Pulte Homes

Pulte Homes are the first home builder mega merger to come through, but odds are it will not be the last. The 1.3 billion dollar stock swap is being done while both companies are hemorrhaging money in the housing downturn. The merging of assets, valued at a combined 7.2 billion dollar enterprise value should provide enough protection to make it through till the markets turn around.

The Pulte Homes name will be the new name of the company and the headquarters will remain in Bloomington Hills, Michigan. So, it looks like Pulte management will be the dominant force in the merger. Directors of both companies have unanimously approved the deal. The combined company will use the Pulte name and will be based in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., where Pulte is based. The company plans to maintain a significant presence in Dallas, where Centex has its headquarters.

Under the agreement, Centex shareholders will receive 0.975 shares of Pulte stock for each share of Centex they own. Based on the $10.77 closing price of Pulte stock on Tuesday, the transaction has a value of $10.50 a Centex share, a 37 percent premium over Centex closing price of $7.62 on Tuesday. Upon closing, Pulte shareholders will own about 68 percent of the combined company, and Centex shareholders will own about 32 percent.

Red Sox

The 2009 Red Sox season kicks off today, weather permitting, against the Tampa Bay Rays. This is entirely fitting. Moreover, it is extremely helpful to Red Sox fans, who will be forced to endure the following cattle prod zinger: In 2009, the Rays are every bit as much the nemesis of the Boston Red Sox as the New York Yankees.

Oh, sure, Sox fans say they're worried about the the Rays this year. But many are also quick to point out -- rightly -- that had the Sox been at full strength during last year's American League Championship Series, things may have turned out drastically different. Put another way: What, you think the Rays are going to roll over and play dead now?

This no longer matters. In fact, if anything, it's a tired argument, considering that while Mike Lowell, David Ortiz and a few select others either missed time or looked broken during the playoffs last year, the Rays met the Sox with virtually no postseason experience on their roster... and won anyway. I don't think so, friends. Blockbuster free agent deals or not, the Rays are every bit as dangerous as the Yankees in 2009 to Boston's chances at American League supremacy. Let us consider some of the ways.

Bridget Marks

Bridget Marks was in the fight of her life for custody of her twin daughters whom she had had with a gambling mogul by the name of John Aylsworth–a married philanderer by all accounts. Bridget was accused of all that and the trial court gave the kids to the father and his wife. But she appealed. I am not sure if was the Appellate Division or the Court of Appeals but which ever it was, Bridget got her custody back.

Now it turns out that she didn’t stop there. She enlisted legislators up in Albany to draft a new law called “Bridget’s Law” that basically says that a parent cannot lose custody if they make a “good faith” effort to protect their kids. Says the New York Post. What happened was that John reconciled with his wife and both he and she proceeded to sue for custody of the girls he had with his consort Bridget and they won! The court felt that it was in the best interest of the babies to be raised by the father and his wife and not be their mother who was the father’s mistress in the past.

Apparently Bridget had accused the father of “molesting” the girls. And we know in New York there is an automatic transfer of custody if the court feels that the custodial parent invents charges of molestation and encourages the children to bring such charges (usually against the father) and essentially “poisons” and “alienates” the children from the non-custodial parent.