How about B$ for BOUTS? Everyone likes to have a few $$$ around.

O

If you or you and your friends were going to put in $3-5M or more to get SFMI drilling without interruptions, wouldn't you also put in place controls so that you and your friends could dictate rather than recommend how the business develops? Given that PQ has made some decisions that have been less than brilliant along the way, my guess is that this consortium is putting conditions in place to assure that they have at least one hand on the steering wheel going forward. AS and buddies won't just hand over cash and say, "PQ, go run with it!" I think they will insist on telling him exactly how to spend it so that they get something other than a goose egg in return. My guess is that these conditions are still in the works, so, only a teaser PR today. Nonetheless, the news is a vote of confidence. Just waiting for more votes.

O

For someone who is still way in the red on this investment, I have to admit that I am starting to feel that I might actually make a decent profit rather than lose my shirt on this investment. Pic, I still have about 40% of what you do in SFMI and GHDC, but at a much higher price point because I am nowhere near as good as you at knowing when to get in. Too much buying on the excitement and too little when we are being beaten down. Having said that, I am encouraged by the addition of the advisory board and by the clandestine improvements in claims as outlined by IW. So, I have started picking up shares again. I would add that I get it regarding the need not to toot our horn as claims are being secured, but I don't get it that we need to keep shooting ourselves in the foot to convince people not to even look at us as a serious investment. I mean, I understand to some extent the delay in getting DQ off of the board, but can't we go ahead and get someone who knows what they are doing to run the mill? We have a lot of positives with the main one being that WEM is full of the right stuff. I'm not ready for the group hug with PQ yet, but I will be closer when the other Q's are on the sidelines and we look to the public like we mean business. Give me a few more days to pick up these cheap shares, then someone give PQ the signal to start tooting the horn. Time to get moving! Oh, and thanks to all of the regulars who post so much helpful info.

O

Good to have the exposure, but 3 Q's in the Executive Officer box looks bad. Hopefully, that will be addressed soon.

Garick:

I agree with you that it would take a lot of cash to pay a dividend. Even 1/10th of a cent per share would be $400,000.00. My point was that if there is cash available for a significant stock repurchase, that cash might be better used as a dividend.

Using the 400 M share number, let's say that SFMI is going to buy back 25 M shares. SFMI might think that they are reducing the outstanding shares to 375 M, but they might just be buying 25 M new shares naked shorted into the market. Then SFMI is out of its 15% buyback cash which has gone to the naked shorters, and the float remains 400 M. With the dividend scenario, SFMI would pay to the 400 M shareholders and the naked shorters would pay to the shareholders to whom they have still failed to deliver legitimate shares. The share buyback is no pain to naked shorters, but the dividend is. Even if SFMI gets cash, it may be better to just skip the share buyback until they can issue a dividend.

Again, though, you are right. We need cash to do either one and this discussion is just hypothetical until we have it. And, I am sure that it is much more complicated than my example above. Remember, the crooks have been at this for a long time.

O

I know that the buyback of shares has been mentioned multiple times before as a means of increasing share price and value over time. However, the point has been made on other mining boards that, in the presence of any naked short selling, the company can keep buying share after share and never effectively reduce the float of shares. The naked short sellers will just sell more "air shares" to the company, siphoning off more funds and giving the company no benefit. What has been suggested as a more effective means of protecting the company is the offering of a dividend. As I understand it, the benefit is that naked short sellers ARE on the hook for the payout of dividends for "air shares" they have sold into the marketplace. A dividend, however small, makes a stock more attractive to any buyer. SFMI should consider this option as they become more visible in the market, and therefore, a bigger target to market manipulators.