Israel and Akiva Tor

Potato Latkes with Apple Compote

I attended a talk given by Akiva Tor, Israeli Northwest Consul General, San Francisco Consulate, given November 3, 2010.  It was very interesting to hear Mr. Tor speak regarding the very compelling issues in the Middle East.  Mr Tor was very earnest in seeking to work with the American government to deal with common areas of interest.  Mr Tor spoke regarding the necessity of maintaining Israel's national security and hoped to find a way to ease the emergent problems in the settlements.

Mr Tor is now Director for Special Projects, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  An article in JWeekly.com discusses his term as Northwest Consul General.  Mr Tor has an interesting background and his service has ranged from involvement in the community, to film screening sessions, to museum openings.

What interests me most about Mr Tor's stint as Northwest Consul General, is his involvement in aiding U.S. government interests in divesting in companies which do business with Iran.  As the articles states, lawmakers had already passed a bill mandating that CalPERS and CalSTRS, (State Pension Funds) "divest from companies doing business with Iran. However, compliance and enforcement had been lax".

I find the issue of divestment very interesting and compelling.  I understand well the fiduciary issues that confront plan sponsors. Indeed, fiduciary responsibility in pension funds is a compelling issue to many retirees.

 This issue is very important in pension plans where the Pension Benefit Guaranty Board (PBGC) operates as a U.S. Government Agency.  The Pension Benefit Guaranty Board Annual Report for 2014 depicts its operation.  The PBGC provides coverage for private sector single employer and multi-employer plans.

Washington State's Pension Plans have had issues with KKR and WAMU. according to this article in the Seattle Times. Recently, KKR settled fees with the SEC that has impacted the Washington State pension system, as well as others.

Indeed, it is interesting to note the cascade which erupted from the chain of failures in 2008.

This takes us back to the issue of Mr Tor and divestment.  For the individual investor who wishes to invest in stocks, the issue of what to invest in has particular meaning. Some products may be repugnant to certain investors and those investors may wish to avoid stocks or mutual funds that include them. This is called "social investing".  This is becoming increasingly difficult in today's society when conglomerates operate to market many products, some of which a particular investor might find distasteful.

The issue of divestment as a financial tool is an interesting one in today's society worthy of additional study as the method of divestment is being used by more and more groups, generating more and more difficult problems of attribution.

In an increasingly complex society, many of these issues cross boundaries and become caught up in the intricate issues of global warming and climate change which confront nations across boundaries.

Congressional Budget Office - The Risk Exposure of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation - Wikipedia
Seattle Times - State's Pension Fund Bets Big on Private Equity
Pension and Investments  - Settlement of Charges with SEC over Fees
State's Pension Plan Bets Big on Private Equity - Seattle Times

Wikipedia:
KKR
Washington Mutual (WAMU)