Eagle Industries Sold to Alliant Techsystems

Deal closed today

Eagle Industries' Combat Integrated Armor Carrier System

Alliant Techsystems Inc. today purchased Eagle Industries Unlimited Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Alliant is a Minnesota-based aerospace and defense company. Eagle makes nylon safety gear for the military and law enforcement agencies.

More on Eagle Industries

Eagle makes several products, most of them nylon-based. The company sells weapon holsters, bags, rappelling equipment and vests. The company has about 2,300 employees. Eagle headquarters is in Fenton, Mo.

It also has facilities in New Bedford, Mass., Lares and Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. Its main client is the U.S. Department of Defense. It’s possible military loans made up part of the company’s earnings.

More on Alliant Techsystems

Alliant is commonly known by its ticker symbol, ATK. The large aerospace and defense company has revenue of more than $4.5 billion. ATK has more than 19,000 employees.

Eagle will add more than $80 million to Alliant’s sales in fiscal 2010, according to Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.

Everybody’s happy

Both Eagle Industries and Alliant Techsystems see the acquisition as a positive step. ATK is looking forward to expanding.

Eagle will provide Alliant "with an exciting opportunity to expand its presence into the growing military and law enforcement accessories markets," ATK chairman and CEO Dan Murphy said in a statement. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Eagle Industries Sold to Alliant Techsystems"

Gary Sheffield Released | Dollars and Sense

Nobody’s safe

If the current recession economy has taught us anything, it’s that no matter how strong a position you think you have, no job is completely safe when companies look to downsize. I think there are better ways to handle the situation than putting people who depend upon every penny of their job earnings to be able to put food on the table, but then again I didn’t graduate from executive genius school…

Apparently, even potential Hall of Famers are in danger of recession cutbacks. However, I’m sure Gary Sheffield has something put away and won’t need to depend upon cash advance loans. Tom Gage of The Detroit News reports that the Detroit Tigers are prepared to eat the $14 million salary they owe the power-hitting outfielder/designated hitter for 2009.

That’s a shocker, baseball fans

Reports indicate that Sheffield didn’t see this coming. He had recovered from a shoulder injury and was ready to have a productive season. His first home run of the year would have been his ticket into the elite 500-home run club, an achievement that generally guarantees a player’s induction into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. However, in the post-steroids era, that’s no guarantee (as Mark McGwire and Raphael Palmeiro well know). Sheffield hasn’t escaped steroid suspicion, so we’ll see how the sportswriters view him, post-career. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Gary Sheffield Released | Dollars and Sense"

GM Stock Tanks After Short-Term Bailout Announced

A stinging quick rinse

Susan Tompor of the Detroit Free Press writes in a recent editorial that GM will have 30 days to detangle. President Obama calls it a “quick-rinse” bankruptcy. GM stock has tumbled as a result. Investors don’t see more cash advance loans coming from the Obama administration.

Brad Coulter of O’Keefe & Associates said that “the quick rinse sounds good; I just don’t know if it would really work.” The fast-track, pre-packaged reorganization plan the Obama administration appears ready to lay on General Motors is intended to erase debt and contractual obligations, but it has also never been done in this way before.

What would happen?

We don’t know for certain yet. Not until President Obama explains his intentions more fully. Some speculate that the federal government will specify exactly how much money will be made available for what creditors. Take it or leave it.

“We’re in new territory,” Coulter said. “Unless a lot of government funding were involved, I’m not sure how the quick rinse would work.”

No more bailouts?

President Obama has made it clear that the GM and Chrysler will have a limited amount of time to work with creditors, unions, and other stakeholders. They must fix the mess they’ve made by completely restructuring their business, which is no small task to complete in 30 days. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "GM Stock Tanks After Short-Term Bailout Announced"

Detroit Free Press Launches Digitalfreepress.com

Freep.com delivers Detroit news

Detroit Free Press

As newspapers continue to struggle with the bottom line, some organizations have finally come up with a new business plan. The Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News are changing to a hybrid approach to getting the news out.

Shrinking yet growing

Both newspapers are going to shrink a bit, meaning they will have fewer pages. The Detroit Free Press is heavily marketing freep.com and digitalfreepress.com, which are online sources of the newspaper’s content. Readers will be able to read and see the newspaper online every day instead of getting it delivered to their homes.

Why two sites?

The Detroit Free Press has two web sites because it is sharing news in two different formats. Freep.com is more like a traditional web site that most newspapers have. Digitalfreepress.com is a digital replica of the printed newspaper. Right now the sites are open to the public for free. However, if you don’t have any extra cash you might need to get a payday loan to view it in the future, when the Free Press will start charging for it.

Other changes

Both newspapers are also cut back home delivery to only three days a week. The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press will only be delivered to homes on Thursday, Friday and Sunday. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Detroit Free Press Launches Digitalfreepress.com"

Missing Pieces | Loan Modification Part 7

Renters get left out

In Part 6 of this Loan Modification series, I covered the fact that the foreclosure prevention plan will only help with mortgages on primary residences.

That provision is designed to avoid allowing people who own multiple homes from getting federal aid on secondary properties. Unfortunately, that means if a homeowner is renting that home out and it goes into foreclosure, the people who are living there are the ones who will be hurt.

One renter’s story

This problem is illustrated in the story of Lisa Brown. The Long Island, New York, resident paid her rent on time. She chose to create a new beginning for herself and her daughters by renting a home instead of taking out personal loans to buy her own.

Despite Brown’s prompt rent payments, the woman who owned the home fell behind on the mortgage. Now Brown’s family is being evicted because the property is in foreclosure.

No help on the way

So far there isn’t a government plan in place to help tenants like Brown, and there hasn’t been any news of aid to come. However, it might be that there is just nothing the government can do. Though monetary aid would help Brown somewhat, that’s not what she needs. She needs a place to live and some stability. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Missing Pieces | Loan Modification Part 7"

Will Payday Loans Help Families Weather the Recession?

Economists predict the end of the recession is near

If we listen to economists, the end of the recession is close but it is not close enough for many people to look beyond the need for payday loans. There is still the need for people to survive and pay bills with less income than they were making before the onset of the current recession.

How everyone weathers the remainder of this economic downturn remains to be seen, but looking around, we can see the economic damage it has caused with foreclosures and repossessions at a very high rate and several states reporting double digit unemployment figures. Of course we have to see it through until 2010—where does that leave those who are still unemployed or working for less money than they need to pay their bills?

Can people survive until the economy improves again?

Some people may be prepared for the rest of the economic downturn but what about those who came ill-prepared for a recession worse than we weathered in 1981? What are the chances of people pulling out of this and still having their sanity and finances in tact? It's a long road to go yet to 2010, and there are no guarantees. Predictions have been known to be wrong—after all they tried to tell us two years ago we weren't in a recession when all the signs were there in front of us.

Companies that have been in business for over a hundred years are shutting down or filing bankruptcy because they can no longer make a profit. Certainly we can blame some on an increase in online shopping but the majority is because people just can't afford to buy things they don't absolutely need. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Will Payday Loans Help Families Weather the Recession?"

Hey Bloggers!

Just wanted to give a shout out to the blogging community! I hope everyone finds my blogs useful and entertaining and I look forward to reading your blogs as well!