TRICINDA: IT TAKES A COMMITTEE . . .

Kirk Kerkorian's Tricinda Corporation responded on 07 Jul 06 to GM's initial moves on the proposed "Renault Alliance" and partnership between GM, Nissan and Renault by calling for a "full and objective evaluation of this unique opportunity" through "establishment of a Board committee that receives independent financial and legal advice."

Clearly an "opportunity" as complex as this one requires more than breezy journalistic and internet commentary to fully evaluate.

Summary dismissal of the proposed alliance, as is occurring through the blogosphere and Detroit's hometown press, is premature and unreasonable. As the old cliche' goes, "the Devil is in the details." Or as Alfred North Whitehead observed "we think in generalities but we live in detail."

While the "Renault Alliance" seems to reflexively trigger knee-jerk self-protection reactions among the Detroit status quo, only a fair and full evaluation of the risks and benefits of the proposal will permit all the stakeholders to make rational and informed decisions about it.

An OBJECTIVE GM Board committee is a positive step in determining whether the "Alliance" plan is a grand dream or a grandiose nightmare.