depravity: actually buying a new GM or Chrysler vehicle.

I can't say I feel better now for having gotten this off my chest. After all, I still have my family and friends to fess up to. But, maybe this will represent the first step in a long journey that eventually leads to self-forgiveness.

Tilted: Buyer of post-bankruptcy GM stock, profiter from government tyranny. If ever I can face the world knowing I'll forever carry that scarlet letter on my back, I may one day rejoin you fine folks in meaningful conversation.

To help you feel better....
If you've ever owned a GM and had issues with the vehicle.... Maybe you were due and that was the way your "refund" was intended to be!

Just something to help you justify the "wrong" you did... LOL

June

 

[Bann]

So, for a while, it wasn't Govt Motors. It was Tilted Motors.

 

[Tilted]

Tilted, help me understand.

The government took some of your money and gave it away, and now you feel guilty for trying to get some of that money back?

Is this anything like resenting being forced to give your money to some stranger's retirement fund, then feeling guilty because you take money when it's your time to retire?

I was only being 5% serious.

That said, I wasn't really one of the ones that had money stolen during the Great Detroit Robbery of 2009. It is true that taxpayer money was used to facilitate, and government authority was used to effectuate, the heist. But, we'll get or have gotten the majority of that money back. The point being, my (and your) money was just used to make the theft possible, it wasn't the target of the theft.

The real victims were some of GM and Chrysler's creditors. They had what they were entitled to (i.e. under our bankruptcy system) stolen from them and given, for the most part, to the UAW. It was completely appropriate that the old GM and Chyrsler - i.e., the people that owned them - lost essentially everything. But, the people to whom they owed money were entitled to what they had - whatever debt/contract-cleansed value was left in GM and Chrysler. Instead of that happening, our government orchestrated a strong-armed theft of it and gave most of it to the UAW (which was entitled to some of it, as it was a creditor too, but not nearly what it received) and Fiat.

GM and Chrysler are kinda like stolen property now. The government stole them and continues (with regard to GM) to act as fence in order to recover the money that was needed to finance the despicable endeavor. The reason I was able to buy (a very small part of) GM so cheap, given its current financial condition, is that it is stolen property. If it weren't, it either wouldn't be for sale or its valuation would be much different. So, I was trading in stolen goods. Now that you've made me explain the sordid affair, I regret it even more. (Still 95% kidding.)

Maybe I'll make a donation to a pension fund that held GM bonds - you know, return the ill-gotten gains to their rightful owners.

If some thief came and robbed you, stole $200 out of your wallet and ran off, would you chase after them and shout, "Hey, you dropped a $20!"?

I don't carry a wallet. Do many guys still carry those things?

 

[Tilted]

At least I know there would be Tilted on his bike listening to that stupid, vapid ditz what's her face as loud as he could get it.

Thanks. I haven't listened to her for a while, but now that you mention her I'll make a point to switch to her playlist. Do you know if she's released any new singles in the last couple months?

 

[Tilted]

To help you feel better....
If you've ever owned a GM and had issues with the vehicle.... Maybe you were due and that was the way your "refund" was intended to be!

Just something to help you justify the "wrong" you did... LOL

June

I don't think I've ever owned one, but thanks for trying to mitigate my shame.

 

[Tilted]

So, it's been a year since the new GM's initial public offering. The IPO price was $33 and it's trading at about $22.39 right now - down around 32%. For comparison, Ford stock is down a little more over that time while Toyota stock is down about half that much.

 

[MMDad]

It is true that taxpayer money was used to facilitate, and government authority was used to effectuate, the heist. But, we'll get or have gotten the majority of that money back.

If you're talking about the "loans" you are correct.

But we also bought 60.8% of new GM stock for $39.7B. Part of that was sold on 11/18/10 and 11/26/10 for $13.5B. We, the taxpayers, still own 32.04% (about 480,600,000 shares) of GM.

