Martha Stewart Indictment

[WarEagle]

I saw the t.v. movie the other night and was surprised at how negative it was. I never realized she had been a broker before or had been involved in a previous stock scam. I know they cover insider trading when you get licensed, so as far as I'm concerned she should have known better.

It will be interesting to see how she decorates the "yard".

 

[iceman1]

Quote from candletrader:

Martha's hot (for her age)... we shouldn't send her to jail... its a waste and doesn't make economic sense (think of the millions she pays to the IRS when she's not behind bars... these millions can be used to pay for the jailing of real criminals)... jail should be reserved for dangerous society drop-outs and terrorists... I agree with Magna: hopefully Martha's great team of lawyers will make sure she isn't thrown into jail to be surrounded by scum...

she is scum... !!

and IF you don't think so then you gotta have your head examined to see if you got any sense of perspective left, on life!

Ice

 

[Pabst]

Quote from Magna:

Anyone who thinks a person of her wealth, with the team of lawyers she's got, will go to prison is kidding themselves. On top of it she's female, and in the USA we don't like to see women in jail.... unless they come from a trailer park. Bung, I think her plea of innocence is based on having instructed her broker to sell if it got below $60.

Didn't help Leona! And she really got the shaft. Convicted of taking 4 million in business writeoffs that were personal expenses (renovated her estate), in a year that she reported 150,000,000 in income!

 

[AAAintheBeltway]

I agree that her insider trading episode was very small potatoes and would not have warranted time. However, the prosecutors take a very dim view of investigative targets diddling them with made up stories. I am guessing they are insisting on jail time, which is why no deal has been made so far.

 

[Madison]

Quote from TGregg:

Wall Street knows the public currently has a dim view of the various shenanigans, they need to restore some trust to continue the fleecing of the average investor.

lol, like the trust restored by the ridiculous "independent research" settlement scam they pulled? hold a press conference, grasso answers some softball questions from maria, commercial break, then it's old news and all's forgiven - on to the next hype!

at best, if the broader media buys it she'll be forced to humiliate herself in a lawyer-regulated mea culpa with barbara walters or something....

 

[Breakout]

Personally, I don't think she's done anything wrong. I think it's
sad she's going to lose so much of her legacy because of this
farce.

I agree with Milton..."There are people going to jail for insider trading and I think it has been a great mistake. You want more insider trading, not less. You want to give the people most likely to have knowledge about deficiencies of the company an incentive to make the public aware of that."...Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman

If you want to read the interview, it's Here

 

[WarEagle]

While I am a big fan of Milton Friedman's, I think that is ridiculous. Of course she did something wrong. Its not only illegal to profit off of inside information but immoral as well. What about the person that unknowingly took the loss for her? How is that not wrong? Its no different than stealing.

I certainly agree with Milton that the public should be made aware of deficiencies of a company, but not with the profit of insiders at the expense of unsuspecting investors.

Like some others have mentioned though, I don't think she will end up doing any jail time.

 

[hmap1]

All of you sadomasochrists just want to see Martha in cuffs.

 

[ROCK SOLID]

JAIL, BABY!!

they'd send me to jail!!

ROCK

 

[Breakout]

Quote from WarEagle:

While I am a big fan of Milton Friedman's, I think that is ridiculous.


Well, I guess when you're a Nobel
Laureate, you have to have some ridiculous ideas.



Of course she did something wrong. Its not only illegal to profit off of inside information but immoral as well.



Just because something is illegal, doesn't
necessarily mean it's wrong. When Hitler made it illegal to
harbor Jews and give them safe haven, would it have been
a wrong and immoral act to do so?



What about the person that unknowingly took the loss for her? How is that not wrong? Its no different than stealing.


Now, that's a good point. What about that person who unknowingly took the loss for her? I think that was the point Mr. Friedman was trying to make. If she hadn't been forced by the government to sell her stock in secrecy, maybe that person who bought her stock would have been better informed and opted out on the purchase.