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Congratulations! You've successfully wrestled the title of Most Obvious Poster away from Acumen. Never thought I would live to see that. Keep buying, though - by all means. $$$$
bank
Congratulations! You've successfully wrestled the title of Most Obvious Poster away from Acumen. Never thought I would live to see that. Keep buying, though - by all means. $$$$
bank
There was no implication - just a question.
bank
Insighter,
What was the total purchase price, including shares and cash for LTAS when WSGI bought them?
bank
This suggests to me that someone doesn't understand how shorting a stock works. Why would there be an inference to La Jolla borrowing stock from WSGI? One has to borrow from a broker, not the company directly.
Coastie, can you confirm who that quote is from? Or is that your own statement? Hard to tell from all of the quotations and parentheses. Thank you.
bank
Thanks rwe.
Best,
bank
OK. Thanks. I appreciate the response. Yeah, I don't have that much use for Pacer really, especially when there are those of you who are willing to share from your own accounts.
bank
Why not include the entire statement verbatim?
Thanks.
bank
Thanks, RWE. That would be a nice development, indeed.
bank
So, Coastie - was the motion to dismiss denied? Thanks.
bank
I had a conversation with Kevin Hess about a year ago about possibly putting together a system for me that was to be used in critical video applications. IMO, Kevin has a firm grasp of stabilization, camera movement and professional still shot and video applications. I'm sure this unit they shipped is really nice.
bank
I find it interesting that the source of most of the bloviation on this board is brought by those who either own no shares or have shorted the stock. Accusing Drew of bloviation exposes the accuser as the bloviator that he truly is. LMAO.
bank
"The beginning of everything." Not sure we ever left, but, yes, we are there, IMO.
bank
Deliberate fake dozing is my forte. If I can fool you, I can probably fool just about anybody, except maybe the 30 year retired Navy vet who just bought shares this year. Pretty sure I would never get anything past him.
Transparency? I'm all ears.
Best,
bank
"And as I wind on down the road. . ."
Best,
bank
If I were management, I would be better equipped to answer that question. Or were you asking a rhetorical question?
bank
I believe I said Drew mentioned those names, not Barbara and Glenn.
bank
Interesting that Glenn also spoke about the new consultants working on exactly that. They are attempting to shore up SP in a two step program. IJO has a better handle on this part of the discussion as his notes were more detailed than mine on this. Tying share price to actual revenue as the balance sheet gets cleaned up is part of the focus. IJO, can you jump in here?
bank
I think the LTAS purchase and marketing to DOD was not poor judgement. Poor timing in the end, maybe. But, a good product that they actually wanted. There was other poor judgement, however, la jolla for instance, and you may be referring to other things as well. I must be fair to Glenn though and add that he admitted to us at the meeting that he has made mistakes. He didn't elaborate, but he's not blind to it. I honestly feel after talking with him face to face that he does care. That doesn't excuse performance, share price or anything else. But, he's not about smoke and mirrors as previous management has been guilty of. It's not what he's about. Yes, the company is in bad shape. But, when wasn't it in bad shape? SP has never defined the health of this company, IMO. But, at least maybe we have a healthier approach going forward. Let's hope. Best to you, Madmonks.
bank
I agree. I think we'll see a more concerted effort to communicate now with Drew on board. Just the fact that he plans on getting us info on GTC and Argus plans is a huge step forward in transparency.
bank
Plus, if Argus becomes a commercial reality, we made need a respectable financier who probably won't touch a penny stock. A lot of ifs.
bank
That's brilliant, Cole. Keep educating us, please.
bank
To clarify, he didn't say presently. It was in the context of whether or not it would be helpful in a scenario down the road. I'm dead set against it as well and it would have to be extremely convincing for me to go along with it.
bank
Thank you.
