Should the State of WIsconsin Save Cerberus?

That's the question posed by Kevin in this morning's essay.

We, like Kevin, have no particular love for Cerberus, nor their tactics.  As you recall, they were players in the Chrysler fiasco, and also are players in the guns marketplace.  The tactics in the guns businesses are exactly the same as those Kevin describes in his essay, by the way; but Cerberus, in that case, picked an industry which has benefitted immensely from the Obama Administration's existence.

About 10 years ago, a friend who knows the paper industry told me that the business had severe over-capacity problems worldwide.  The entry of mills in the Far East (something the old Harnischfeger/Beloit Industries can address to its chagrin) has made the business extremely difficult.

What is puzzling is that NewPage was not able to take advantage of the ITC ruling.  Maybe another way to put it is this:  the ruling could not overcome the recession's impact on magazine sales and the Internet.

So.  Should the State of Wisconsin put a few hundred million dollars into NewPage?

Not if it goes to bail out Cerberus, nor the lead lenders here.