Peurto Rico bankrupt.

[ZenOps]

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-36184250

Defaulted on minimum $422 million payment on $70 Billion debt.

What to do? Creditors can take twenty cents on the dollar and run, or will the US bail them out? Technically, the US does not have to bail them out, as they are technically - only a US unincorporated territory and not a state of the union.

[finboy]

John Oliver did a segment on this, they're fucked

[ExtraSlow]

If the US bails out Puerto Rico, does that mean they will have to bail out California when the time comes?

Does it mean they will have to dismantle the hoover dam and use the material as collateral to the soon-coming New World Bank and it's reptilian board of directors?

[ZenOps]

Older skit on US territories was more laughs.



British should understand their situation pretty well. US territories are akin to colonies of the crown. IMO its very smart for them to stop payments under the Obama admin, because if they procrastinate and get Trump - He for sure would shut down every hospital and school to payback the 70 Billion.

[Xtrema]

Originally posted by ExtraSlow
If the US bails out Puerto Rico, does that mean they will have to bail out California when the time comes?

They are not asking for bailout, they are asking for bankruptcy protection and allow them to restructure their debt.

[ZenOps]

Its specifically Chapter 9 bankruptcy that Peurto Rico is banned from using.

California would have no such restrictions, if they paid back creditors half a cent on every dollar owed, they *could* do that. BTW: Californias debt is $444 Billion, which they can pay off with a sack of almonds if that is what is decided.

[Antonito]

Their refusal to hand over their financial data makes me think it's going to be revealed as a cesspool of corruption. Who would've thought that an economy based on tax breaks and cheap labor wouldn't be entirely on the up and up

[ZenOps]

I don't know that there was any corruption at all.

Without Viagra, how do you payback 6% interest on 70 Billion. That's a solid $4.2 billion per year that must somehow be created in wealth.

Coconuts? Wheat? Computer chips?

I think the argument was that it could be transformed into a trading hub that would rival Manhattan. But thing about trading hubs, is that you usually only need one for each coast.

[Buster]

eh.

You make your bed, you lie in it.

[Darell_n]

When I was there last, the entire country was a slum with mud huts scattered with dozens of gold plated pharmaceutical companies. That's it, other than a small refinery for their beater cars. Nothing more than tourist money and I'm sure the drug companies raped them hard from the start.