Parsad

Gurufocus corrected their previous article that implied Fairfax was buying ORH above the $60 offer price. I have it from the horse's mouth that the implication was completely erroneous. Cheers! http://www.gurufocus.com/news.php?id=68897

Article from China Daily on Buffett's congratulatory video for Li Guilian, clothier Dayang Trands Chairwoman. Cheers! http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2009-09/10/content_8675012.htm

Hi Folks, So after talking to Joe, it's all set for Saturday in Chicago. We will meet at 2pm at the Marriott Suites O'Hare (6155 North River Road, Rosemont, IL (847)696-4400). From there, we'll just walk over to the Pabrai Funds AGM at Carlucci's around 4pm. See you all there! Cheers!

Only 12% of those eligible for loan modifications have been helped. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Treasury-says-millions-more-rb-1620457917.html;_ylt=AqdYntKIuOhUrMF6XI4bkoa7YWsA;_ylu=X3oDMTE1MmM5cWxnBHBvcwM1BHNlYwN0b3BTdG9yaWVzBHNsawN0cmVhc3VyeXNheXM-?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=3&asset=&ccode=

Interesting! Five years ago, Prem couldn't get anyone to lend him money other than a few close friends (Cundill, Southeastern, Markel, et al) and today the institutions are giving him discounts to do business with them. Why not raise a crapload of equity and buy back Odyssey! Cheers!

Study indicating HSBC and Berkshire Hathaway executives should receive the largest bonuses for performance since they did the best over the 2002-2009 cycle. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressReleasesMolt/idUSTRE5872ZR20090908 I think these studies are usually somewhat useless, since virtually any large firm can make their executives look the best over very specific time periods. I would much rather see executives have to invest half their income or bonuses into the shares of the companies they work for, and they cannot sell them for five years after their term or career is finished! Cheers!

Tightening credit standards leads to a record drop in consumer credit. Not necessarily a bad thing, since standards were previously so lax, but it does mean that lower leverage means lower consumer purchases. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601068&sid=aAYZpSNGocVM

Wall Street Journal article discussing healthcare for India's impoverished weavers. ICICI Lombard is one of the primary carriers of insurance for this category of workers, and it discusses the successes and failures of getting the weavers to accept and use the program. Cheers! http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125211458177588203.html?ru=yahoo&mod=yahoo_hs

From the New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/08/business/economy/08buffett.html?hp Cheers!

Eric, Dost thou mock the Calistri? She's up 22% this month...ok! Analytics my friend, analytics. Cheers!

Hi Folks, I emailed Joe Koster last week, and he suggested that everyone that is attending the Pabrai Funds AGM in Chicago meet at the lobby/lounge of the Marriott Suites O’Hare around 2pm, which is right next to Carlucci’s. I’ll confirm with Joe when he gets back home on Tuesday or Wednesday, and if there are any changes, I’ll make a subsequent post. For those interested in hitting a Steak’n Shake, Sardar told me that this week is a great time, as they will have new products out. He’s also interested in any feedback we can offer after visiting the restaurants. I’ll be hitting three, so anyone who wants to go to one let me know and we can go as a group. I’ll be hitting the one in Rosemont late Thursday night after my flight arrives, another on Friday around 3-4pm and probably one Sunday around noon…and yes, I’m going to take it very easy at each visit! I’ll also try and hit one of the HI-owned Hooter’s in down town Chicago, as I have a meeting there Friday morning…not at Hooter’s, but somewhere else. If you plan on coming to the Marriott, let me know (sanjeevparsad@shaw.ca) so that I can get some nametags printed up. If there are any changes, I'll update as necessary here. Hope to see you guys there! Cheers!

Watsa, I agree with you, except that I think the 1.16X offer should be on current book, not June 30th. Either that or Fairfax should pay 1.2x June 30th. I think at $63, they would get 2/3rds of the remaining shares. I have a hard time believing that it will happen at $60. I'm not complaining though! ;D Cheers!

In line with our past assumptions regarding the economy, larger and larger numbers of food stamp users are those that remain statistically employed, but have had their hours or hourly rates cut back. The numbers continue to be very shocking. There will be no consumer lead rebound. Cheers! http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c1e698a2-9984-11de-ab8c-00144feabdc0.html?nclick_check=1

Hi Cardboard, I think your thought process on the transaction is the correct one. That would make sense why they had to issue equity but pay for ORH in cash. Cheers!

Short, but good article on Florida's first net emigration of residents in 63 years! Cheers! http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20090903/us_time/08599191991600

I don't understand why they didn't just offer a specific amount of shares of Fairfax, fixed to Odyssey's price today. That would make the transaction tax-neutral and they wouldn't incur all the investment bank costs to issue new FFH equity to buy ORH with cash. Cheers!

Hey, I did my part too...you know how hard it is to keep Fairfax's market price up by eating a huge lunch every day! ;D I think some of us will sneak some beer into Steak'n Shake next week. Cheers!

I suspect they'll have to sweeten that a bit. They paid 1.3x for Northbridge, and the 1.16X they are paying for ORH doesn't include the change in book value since June 30th. Cheers!

Some board members here got it right! A 20% premium to today's prices. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Fairfax-Proposes-to-Acquire-iw-1475079578.html?x=0&.v=1

The first group of unemployed to lose their benefits after 18 months will occur at the end of this month...some 400K people. That number is expected to triple by year end. Currently, there are over 6M people on unemployment benefits and that number is rising by roughly 500K a month. Roughly 3.4M are already on the 53-week extended portion of their benefits the government implemented. Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/32677734

As we also mentioned in our letters, we expect unemployment to continue to rise through the next year. Businesses are streamlining, becoming more efficient...the cost of which is greater profitability per employee. And the unemployment numbers below are with the Federal government more than doubling the normal term of benefits. Imagine the situation when those benefits cease, and productivity and employment don't start to increase through 2010 and 2011. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-jobless-claims-dip-less-apf-386475816.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=4&asset=&ccode=

That was pretty funny! They even got Warren in there. Cheers!

Thanks very much! Terrific stuff. Cheers!

Well, Len Barrie, former NHL player, founder of Bear Mountain Resorts and part-owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, may have pulled a Lenny Dykstra! Cheers! http://www.globeinvestor.com/servlet/story/GAM.20090902.LIGHTNING02ART22303/GIStory/

Berkshire and Leucadia have teamed up again in a $490M deal for Capmark Financial Group's mortgage and loan servicing business. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aiWKNGNQZyNk