Very witty. Thanks.

Thanks SO MUCH !

I have forwarded the article to my daughter - and asked her to replace mother with daughter!

Her Mother.

I was feeling angry about the GM bailout. But I took a few moments out to read this delightful parable. It lightened my day. I just opened up another window and bought your Thatcher book (after deciding whether to get hardback, soft cover, new, used or Kindle). But alas, the afterglow effect of your column is beginning to fade... I think I'm getting mad again... Yep.

Claire,

Thanks for the impressive insight. It is incredible how people can be so gullible.

ROTFL , Claire.

excellent article !

just brilliant ....

Very clever and good!!!!
Happy Thanksgiving in Istanbul!
Do not let Kurds harass you too much.

This hurts too much to comment...
:(

G.M.'s problems are tied to a ruinous labor union. Claire's finacial difficultiesa re tied to her high level of maintenance. I am dropping satellite TV, magazine subs, replacing AT&T with Phone Jack, boycotting both the fast and the slow meal providers in the malls and convenience packages the frozen food cases in my friendly neighborhood super market. Also, no more short car trips, even though my hip is a problem when I walk more than a few blocks.Suck it in,Clair, and give Momma a break. Allo0w her to practice Tough Love, even if she doesn't recognize it as such.G.M. is just one of many victims of V.I. Lenin's directive to communists to gain control of labor unions and destroy capitalisim from within. What's your excuse, Claire?

Outstanding! Talk about putting things in terms even the buffaloed US public MIGHT be able to understand. If only more of us did we'd be assured of ridding ourselves of the "troublesome priest" currently in the White House. Only that analogy is unfair to Becket. His end might not be so unfair an analogy, though. In the "electoral" sense, of course.

Great article! Very true, very sad, and yet very funny! Perfect for a Black Friday when thousands of folks are out spending money they don't have!

Well done, Ms. Berlinski. Very well done.

If you marry a rich man, Claire, will that be a bailout?
:^)

Wow, what a funny and true to life piece, written with verve, humor and personal warmth! I hope your financial situation improves. I shall buy your Thatcher biography when my own financial situation improves :).

Claire ~ you made the comparable analogy well. Congratulations. We would like to invite you to be a guest on Ramble & Rumble with Rabbi, a new media talk radio broadcast beginning 3rd year heard and read in 25+ foreign countries (including Turkey)and nationally, now approaching 50,000. Contact the radio rabbi, Rabbi Eukel by email EUKEL(at)EUKEL(dot)us, as in the United States. Thanks.

In the mad new economic world, aka as USA, having government friends is better than selling products that the consumer wishes to buy. Robert Stewart.

Excellent analogy -- very creative.

This article is a masterpiece. Congratulations, Claire!

Great post, Claire!

In addition to the stiffing of creditors and the bailout money, GM also got to have its tax-loss carryforwards protected through bankruptcy, which is not something that normally happens in a corporate bankruptcy

David Foster

photoncourier.blogspot.com

too cute

coming from an extensive admin. bkground in LE., i understand my previous E could be viewed with doubt... no way. keep on giving kid...

brillant.. brilliant. from a real man who has experience life to a person i enjoy from afar,because u are gifted in making a differance. from a 63yod who is somewhat dibilated from a over active entrusiastic life that is somwhat complicated from effects of Lymes Disease.dream of adorning u and benefitting from your insight at my humble log home and meager 5 ac. situate in almost heaven, W.Va..believe me, not a come on,2 much pride and respect for that bs... need a place to unwind - call/ best 2 u... frb...

Imagine your dismay when you realize your brother Exxon and sister Mobil get spoiled by your mother!! They don't even NEED it, but they get to charge prices that don't reflect the true cost of their products either!!

I would buy a GM car; I am looking to ditch my ten year old Ford; but I just wouldn't feel comfortable doing it. Buying from GM is too much like paying my taxes or eating liver because it's good for me.

Thanks for this, Claire. I was pretty sceptical about the GM 'turnaround' but didn't have time or inclination to try to figure it out. Your effort has saved me a lot of effort. p.s. purchased and enjoyed your Thatcher opus after your interview on National Review.

Thank you for the tutorial on the ways of Obamanomics. Failure is success, vice is virtue, stealing is giving, stupidity is wisdom. And on that GM IPO: any investor that puts money into a company that is majority owned by any government, particularly one run by amoral crooks, has a fool for an investment advisor.

I'm sure Claire's analogy breaks down somewhere, all analogies do.

Not sure where though. Let's hope California doesn't read this.

I helped resurrect GM by buying an Astra. I didn't do this out of concern for the company but because they offered a deeply discounted vehicle sourced from Europe. GM no longer imports Astras to this country (Australia) and has resorted instead to a race to the bottom quality wise by sourcing many models from Korea. It might make business sense but the note of disparagement the guys make at my car service centre make about these vehicles doesn't inspire confidence. It will be interesting to watch the affect on the market made by the Indian and Chinese autos starting to appear on our streets.