I don't recall talk about Homeland Security. And, no, nobody discussed the breakdown of DRNE share ownership. Sorry, I should have delved deeper into that.
bank
My notes on this year's meeting as I ride up I-95:
In attendance were Glenn Estrella, Barbara Johnson, Jeffrey Sawyers, Drew West, 2 support staff, and 7 shareholders, one of which appeared to duck in and out of the meeting at various points. I was told that there were 22 shareholders listening in on the dubious audio feed. I should have brought my own mikes and mixer, Drew promises to fix that for next year. There was one gentleman in attendance who has owned shares since the very beginning I believe, one gentleman who purchased shares after the LTAS sale and folks at purchase points everywhere in between.
Forgive me if some of the following is duplicate information. And please, I am only the messenger and will try to relay accurately the tone and the intent of the people and their comments.
Drew made it very clear that accountability and real business plans were to be his modus operandi going forward. He stated that in the third quarter we will see a business plan for GTC growth as they work towards opening up the US sales channels. At this point, GTC is a self-sustaining, profitable segment of the business. And, of course it is the only revenue generating part of WSGI at the moment. He also stated that a business plan for Argus commercialization will be presented soon as well. It seems that the plan is nearly complete. In regards to Argus, Trident and EWA are active partners in its continuing development including the miniaturization of the payload. He mentioned there are companies currently looking at the Argus as a vehicle to provide internet connectivity throughout the world where there currently is none. Without saying exactly what companies they are talking to, he said they are companies like Google, Facebook or Amazon. He also spoke about future acquisitions. His considerations when examining a potential purchase are " will it detract from current business?" and "will it increase shareholder value?" IMO, Drew is bringing a common sense business approach to developing sales strategies and market opportunities. If home runs are to be hit, they will probably only come amongst many singles and multiple reliable players running the bases. Setting reasonable, metered goals and providing real world methods to achieve those goals will be Drew's preferred method of execution going forward, IMO.
This differs from Glenn's shoot from the hip style. But, Glenn makes no excuses for who he his and what he has had to do to keep the company from dissolving. As he put it, it's been like the juggler who keeps multiple plates spinning on sticks and his attention has always been, first and foremost, on the plate that is falling the fastest. Glenn spoke about many things in all candor, IMO. 1) the SEC still hovers and it's nearly impossible to talk about things unless they are material events. Barbara also spoke up and apologized for not being able to talk about certain things to shareholders. 2) The legacy debt has been prohibitive to getting substantial, reasonable financing. 3) the ground station business environment has been unfavorable, although they continue to talk with potential foreign government and corporate customers. Glenn said that as long as a foreign entity is not a threat to the US, they will consider all possibilities. 4) LTAS and BIB. This was a tough topic for him to discuss. He spent a lot of time and effort at Fort Polk working with commanders and troops. They loved the product. They felt lives could have been saved if they had these in service during the war. They wanted to buy many units. IMO, Glenn thought he had opened the kind of pipeline we all hoped for. After many hours training, tweaking, paperwork and jumping through hoops, at the end of the day, sequestration wouldn't allow purchases. WSGI could no longer afford to keep LTAS, there simply wasn't enough money to support it, so they had to sell it. Glenn feels that the deal they got was fair. LTAS has no big orders in the pipeline, WSGI received cash up front, substantial investment capital to keep the doors open and develop the Argus and an asset with DRNE shares that they hope to monetize when the time is right. He felt sequestration would wane in the future and the hope is that it will help the asset they own in DRNE. In the meantime, the weight of LTAS is lifted and the company can focus on it's revenue generator and it's potential revenue generator.
Many questions were asked, some handled in my comments above. I asked Glenn if a reverse split was a possibility in the future and he made it clear that all options are on the table if they decide it benefits the shareholder and the possibility of procuring better financing. I also asked what the source of the millions in legacy debt was and how they planned on ridding themselves of it. Barbara fielded this question. She said they were trying to figure out if the debt was legitimate. The history of the debt predates any current management and they are questioning its authenticity. I asked if legal proceedings might be involved to clear the debt and she said that depending on what they find, maybe.
And last, but not least, they served water, coffee, danishes and muffins.
bank
Oh, and by the way, I stand by everything I stated in post 154145 from 03/30/12.
