Short sellers are unpatriotic?

[Bob]

You can argue whether shorting is investing but not that it is day trading. One can day trade and short stocks but most shorting is done for hedge purposes. And my guess is that most shorts are held longer than a day.

Do you believe that shorting should be prohibited? Do you believe that shorting in this recession is unpartriotic?

you have to ask if the destruction of american business is unpatriotic?

 

[30ashopper]

You can argue whether shorting is investing but not that it is day trading. One can day trade and short stocks but most shorting is done for hedge purposes. And my guess is that most shorts are held longer than a day.

Do you believe that shorting should be prohibited? Do you believe that shorting in this recession is unpartriotic?

If you shorted tech stocks in 2001 or real estate and banks in 2008, were you unpatriotic? How is that different from proclaiming downturns? Is Shelly unpatriotic for lamenting the downfall of the RE market on this board since 2005? I don't think so.

Shorts are an easy target but the folks to blame are the people running the companies that were overvalued and unprepared. Citi is trading at 1.00 because they made stupid business decisions. They deserved the hit the market gave them. GE is trading at 6.00 because the board and shareholders elected an idiot for a CEO, who hired more idiots to run things.

Blaming the shorts is just another form of offloading individual responsibility - something we seem to be doing too often these days.

 

[Bob]

If you shorted tech stocks in 2001 or real estate and banks in 2008, were you unpatriotic? How is that different from proclaiming downturns? Is Shelly unpatriotic for lamenting the downfall of the RE market on this board since 2005? I don't think so.

Shorts are an easy target but the folks to blame are the people running the companies that were overvalued and unprepared. Citi is trading at 1.00 because they made stupid business decisions. They deserved the hit the market gave them. GE is trading at 6.00 because the board and shareholders elected an idiot for a CEO, who hired more idiots to run things.

Blaming the shorts is just another form of offloading individual responsibility - something we seem to be doing too often these days.

so american businesses deserve to be destroyed so you can make a profit....ok

 

[Mango]

If you shorted tech stocks in 2001 or real estate and banks in 2008, were you unpatriotic? How is that different from proclaiming downturns? Is Shelly unpatriotic for lamenting the downfall of the RE market on this board since 2005? I don't think so.

Shorts are an easy target but the folks to blame are the people running the companies that were overvalued and unprepared. Citi is trading at 1.00 because they made stupid business decisions. They deserved the hit the market gave them. GE is trading at 6.00 because the board and shareholders elected an idiot for a CEO, who hired more idiots to run things.

Blaming the shorts is just another form of offloading individual responsibility - something we seem to be doing too often these days.

I agree with everything you have said above because I believe in capitalism. The same way one should be able to bet on a companies stock value rising, one should be able to bet against it. To me buying stocks is a legalized form of gambling or investing your future. Take your pick.

However, shorting stocks during the tech bubble, etc. did not have a direct affect on the global economy and millions of people's life savings. You either lost your shirt or made out like a banshee if you invested in that sector. This whole Banking crisis was one big Ponzi scheme and shorting the financial sector and driving down liquidity has a direct effect on every business. If one could have shorted whether Madoff would have been caught, and profited, would that have made it right? I do not think the people who lost billions would think so.

 

[Miss Kitty]

you have to ask if the destruction of american business is unpatriotic?

so american businesses deserve to be destroyed so you can make a profit....ok

Thank you to everyone for helping me "understand" shorting. However, someone respond to what Bob is asking, because I keep feeling this short selling is "gotcha" investing.

 

[30ashopper]

so american businesses deserve to be destroyed so you can make a profit....ok

How does short selling destroy financially sound businesses?

 

[traderx]

Thank you to everyone for helping me "understand" shorting. However, someone respond to what Bob is asking, because I keep feeling this short selling is "gotcha" investing.

Apparently Bob associates shorting with destroying businesses. I am sure Bob will post proof of his claims later today.

 

[traderx]

I agree with everything you have said above because I believe in capitalism. The same way one should be able to bet on a companies stock value rising, one should be able to bet against it. To me buying stocks is a legalized form of gambling or investing your future. Take your pick.

However, shorting stocks during the tech bubble, etc. did not have a direct affect on the global economy and millions of people's life savings. You either lost your shirt or made out like a banshee if you invested in that sector. This whole Banking crisis was one big Ponzi scheme and shorting the financial sector and driving down liquidity has a direct effect on every business. If one could have shorted whether Madoff would have been caught, and profited, would that have made it right? I do not think the people who lost billions would think so.

When you study trading, among the first things you learn is to not predict the market. Hence in the purest sense, traders are trend followers. The next thing you learn is to not have a bias with regards to going long or short. Again, follow the market. When the trend reverses, most traders have sell/cover price levels in place and exit their open trades like good little robots. Hence, if a trader shorts a stock and the company later announces good quarterly results, shorts will get covered one way or the other.

BTW, where did Madoff hide all that money?

 

[Miss Kitty]

When you study trading, among the first things you learn is to not predict the market. Hence in the purest sense, traders are trend followers. The next thing you learn is to not have a bias with regards to going long or short. Again, follow the market. When the trend reverses, most traders have sell/cover price levels in place and exit their open trades like good little robots. Hence, if a trader shorts a stock and the company later announces good quarterly results, shorts will get covered one way or the other.

BTW, where did Madoff hide all that money?[/quote]

Ain't that the $64,000,000,000.00 question? Carting him off to jail is the best news I have heard in a while.

I really thank all you financial wiz types. I have really learned a lot.

 

[Mango]

BTW, where did Madoff hide all that money?

In his shorts, silly.