Jester,

One more spurious thought about the ALU unwanted, unexpected cap gains issue: It's hard for me to suss why the 'sale' (altho there is no 'sale' in the usual sense of the word) of ALU and the 'acquisition' (although nothing was technically 'bought') of NOK is a taxable event. One might play with the 'equivalent' term as defined in the wash sale rule, which connects shares bought and shares sold in this manner as simply a different way to 'own' a stock position. If one bought ALU at $4.00, and it gets 'sold' in the tender, one has a short term loss. If one bought NOK after that, one might argue I'd think that you've bought an 'equivalent' stake in essentially the same stock, and so wash sale would apply.

I know it doesn't work that way. But it seems to me just another example of the silly putty IRS rules that always end up with tails they win heads you lose - with very rare exceptions - such as your telling a rather stunned board - probably 10 years ago - how short term calls become taxed long term if the underlying stock has been held long term. 

Goddamn IRS - 'oops', I've expressed hostility to a federal agency, and therefore might be a threat to act in a violent manner towards the representatives of that agency - so I need to have all my civil rights taken away, all my communications bugged, getting barred from flying, have my movements tracked, all my finances monitored, the govt having to know what I'm eating for breakfast, and that's just for starters. Land of the free,home of the brave.