so not rumors but must be taken with a grain of salt??.....soooo, embellished truths??? The definition of a rumor is: 1. talk or opinion widely disseminated with no discernible source. 2. A statement or report current without known authority for its truth. I can't hold your hand on this beyond this post but my point is, he speaks in absolutes about things that, as you graciously pointed out, are not absolute..... do you not see the difference between, "AS is looking at making moves should the JB/NK deal go through" vs. "AS will be making a cash offer to buy JB in 3 weeks" or "Brad likes the idea of acquiring HA" vs. "AS will be buying HA by the end of summer"....