While General Motors is pondering going public again, one should keep in mind that their predecessor company (pre-bankruptcy) is now known as Motors Liquidation Corporation. They had their name changed to not confuse the general public into believing they owned shares in something that might be worth something.
The pre-bankruptcy shares of General Motors, amazingly enough, still trades at 50 cents a share. When all of the court settlements are completed, this will go to zero.
People should study why this is the case – why an asset that is fundamentally worth nothing is trading at something above zero. In addition, short-selling the stock is not as easy as one would think.