dear mr. taig, page-16

hi f&b,


over $200 m is way out of retail league - no matter how many shareholders we are talking about.

I personally think that with this huge amount of money - Don has done it the only way I can think of (at this point). I don't see many around who could have swung this.

What he is giving us is an option.

For me - everything about this is a double edge.

1. The timing is near perfect (I would have probably preferred it about 6 months back)
But on the other hand the timing is dreadful - low sp and if Dino hits a biggie next month, then that will happily complicate matters :) (personally I will be stunned if he gets zip)

2. We get the cornerstone we really need -- but, the risk is that they have control, and they are at least potentially state influenced.

3. The injection is huge - enough for all our needs and future security in these troubled times - but, the potential downside is obvious.


This isn't easy.

have a great day

Pinto