As far as I'm concerned they can have the banks. 

--more--"

 And as it turns out once you get to the creme-filling of this story it IS ABOUT BUSTING a UNION:

"Hostess set to mediate with union" by Candice Choi  |  Associated Press, November 20, 2012

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — Twinkies will live to see another day.

 And a sigh of relief and heaving of belly rises from the American people. 

Hostess Brands Inc. and its second-largest union agreed on Monday to go into mediation to try to resolve their differences after a bankruptcy court judge concluded that the parties hadn’t gone through the critical step. That means the maker of the spongy cake with the mysterious cream in the middle won’t go out of business yet.

The news comes after the maker of Ho Ho’s, Ding Dongs, and Wonder Bread last week moved to liquidate and sell off its assets in bankruptcy court. The company cited a crippling strike started on Nov. 9 by the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union that started, which represents about 30 percent of Hostess workers.

‘‘Many people, myself included, have serious questions as to the logic behind this strike,’’ said Judge Robert Drain, who heard the case in the US Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York in White Plains. ‘‘Not to have gone through that step leaves a huge question mark in this case.’’

 I will be getting to that soon because I think I can answer the  judge's question. 

The mediation talks are expected to begin Tuesday, with the liquidation hearing set to resume on Wednesday. After Monday’s hearing, Jeff Freund, an attorney for the bakers union, said any guess as to how the talks will go would be ‘‘purely speculative.’’

In an interview following the hearing, CEO Gregory Rayburn said that there is enormous financial pressure to come to an agreement with the union by the end of the day Tuesday. He noted that it is costing Hostess about $1 million a day in payroll costs alone to keep the company alive.

 Yeah, the poor CEO, uh-huh. 

‘‘We didn’t think we had a runway, but the judge just created a 24-hour runway,’’ said Rayburn, who added that even if a contract agreement is reached, it is unclear whether all 33 Hostess plants will operate again.

Hostess employs nearly 300 workers at various stores and facilities across Massachusetts.

Hostess, weighed down by debt, management turmoil, rising labor costs, and the changing tastes of America, decided on Friday that it no longer could make it through a conventional Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring. Instead, the company, which is based in Irving, Texas, asked the court for permission to sell assets and go out of business.

 Oh, they are a VICTIM of PRIVATE EQUITY a la BAIN CAPITAL or other such entity, 'eh?!!!

 It's not changing tastes or labor costs that has caused America to lose it's love of the Twinkie, folks. It's GOOD, OLD-FASHIONED LOOTING that has put the bakers out of business.

Hostess, which is in its second bankruptcy in less than a decade, said that it was saddled with costs related to its unionized workforce. So the company brought on Rayburn as a restructuring expert to renegotiate its contract with labor unions.

 Yeah, if it's some slob sipping off the taxpayer teat or some CEO bonus and salary at stake contracts are binding. You regular working folk we see everyday gotta give it up. 

Hostess, which had been contributing $100 million a year in pension costs for workers, offered them a new contract that would have slashed that to $25 million a year, in addition to wage cuts and a 17 percent reduction in health benefits. But the bakery union decided to strike.

 Whadda ya' mean but?

By that time, Hostess had reached a contract agreement with its largest union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, which urged the bakery union to hold a secret ballot on whether to continue striking. Although many bakery workers decided to cross picket lines this week, Hostess said it wasn’t enough to keep operations at normal levels.

Rayburn said that Hostess was already operating on razor thin margins and that the strike was the final blow.

Okay, I have had enough.

"Hostess tripled its CEO’s pay and increased executive compensation by as much as 80 percent while it filed for bankruptcy for the second time earlier this year." 

 Yeah, SOMEHOW THAT NEVER MADE my CORPORATE PAPER!! 

The company’s announcement on Friday that it would move to liquidate prompted people across the country to rush to stores and stock up on their favorite Hostess treats. Many businesses reported selling out of Twinkies within hours and the spongy yellow cakes turned up for sale online for hundreds of dollars.

 I must have skipped that aisle, and now I'm starting to suspect an agenda-pu$hing a$pect to the corporate media's coverage (if you know what I mean).

Even if Hostess goes out of business, its popular brands will probably find a second life after being snapped up by buyers. The company says several potential buyers have expressed interest in the brands. Although Hostess’ sales have been declining in recent years, the company still does about $2.5 billion in business each year.

 Translation: it's still a going concern, and this really was about stealing a loaf of loot. 

--more--"

"Talks fail to bring deal at Hostess" Asssociated Press, November 21, 2012

NEW YORK — Hostess Brands Inc. lived to die another day.

 That's what eating the product will do to you, too. 

The maker of Twinkies and Ding Dongs said late Tuesday that it failed to reach an agreement with its second-biggest union. As a result, Hostess plans to continue with a hearing on Wednesday in which a bankruptcy court judge in White Plains, N.Y., will decide if the company can shutter its operations.

The renewed talks between Hostess and The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union came after the company declared last week that it would move to wind down its business and start selling off its assets in bankruptcy court. The company cited a crippling strike that was started on Nov. 9 by the union, which represents 30 percent of Hostess workers.

After making its case to liquidate on Monday, the bankruptcy court judge noted that the two sides hadn’t yet tried resolving their differences through private mediation. The judge noted that 18,000 jobs were on the line and urged the company and union to try to resolve their differences. Both sides agreed to hold mediation proceedings on Tuesday.