I knew going in, with my eyes wide open, that this was going to be a process that was sure to be full of bumps along the way. But, I got on board because I was confident in the new management's skill sets and that they had a viable plan. Why? Because THEY were confident. They didn't need to be here. So why were they? Because they saw an opportunity and they were sure they would achieve success. I also believed that their confidence meant that they knew something that we didn't about the likelihood of the airship being commercialized. Let me be clear - I still trust that they know something that we don't in this regard. Everything they have done supports this assertion. I applaud the massive cleanup efforts. I applaud the relationships they have cultivated - Eastcor, UML, GTC, DOD, etc. I applaud the fact that they don't open their yaps with stuff that may have to be explained away down the road. I applaud their willingness to back up their words with their own money.
I admit, though, that I am frustrated with management's communications. I was chastized by Pagan for pointing out that a previous public document was dated wrong. Well, this past letter to Clark from Estrella was dated wrong as well - Jan 2011. I know this may seem like nit-picking, but they also had to request a withdrawal this month of an S-1. Things like this make management look like beginners. It's embarrassing. I realize that in their past jobs with major financial institutions, there were people hired to make sure t's were crossed and i's dotted. And there's a reason for this - present the company in the most professional and mistake-free way possible. Plus, I feel that this past letter is contrived in it's presentation. Just like all of the quotes that come from management after news PRs. There's nothing genuine sounding. I just think they could do a much better job with the presentation.
Other opinions that nobody probably cares about, but I'm going to share them anyhow:
GTC has the potential to make this company a lot of money. In my estimation, they have a cottage industry that can be developed and ridden for many years. They need the proper sales force to make this happen, however. That's the caveat.
A reverse split will not happen. No way, no how. It ain't that kind of party.
Those who are giving management until the shareholder's meeting to show major increases in the SP or "they're out" are thinking too emotionally about their investment. This is a process that can't have success demanded upon it. Be more patient.
That's it. Have a great weekend all.
bank
We all know what happens when you assume. But, if the shoe fits . . .
bank
I'll be paying my own way to attend. That will be enough for me to bear. There was a standing offer to help defray my costs which I politely declined, grateful that the shareholder offered. Maybe you can dig up that post and see if he'd be willing to help you. Love to see you there.
Best,
bank
Well said Indy. Eom.
bank
Well said fly. Eom.
Run,
It is my hope that with this new deal, the cash infusion will engender true growth with GTC and ARGUS development. There aren't many penny stock companies that ever get out of the muck and become big boys. Your depiction of our little company has been accurate in regards to it being a risk investment. Those who have invested more in it than they can handle have indeed risked too much. Your perspective is valid. Thanks.
bank
If you promise to stop throwing out wild accusations about things you know nothing about, and stop with the colorful, inflammatory, emotional tirades every hour, then maybe I will entertain an intelligent conversation with you. Somehow I don't think that will happen. Bagelboy and others have presented reasonable discussion points and your responses include things like saying the CEO "sucks." Professionalism counts here IMO. Your comments still continue to make me doubt your intentions on this board. Go read some of them and, hopefully, you'll see what I and others see.
bank
Bagelboy,
Thank you for a reasoned, cogent treatise on the topic. Unfortunately, you are discussing the matter with someone who continues to argue with supposition and assumptions that are both emotional and belligerent due to her paper losses. Best of luck.
bank
Your expectation of major orders is your own fault, not the CEO's.
bank
If you want to know how share buybacks work under SEC guidelines:
http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/33-8335.htm
bank
Insighter,
So, please allow me to probe your mind here. I have 2 questions for you. Knowing what you know about the company's disposition and Glenn's history before and after his involvement with the company, 1) how would you have funded the company differently and 2) what would you have done to increase sales with GTC and the BIB/WASP product? I'm not interested in how Glenn failed. I'm interested in how you feel more success could have been achieved.
I appreciate your honest and thoughtful reply.
bank