The tranche trance, and other thoughts today

TRANCHE (of french derivation, so swallow the "n" & say something like "twrawhsh"): I first heard it from Secretary Paulson, then Congress, next the Obama economic team, and now even TV newsreaders are using it to spice up their repertoire. It sounded so exotic, I figured I should look up how it pertains to treasury matters ...

Tranche: Certain securities, such as collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), are made up of a number of classes, called tranches, that differ from each other because they pay different interest rates, mature on different dates, carry different levels of risk, or differ in some other way. When the security is offered for sale, each of these tranches is sold separately.

Wow, I feel so tranchy now (remember to swallow the "n")!

Other Thoughts Today ... A, A, B, B, B and V ...

A = Auto Industry: The Big Three upped their "bridge loan" request to $34 Billion today. It was $25 Billion last week before Congress asked them to submit a business plan. Well, preparation of business plans cost a lot ... $9 Billion in this case.

A = Auto Workers: The UAW says the Big 3 CEOs can agree to work for $1/yr and every union worker could agree to work for free, and it still won't save the american auto industry! This really floored me because it's pretty much an admission, by the guys representing the 3 million workers who are facing unemployment, that the Big 3 are going down no matter how much we throw at them. I hate to agree that Mitt Romney may have a point that perhaps the best solution for them is to reorganize under bankruptcy. Tough Love!

B = Bush (remember him?): Listening to "W" try to weasel his way out of analyzing his failures is such fun. Analysis would require introspection and we all know he doesn't do "do-overs"! So, he thinks the big failure of the Iraq War was that he fed himself bad intelligence?!? Cooked intelligence must taste like depleted uranium. He reminds me of Frank Sinatra singing, "Regrets, I've had a few, but then again, too few to mention".

B = Bill Richardson was formally named as Secretary of Commerce today. This cabinet post is ready for some vast expansion due to Obama's sweeping economic plan for job creation. If Congress confirms Richardson, it puts him in the cabinet and ready to move into another cabinet slot should things not work out with anyone already there (like Hillary or Gates). It's no secret he was very interested in Secretary of State. I congratulate him for not pitching a fit and for being ready to help wherever needed. I, too, liked Richardson's beard and was sorry to see it removed. So sue me.

B = Bank Story (a sad little story of how bad things are): I had banking business that had to be conducted INSIDE the bank last week. While sitting at the bank officer's desk, waiting and waiting for them to process my request, I notice that from my position, I can hear every conversation that the drive-up teller has with a drive-up customer. I hear a woman asking the teller to check the available balance in her account. The teller says "$2.48". I can hear a carload of kids screaming in the background. The woman then says, "how much can I withdraw and still keep the account open?" ... the teller says "$2.00" ... the woman is silent for a few moments (kids still screaming in background). The woman then sighs and says, "OK, then can I please get $2.00 cash now?" ... the teller processes her request and the woman & carload of kids drives away. This was right before Thanksgiving.

V (click to read) ... "What would happen to the Chevy Volt if GM failed?" ... The Chevy Volt is supposed to be available in 2010. It has been promoted as a revolutionary break-through in plug-in electric cars. This was all announced well before such technology was available for production at an affordable price, but apparently GM figured they would somehow be able to get the price down. Earlier this year, GM started making noises about problems being encountered in the plug-in concept. In October, Congress approved a $7500 rebate for purchasers of the first 250,000 Volts if they are plug-ins. Limited numbers of Hybrids like Prius already get smaller rebates. Toyota has said that they COULD produce a pricey plug-in, but why should they when their hybrids are so popular?

Would you personally be interested in a Chevy Volt at $35K? How about $25K? We are talking a 40-mile gas-free range between charges, no gas, no emissions. There will be a 400-mile overall range provided by a small gas engine whose only purpose is to recharge the batteries. The state of Hawaii is already considering setting up plug-in recharging stations, like in Wal-Mart parking lots. Would this affect your decision? The way I see it is if no one is interested or can afford The Volt, then there is no hope for the american auto industry.