[bt-99]

The investors got burned mostly by greed. They were getting returns above and beyond what the market was returning. They never got statements from an independent custodian. They invested based upon status and panache. They invested in a strategy that none of them could articulate( it was a fraud).However the big banks and the regulators are to blame as well. If you notice several of the large banks even lent their clients monies so that they could leverage their investments with madoff. Also the SEC has been receiving detailed complaints that this was a fraud since 1999, i know they get these all the time from disgruntled people but when does an investigation begin.

[Enterprise]

"They invested in a strategy that none of them could articulate( it was a fraud)."

They fit the profile of Obama voters. They voted for a fraud whose policies they can't articulate.