In a statement late Tuesday, Hostess said it would not comment on the breakdown in talks other than to say that mediation ‘‘was unsuccessful.’’ There was no immediate comment from the bakers union.

Hostess shut down its three dozen plants late last week after it said the strike by the bakers union hurt its ability to maintain normal production. The union says the company’s demise was the result of years of mismanagement, however, and that workers have already given steep concessions over the years.

 Nothing so far from my Globe on the executive salaries and such. 

Hostess, weighed down by management turmoil, rising labor costs and Americans’ changing tastes, is making its second trip through Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring. The company, based in Irving, Texas, had brought on CEO Gregory Rayburn as a restructuring expert in part to renegotiate its contract with labor unions.

 Is it NOT INTERESTING that being WEIGHED DOWN by DEBT was LEFT OUT of the recipe this time? 

The company reached an agreement with its biggest union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, on a contract that dramatically reduced pension contributions and slashed wages and health benefits. But the company said the bakers union stopped returning its calls about a month ago.

 Gee, I JUST CAN'T IMAGINE WHY -- but I can $URE take a GUE$$!!!!

 Of course, that's the corporate media's take on it. What did management do, let the phone ring once and hang up like reporters? 

The Teamsters urged the smaller union to hold a secret ballot on whether members wanted to continue striking. Many workers in the bakers union decided to cross picket lines last week but Hostess said it wasn’t enough to keep operations at normal levels.

Teamsters General Secretary Ken Hall said the failure of the mediation talks Tuesday and the likely shuttering of the company was a ‘‘tragic outcome’’ for Hostess workers.

Rayburn said that Hostess was already operating on razor thin margins and that the strike was the final blow. The bakers union meanwhile pointed to the steep raises executives were given last year as the company was spiraling down toward bankruptcy.

Aaaah, THERE IT IS!! FINALLY! 

The company’s announcement last week that it would move to liquidate prompted a rush on Hostess treats across the country, with many businesses selling out of Twinkies within hours.

Even if Hostess goes out of business, its popular brands will likely find a second life after being snapped up by buyers. The company says several potential buyers have expressed interest in the brands. The company still does about $2.5 billion in business each year. Twinkies alone brought in $68 million so far this year.

--more--"

 And you want to talk about a bunch of twinkies? 

"Hostess may go, but the Twinkie will endure" November 21, 2012

When news broke last week that Hostess Brands was on the brink of going out of business, reminders quickly emerged of the place the company’s snack cakes hold in American culture: reports that Twinkies were flying off the shelves in grocery stores, wistful paeans to Ding Dongs on Twitter. It’s no surprise; Hostess makes a number of products that are deeply associated with childhood, from the eternally faux-fresh Twinkies to cream-filled cupcakes, Ho Hos, and Wonder Bread. (The company also owns Drake’s, which makes Ring Dings, Yodels, and Devil Dogs.)

On Monday, a bankruptcy judge ordered Hostess into mediation with its striking bakery workers’ union, improving chances that the company will survive. Hopefully the two sides will reach a deal; hundreds of jobs in Massachusetts hang in the balance.

 They don't read their own business section? 

But even if mediation fails, it remains likely that some of Hostess’s longstanding products will endure. Other food companies, understanding the value of nostalgia, are likely to scoop up the trademarks.

 Can I just mention once again how tired I am of inculcating, indoctrinating lies invading the air space?

Even in an era of obesity concerns and a backlash against processed foods, the Twinkie in moderation can be a powerful connector, a reminder of school lunches and afterschool snacks — and of the way such ready-made baked goods once liberated moms from their ovens.

 So now the unhealthy fare Hostess cooks up is the great liberator of women? I think I'm gonna puke. 

Sure, a fancy cupcake or an artisinal doughnut has its charms. But as baked-good fads come and go, the Twinkie is more likely to survive.

--more--"

 On to today's main course (if the Globe junk food hasn't spoiled your appetite, that is):

"Demand for food rising in Mass., but donations fall" by Katheleen Conti  |  Globe Staff, November 16, 2012

In the days leading up to Thanksgiving — the busiest time of year for food distribution agencies — individuals and families are lining up for meals in record numbers, even as food and monetary donations have declined.

 Then there HAS BEEN NO RECOVERY! Had there been a recovery then need would be down and donations would be up. 

 But don't worry. I'm sure it will not affect the quality of the buffet that feeds our elite masters and their enforcers in government and media.

The increased need is being driven, in part, by the growing number of people falling below the poverty line for the first time, as they struggle to keep up with the rising cost of living, from food to utilities, say agency representatives.

 And every time Bernanke turns on that printing press for Wall Street it gets worse. 

“The face of hunger is changing, and Greater Boston Food Bank is serving more and more middle class families,” Catherine D’Amato, the food bank’s president and chief executive, said in a statement....

 You know, PEOPLE WITH JOBS! Here in deep-blue Democrat Massachusetts, too!! 

--more--"

 And what's in that

basket 

they gave you down at the Salvation Army?

 "With turkey prices rising, and more families falling on hard times, the decision was difficult but clear. Chicken would not kindle the holiday spirit, perhaps, but it would feed more people. Nowadays, that has to come first."

 Related: Poultry prices jump as more develop taste for dark meat

 It's a drop in your standard of living while the banks and oil companies make billions every three months and corporate AmeriKa cleans up. 

 Alas, time for dessert.