Friday, March 13, 2009

Bernie and the Tooth Fairy

So now Bernard "Ponzi Scheme" Madoff is locked up. Madoff made off with countless billions of dollars, or so we are told. The man pleaded guilty and said he was sorry. Nice guy. The shame here is that by pleading guilty there will be no trial.

My question is, what might the SEC have had to do with his plea? He did not get a plea bargain. He gained nothing by pleading guilty. He doesn't seem to me to be the kind of guy who would plead guilty without getting some kind of deal or avoiding telling the entire story. I have to believe that there is so much more to this than a simple guilty plea. How could the SEC, which was warned time and again about Madoff, simply ignore this house of cards?

Last, and I've said this before, I do feel sorry for the charities and non-profits that lost all their money. This would include Elie Wiesel and his Foundation for Humanity. However, it is difficult to feel anything for the millionaires and billionaires who lost money. To me, they are as greedy as Madoff and believed in him only because they looked to profit from his outlandish claims. You'll only believe in 46% return on your money if you also believe in the Tooth Fairy.