'WE'VE LOST EVERYTHING' - RUINED RETIREE'S TALE

NY POST ^ | 12/16/2008 | By BETTE GREENFIELD

[mylife]

ammo is up 200%

[Las Vegas Ron]

It was her father that made the investment

That doesn't really make it clear who's money it was, it just says who invested it. Her father could have directed her money.

Not really important anyway as some one lost the 400K

[Thrownatbirth]

The article said she had $400,000 invested

It was her father's money. She said she has her own IRA.

[js1138]

Bernie Madoff was a miracle worker with investments...

Hmmmm...

That would be a clue that something unusual is afoot.

[DieHard the Hunter]

> Ya know what cracks me up? The financial Gurus at Lehman and Bear Sterns, AIG et all can drive a company bankrupt with crappy investments, but Joe sixpack and Suzy lunchpail are supposed to be wiser than that.

POST OF THE DAY!

And what really makes me angry is guess who’s going to get bailed out by the gummint? Not Joe sixpack or Suzy lunchpail: it will be the “experts” at Lehman and Bear Sterns WHO OUGHT TO HAVE KNOWN BETTER and who actually WERE driven by Greed.

That is just plain wrong.

[Red Badger]

Nobody is going to prosecute the fleeced. They have already paid the price..........

[djf]

There also used to be something called “Snake Oil Salesmen”

They traveled town to town, till they got discovered, then they were tarred and feathered and run out of town on a rail.

Guess they all moved to Wall Street.

[mylife]

What we are experiencing is that there is risk for us, but not for wall street.

[Red Badger]

That is just plain wrong.

As is bailing out the Big guys. Neither should be.............

[dfwgator]

Madoff was an extremely good con man, who has caused great damage to people’s trust in the market. People who commit such a crime should be shot.

[mylife]

I meant that they are getting salt rubbed in the wound here

[wmfights]

There is, or was, or used to be, a thing called “due diligence” .......

Exactly!

Now, if the terminology is to convoluted, or the information is to sketchy commonsense should tell you, "don't put all your eggs in one basket". People buy mutual funds because they don't want to play the mkt, or don't feel they can analyze companies well enough to make good choices. However, if they have any sense they also put money in money mkts, C/D's, and bond funds.

This woman is seeing 16% returns on 400K. She wanted the $64,000 a year rather than $16,000 from a 4% return. She was dumb and deserves to be used as an example of why you need to be smart with your money.

[mylife]

I agree.

[Las Vegas Ron]

It was her father's money

Ah, got it...thanks

[gieriscm]

I heard Madoff’s returns were in the neighborhood of 2% a month. So let’s say $375,000 invested returns $7500 a month for 10 years. That’s nearly a million of other investor’s money they got.

Two percent per month? Did these people even stop to think what kind(s) of legal investments can generate that kind of return, year after year, for ten years? Or were they just so blinded by greed that they didn't care?

FWIW greed isn't necessarly a bad thing. Greed that pushes you into illegal acts - or even turning a blind eye to them - is the real problem.

[AndyJackson]

Ya know what cracks me up? The financial Gurus at Lehman and Bear Sterns, AIG et all can drive a company bankrupt with crappy investments, but Joe sixpack and Suzy lunchpail are supposed to be wiser than that.

Indeed, we have two FED chairman backed by legions of PhD economists who drove a country bankrupt with this nonsense, but Joe and Suzy are supposed to know better.

I don't know why folks want to punish the victims rather than the professional con men that perpetrated these scams.

[midnightson]

Yor’re absolutely right- I got out in Jan. 08- went to a fixed account.

[nufsed]

........extremely knowledgeable financial adviser.

?????

[mylife]

Had the Gubmint not bailed out AIG the bottom would have fallen out of the bond market too.

This is a huge mess. and all the bad actors are getting rewarded.

[Red Badger]

Guess they all moved to Wall Street.

We still have quite a few in Florida, preying on the elderly retirees. Quite common down here. The only difference is this guy was going for all the big investors, in huge chunks. The small time swindlers here usually stay under a million.........