understanding investment grades

I didn't! So, I tried wikipedia, and found that it's really fairly straightforward: AAA, AA, A, BBB, BB, B, CCC, CC, C (D is for debt already in arrears), and, just like in school, you can have a plus or minus to indicate what "side" of the letter a company is leaning toward. The grade really indicates how likely an investor is to be at risk of a loss, almost exactly like a personal credit score, but less accurate. BBB- is the cut-off to be considered investment-grade (worth the risk to invest in). Below that grade is considered speculative grade, and bonds given out to companies below investment grade are often termed "junk bonds"

The S&P just recently bumped Bombardier Aerospace up to a BB+, still one increment below investment grade. So I'm more than a little concerned that Missouri still wants to give them a $230 million tax credit. That would include repayment with interest, making the structure suspiciously close to that of a bond...my favorite comment thus far has been Sen. Jeff Smith's (via the Arch City Chronicle) that he is a proxy investor for his constituents, and if he wouldn't invest his own money in Bombardier, he should be just as vigilant with the money of the folks he represents.