David Shemano: > Much of the existing Chrysler/GM upper management was fired and all of the > shareholders were wiped out. <
Much of the management was fired, but what about their golden parachutes? And remember that all the intelligent shareholders had diversified portfolios, so that it wasn't _them_ that was wiped out but rather a small part of their wealth. In any event, can't you write off this kind of capital loss on your income tax? Third, in capitalist theory, aren't capitalists supposed to be rewarded for taking risks (with their money, not their lives)? Doesn't taking risk involve sometimes losing? (I don't know, but it's possible that some of the UAW pension funds and the like were in auto company stock. If so, they were likely not as diversified as the individual stockholders. I don't know if there were tax write-offs or not.) > I really don't think the Chrysler/GM management was motivated by the desire >to screw workers -- more that the unionized agreements were an impediment to >what they really wanted to do -- sell cars at a profit.< Of course, the method they used to sell cars at a profit was by screwing the workers (including breaking the pension and health-care promises they had freely made to workers in the past). (This behavior was encouraged by the federal government: our tax dollars at work.) -- Jim Devine / "Living a life of quiet desperation -- but always with style!" _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
