Bankrupt!

(Newser) - In trying times, many turn to the church to ease anxieties, but even houses of God haven’t been spared the wrath of recession, the Wall Street Journal reports. A church building boom begun in the 1990s has left many congregations overextended, and with the economic slowdown taking a sizable bite out of donations, many are turning to Chapter 11 bankruptcy. More »

(Newser) - Polaroid is blaming fraud at its parent company for its second bankruptcy filing in 7 years, Bloomberg reports. The instant photography pioneer says it has “ample cash reserves” and doesn’t expect to seek additional financing under Chapter 11 reorganization. But the Petters Group, which acquired the 71-year-old firm in 2005, has unsecured claims against Polaroid for $213.5 million. More »

(Newser) - In a round of talks running into the night, GM and Chrysler made headway in securing emergency loans from the federal government yesterday, Reuters reports; the package, expected as soon as this morning, would demand wholesale restructuring of the automakers, including more concessions from unions and creditors. The talks continued even as the White House said yesterday managed bankruptcies were an option for a "soft landing" for the Big Three, an option the companies have said repeatedly is not viable. More »

(Newser) - After refusing to bail out Lehman Brothers, the Federal Reserve funneled $87 billion to a subsidiary through JPMorgan Chase on Sept. 15, then another $51 billion the next day. The feds say they aimed to “facilitate an orderly wind-down” of Lehman’s broker-dealer operations, Andrew Ross Sorkin writes in the New York Times , but their changing explanations, and other issues, continue to muddy the waters. More »

(Newser) - Bosses at one of the country's biggest subprime lenders made some suspicious stock sales as the firm's mortgages soured, a Los Angeles Times investigation reveals. Records show that executives at now-bankrupt New Century Financial sold nearly $20 million in company shares shortly after setting up new trading plans, often within days of each other. Such behavior "raises a red flag" for prosecutors, one expert said. More »

(Newser) - Michael Vick is millions of dollars in debt, with his main hope of solvency hinging on the uncertain prospect of returning to the NFL, the AP reports. The former QB's bankruptcy filing puts his assets at $16 million but his debts at $20.4 million. Friends and family drive around in fancy cars provided by the player's former largesse, but Vick himself now makes 12 cents an hour in prison. More »

(Newser) - GM is claiming all it needs is a “bridge loan,” but the automaker is losing money so fast that bridge would be burned by February, writes Andrew Ross Sorkin in the New York Times. What GM really needs is bankruptcy—but one guided by the government. “Taxpayers shouldn’t fork over a cent, at least until shareholders are wiped out, management is tossed out, and the industry is completely reorganized.” Sorkin goes on to spell out how it should work. More »

(Newser) - Kosher meat prices are skyrocketing after the Iowa packing plant that supplied about 60% of the US market declared bankruptcy, USA Today reports, in the wake of a May immigration raid. Agriprocessors, in trouble even before the raid, stopped operating last week. “Stores like mine are struggling all over,” said one deli owner, facing recent price hikes of 30%. More »