“Creditors have better memories than debtors,” says Chris Crowe, an electrician and home inspector from Denver, who stands to lose his son’s college fund on what has turned out to be a poor investment in the bonds of General Motors.

Quoting Benjamin Franklin, Mr Crowe made an impassioned plea for a better deal for GM’s bondholders during a rally of individual investors in Philadelphia last week. The group, which calls itself the “Main Street” bondholders, has also gathered in Tampa, Florida and Warren, Michigan. This week they head to Washington, DC, to lobby their congressional representatives. A press conference is planned for Thursday.