Interesting purchase for Mr. Buffet I would say.

Have you ever heard of the "Glomar Expolrer" which was built by billionaird Howard Hughes in the early 1970's? It was a "scientific research" ship built to roam the oceans and conduct science. The problem was that the "Glomar Explorer" was actually a ship built for the CIA and used to bring up a sunken Russian submarine covertly.

Now what does that have to do with Mr. Buffets purchase of an entire railway you ask? Maybe nothing at all OR just maybe the "government" is working with Mr. Buffet on something bigger (que the sinister music).

Not saying it is actually happening that way but if it worked in the 1970's why not do it again if you are the CIA or FEMA etc....I don't pretend to know what that might be but (sinister music) but it could be possible based on the "Glomar Explorer" project....

Thoughts on this possibility?

I am by no means saying it is related to any government activities but I will say that a man in his position ALWAYS has alterior motives in their purchases. Investors like him plan things well in advance. There is more to this story, now we just need to find out what "more" is.

Guys - I have the feeling you forgot something! Was not your president Obama promising billions to improve the railway system? What is the best way to get the money other than BEING the railway?

Our country's future prosperity depends on its having an efficient and well-maintained rail system," Buffett said in a statement.

I'd say he thinks theres money in it.

Its what businessmen do. They speculate to accumulate. Its been happening for years.

Is this a case of trying to fit the conspiracy to a real-world event?

There is money to be make on the RR

this is from 2007

Since Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, plus many others now, have gone after more railroad holdings, we thought it would be interesting to see how short sellers are acting in the names. Supposedly you can now make money betting against Warren Buffett these days, but that all depends on YOUR timing versus HIS. If you think that Bill Gates’ Cascade investment vehicle doesn’t have some foresight into issues 3 to 6 months ahead of time, well I won’t say it. So here is how the short selling looks in the railroads from April to May

STOCK (Ticker) MAY07 APR07 Change
Union Pacific (UNP) 4.41M 3.91M 12.8%
Burlington North (BNI) 6.19M 5.8M 6.1%
Canadian Nat’l (CNI) 1.79M 1.40M 28.2%
CSX Corp. (CSX) 29.27M 27.97M 4.6%
Canadian Pac. (CP) 1.30M 1.06M 22.2%

lower short interest….

Norfolk Southern (NSC) 5.47M 7.93M -31%
Kansas City So. (KSU) 5.30M 6.43M -17.6%

NSC was Buffett’s top holding in the sector, and CNI was Gates’ top holding in the rails. Both BNI and UNP were Buffett’s other holdings in the sector.

---------------------------------------

Maybe he looking ahead for an intercontinental RR. Merger with CSX or the NS ?


..

[edit on 4-11-2009 by TrainDispatcher]

Warren Buffet does NOT buy assests to collapse them, thats what small private equity companies used to do. a la "Wall Street" greed is good and so on.

WB buys management teams more than he buys sectors of economy. If a buisness, any buisness has a good balance sheet and effective mgt. he might purchase it and then leave it alone and let the mgt team do its thing. Make him money. At the core WB is a value investor, read his books or the books about him.



[edit on 4-11-2009 by jacksmoke]

Don't forget that the railroads are some of the largest land owners in the country. Besides the thousands of miles of active track, they also own huge tracts of land for both discontinued track as well as "future expansion." The land alone makes a railroad look like a very sound investment. Add to it what other posters have said about both Obama's rhetoric about investing in our infrastructure and bolstering rail, along with the various green proponents who view rail (and future technology rail) as a very viable alternative to trucks and aircraft. Again, it all looks like a very sound investment to me.

Not FEMA.

If you're smart, you'd invest in what he's investing too. Buffet owned a portion and now purchases the entire organization? He's got a business plan and it's time to invest in it.

Has it crossed anybody's mind that this is just another deal that Mr. Buffet intends to make money on, with no conspiratorial strings attached? I know that's an odd thing to say, but think about this for a bit. Railroads are about the most fuel-efficient method for long-haul high volume freight shipment. As fuel prices rise, the efficiency of the railroad becomes a bigger and bigger advantage. As the economy rebounds, there will be more goods to ship...and therefore, more profit for the railroads. In short, if you were expecting an economic recovery to begin soon (in this context, within the next year or so), and expecting fuel prices to rise (which they will do...and even faster than usual if "Cap and Trade" becomes the law of the land), railroads would be a *very* attractive investment. As for "Why now?", the bottom of a recession is almost always a good time to make major acquisitions, if you're one of the lucky few who have available capital to invest.

Originally posted by Emerald The Paradigm
There's no other reason for his move besides FEMA camp.

He bought it at a time when he KNOWS the economy will crash, and people need to be hauled away to a concentration camp.

These rich people also support Planned Parenthood which has NAZI origins.

Actually it was more like the Rockefeller's were the Origin behind Planned Parenthood with their Eugenics Program that interestingly enough started near Auschwitz

That Buffet guy is pretty bright.

He's just looking ahead to a time when we can't afford to drive our fat asses around in our motorized recliners anymore.

Say hello to public transportation.

Damn sure better provide a bicycle car!.

Originally posted by Tomis_Nexis
Not FEMA.

If you're smart, you'd invest in what he's investing too. Buffet owned a portion and now purchases the entire organization? He's got a business plan and it's time to invest in it.

If you were smart you would buy silver coins and necklaces with your pennies... Take your money out of the National Banks and join a local Credit Union but I would not say it's SMART to give these PEOPLE any more of your money... They get it anyway through bailouts and taxes... Take your money and convert it to valuable metal and since the RICH already own the Gold don't buy that because they will sell off all of theirs at the right time and this GOLD you paid 1400 oz for will be worth 600 when you go and sell it....

Stay away from INVESTMENTS!!!

Originally posted by larphillips
Don't forget that the railroads are some of the largest land owners in the country. Besides the thousands of miles of active track, they also own huge tracts of land for both discontinued track as well as "future expansion." The land alone makes a railroad look like a very sound investment. Add to it what other posters have said about both Obama's rhetoric about investing in our infrastructure and bolstering rail, along with the various green proponents who view rail (and future technology rail) as a very viable alternative to trucks and aircraft. Again, it all looks like a very sound investment to me.

This is an excellent point as when the trans-continental railroads were built land grants were awared along the rights-of-way for each mile of trackage complete along with attendant mineral rights. The parcels are still extremely valuable and coupled with the near monopoly on rail shipping (with only two major railroads on each coest) it could be a very profitable venture for Buffet.

I have always held Union Pacific stock and understand why he would want one of the major players as their profitability will remain strong for the foreseeable future.

The new fuel and pollution regs coming soon for big trucks will take a bunch of them off the road

WB has insight most only dream about.
As your country USA starts to collapse you will see why he has made this purchase,its obvious,its right in your face.
As the price of oil becomes expensive due to your ever dropping $$, transportation, from people to food is going to become very expensive.
As America quickly becomes a third world you will see a return to the railways.
Basically it is what will keep America moving.
The cost of living will soon be so high,petrol (gas) will be for the rich.
Go back to the days when Henry built his T-model.What was the main mode of transport before the automobile.
Yes the train.

One thing to think about when looking into this is where his investment is.

Burlington Northern is a major line carrier. It doesn't have a lot of small track that goes nowhere.

If you draw a line from New Orleans to Chicago, nearly every major city and port in the country west of that line has access by existing BN rail and facilities. It covers all of the main hubs west of the Mississippi river and has very little extraneous rail to support besides.

Buffet is looking at a future in rail that doesn't (for this particular investment at least) include the east half of the country.

So,
Thinking caps on.......what is the benefit of that?