Rich offers some in depth analysis of the Nortel saga, with a look at the bankruptcy laws of both the US and Canada, and some history of what drove Nortel to this particular fork in the road.

Rich also shares his insights gleaned from a conversation with Nortel Enterprise president Joel Hackney, who in the face of all the bankruptcy reports wants to reassure customers that "Nortel is still very much in business."

This is obviously a very big story in our telecom world, but it extends out to the greater question of business and politics, and specifically business and politics in the Canadian landscape.

Our Ontario-based senior contributing editor, Brendan Read, has an article today, entitled, bluntly, Canadian Politics Would Kill Any Potential Sale of Nortel to U.S. Firms

Brendan writes of the struggles Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper would face if he allowed major portions of Nortel to be sold to companies south of the border, and he offers up that "Minister Tony Clement said Ottawa will provide financing to help Nortel restructure and emerge as a viable firm."

Brendan also provides a good amount of political background, which is useful for understanding the various angles that are in play with regard to the Nortel news.