$39.7B - $13.5B = $26.2B

Our 480,600,000 shares are worth $10.2B today.

We're still $16B in the red.

 

[Tilted]

If you're talking about the "loans" you are correct.

But we also bought 60.8% of new GM stock for $39.7B. Part of that was sold on 11/18/10 and 11/26/10 for $13.5B. We, the taxpayers, still own 32.04% (about 480,600,000 shares) of GM.

$39.7B - $13.5B = $26.2B

Our 480,600,000 shares are worth $10.2B today.

We're still $16B in the red.

That's about right, and why I said the majority of it rather than all of it. When it's all said and done, I suspect we'll have gotten back around $40 Billion of the $50.7 Billion we spent (*), and be around $10 Billion in the hole with regard to the GM 'bailout' (i.e. that's what it will have cost us to facilitate the heist). It could be more or it could be less. Here is how the numbers break out in a little more detail.

Between December 2008 and June 2009 we 'invested' a total of $50.745 Billion in the GM situation.

In May 2009, $0.884 Billion of that was converted into GMAC equity.

In July 2009, the remaining $49.861 Billion was converted into:

$7.072 Billion in debt owed to us by new GM
$0.986 Billion in debt owed to us by old GM
$2.100 Billion worth of preferred new GM stock
60.8% (912 million shares) of the common equity of new GM

Since then, the $7.072 Billion in new GM debt has been repaid, $0.111 Billion of the old GM debt has been repaid, the preferred GM stock has been sold for $2.139 Billion, and 28.76% of new GM equity has been sold for $13.505 Billion.

So, we still have $27.92 Billion that we haven't gotten back, offsetting which we still have $0.88 Billion owed to us by old GM, some small amount of GMAC equity, and 32.04% (481 million shares) of new GM common equity. I don't really know, but I'd guess we don't get much more from old GM. I have little sense of what the GMAC equity is worth. We'll likely wait to sell the new GM shares until we can get closer to the IPO price for most of them.



(*) That $50.7 Billion refers only to the GM situation. It doesn't include the money spent to 'bailout' GMAC, Chrysler, Chrysler FinCo, or GM and Chrysler suppliers.

 

[Tilted]

Ha! We just found out that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought a meaningful amount of General Motors stock during the first quarter of this year. Here is BH's latest 13F, which was filed yesterday with the SEC. It reports a new 10 million share position in GM common stock. Those shares would have a current market value of about $220 Million and represent about 0.6% of the ownership interest in the company.

To put the size of this position in some perspective, BH holds a larger position in probably 20 or so other companies. It holds nearly $3 Billion worth of Walmart, nearly $9 Billion worth of American Express, more than $15 Billion worth of Coca Cola, and more than $500 Million worth of fan favorite Washington Post Company.

 

[Larry Gude]

Ha! We just found out that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought a meaningful amount of General Motors stock during the first quarter of this year. Here is BH's latest...which was filed yesterday with the SEC. It reports a new 10 million share position in GM common stock. Those shares would have a current market value of about $220 Million and represent about 0.6% of the ownership interest in the company.

To put the size of this position in some perspective, BH holds a larger position in probably 20 or so other companies. It holds nearly $3 Billion worth of Walmart, nearly $9 Billion worth of American Express, more than $15 Billion worth of Coca Cola, and more than $500 Million worth of fan favorite Washington Post Company.

That's not even real. I mean, I guess he could look at it that he doesn't have enough money, for motivation, to run a space program or buy a planet or two, but, other than that, it is so far beyond my comprehension, that sort of wealth, it's just not real.

 

[Tilted]

That's not even real. I mean, I guess he could look at it that he doesn't have enough money, for motivation, to run a space program or buy a planet or two, but, other than that, it is so far beyond my comprehension, that sort of wealth, it's just not real.

So, you don't have a spare $120,000+ laying around which you could use to buy a share (a single share) of Berkshire Hathaway Class A stock? Talk about not believing in splitting your stock!