Ellen's Comments RSS Syndication from SeekingAlpha.com http://seekingalpha.comuser/119324/comments http://seekingalpha.com/article/163346-julian-robertson-on-debt-sudden-stops-and-more?source=feed#comment-690757 690757 Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:45:46 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/147008-the-congressional-bailout-of-madoff-s-investors?source=feed#comment-576455 576455
I appreciate your research and article pointing this out to you, and my first reaction was outrage, but then I looked more closely and now I see the SIPC's coverage, which is limited, and covers only certain investors who directly invested in Madoff, I don't see this as a bad thing.

There's FDIC insurance to protect our bank accounts, and there's SIPC insurance, which is similarly limited in amount, to protect us if the brokerage firms we use go belly up. Similarly, there's SIPC protection to cover brokerage accounts, up to a limit.

Madoff investors who invested through Hedge Funds or Feeder Funds will not get SIPC protection.

Remember that the SEC let down Madoff investors horribly. I think it's appropriate to let Madoff's direct investors apply for the limited recovery under SIPC that anyone who had a brokerage account covered by SIPC anywhere else would have.

Also, just like the FDIC, which has bank members pay in hefty fees to share in the insurance coverage, the SIPC works the same way too, so this is not entirely coming out of taxpayer money.

Investor confidence - in banks and brokerage firms - is key, or we'll all be worse off. In the great Depression, one of the biggest problems was that when banks failed, depositors lost all their money. One of the reasons our economic system didn't fail completely last fall was that we have things like the FDIC in place. That goes for SIPC too. If everyone had become terrified of the solvency of their brokerage firm and had yanked their money out all at once, just like with their bank accounts, the country - and we as taxpayers - would have suffered worse.

One of the reasons the dollar is staying strong (for now anyway) is that the safeguards and policies of the US Govt make the USA look better to foreign investors than their own currencies. We are fortunate as a country that we can have some safeguards such as SIPC and FDIC.]]> Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:19:06 -0400
I appreciate your research and article pointing this out to you, and my first reaction was outrage, but then I looked more closely and now I see the SIPC's coverage, which is limited, and covers only certain investors who directly invested in Madoff, I don't see this as a bad thing.

There's FDIC insurance to protect our bank accounts, and there's SIPC insurance, which is similarly limited in amount, to protect us if the brokerage firms we use go belly up. Similarly, there's SIPC protection to cover brokerage accounts, up to a limit.

Madoff investors who invested through Hedge Funds or Feeder Funds will not get SIPC protection.

Remember that the SEC let down Madoff investors horribly. I think it's appropriate to let Madoff's direct investors apply for the limited recovery under SIPC that anyone who had a brokerage account covered by SIPC anywhere else would have.

Also, just like the FDIC, which has bank members pay in hefty fees to share in the insurance coverage, the SIPC works the same way too, so this is not entirely coming out of taxpayer money.

Investor confidence - in banks and brokerage firms - is key, or we'll all be worse off. In the great Depression, one of the biggest problems was that when banks failed, depositors lost all their money. One of the reasons our economic system didn't fail completely last fall was that we have things like the FDIC in place. That goes for SIPC too. If everyone had become terrified of the solvency of their brokerage firm and had yanked their money out all at once, just like with their bank accounts, the country - and we as taxpayers - would have suffered worse.

One of the reasons the dollar is staying strong (for now anyway) is that the safeguards and policies of the US Govt make the USA look better to foreign investors than their own currencies. We are fortunate as a country that we can have some safeguards such as SIPC and FDIC.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/111353-fed-says-buy-gold-the-start-of-a-bullish-pattern?source=feed#comment-334024 334024 Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:05:44 -0500 http://seekingalpha.com/article/92367-four-new-currency-etfs-from-rydex?source=feed#comment-318400 318400 Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:10:15 -0500 http://seekingalpha.com/article/107614-book-review-the-decline-and-fall-of-the-british-empire-1781-1997?source=feed#comment-317524 317524 Ferguson is a professor of Finance AND history at Harvard. Also a Hoover Fellow and Oxford.
This book will be turned into a PBS special airing in January.
Many very good Ferguson interviews are on YouTube. Here is a 45 minute interview on Bloomberg that is well worth listening to:
www.youtube.com/watch?...
]]> Sun, 30 Nov 2008 11:12:40 -0500 Ferguson is a professor of Finance AND history at Harvard. Also a Hoover Fellow and Oxford.
This book will be turned into a PBS special airing in January.
Many very good Ferguson interviews are on YouTube. Here is a 45 minute interview on Bloomberg that is well worth listening to:
www.youtube.com/watch?...
]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/97370-dollar-rally-could-be-short-lived?source=feed#comment-302238 302238 I was hoping for more from you....
I was reading a Morgan Stanley report last night and they say they underestimated a number of global factors and are not even more bullish on the dollar.
As Fiat currencies go, maybe the stronger US Dollar is the correct play.
Longer term, I'd think more about adding to gold (physical not certificated) positions.
I was listening to Mort Zuckerman's Council on Foreign Relations panel with Nouriel Roubini et al. and even though deflation is the force right now, if this crisis is handled by monetization, as it looks as if it is right now at least, the inflation down the road is going to be awful.
Roubini thinks this won't happen and I put a lot of store in what he says, but I don't see how it's avoidable.
Ellen]]> Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:13:15 -0500 I was hoping for more from you....
I was reading a Morgan Stanley report last night and they say they underestimated a number of global factors and are not even more bullish on the dollar.
As Fiat currencies go, maybe the stronger US Dollar is the correct play.
Longer term, I'd think more about adding to gold (physical not certificated) positions.
I was listening to Mort Zuckerman's Council on Foreign Relations panel with Nouriel Roubini et al. and even though deflation is the force right now, if this crisis is handled by monetization, as it looks as if it is right now at least, the inflation down the road is going to be awful.
Roubini thinks this won't happen and I put a lot of store in what he says, but I don't see how it's avoidable.
Ellen]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/104992-etf-update-what-a-difference-a-week-makes?source=feed#comment-302228 302228 Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:05:33 -0500 http://seekingalpha.com/article/103009-deflation-inflation-rinse-and-repeat?source=feed#comment-297517 297517
24 months is an eon in this highly volatile market. I'm not sure it makes sense to do any positioning for inflation that far off, especially when the only certainty is that there will be many intervening factors between now and then.

But I would like to know how you came up with 24 months and what the indicator(s) will be that will alert you to the change in direction from disinflation or deflation to re-inflation?

Thanks. ]]> Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:52:30 -0500
24 months is an eon in this highly volatile market. I'm not sure it makes sense to do any positioning for inflation that far off, especially when the only certainty is that there will be many intervening factors between now and then.

But I would like to know how you came up with 24 months and what the indicator(s) will be that will alert you to the change in direction from disinflation or deflation to re-inflation?

Thanks. ]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/101728-how-to-construct-a-deflation-proof-portfolio?source=feed#comment-290171 290171
Thanks for your informative, well-reasoned postings.

What about adding a percentage of precious metals to this portfolio (owned in allocated or physical ownership, not certificated)?

Thanks, Ellen

]]> Sat, 25 Oct 2008 08:24:43 -0400
Thanks for your informative, well-reasoned postings.

What about adding a percentage of precious metals to this portfolio (owned in allocated or physical ownership, not certificated)?

Thanks, Ellen

]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/97892-how-risk-aversion-is-evolving?source=feed#comment-270654 270654
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]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/97712-wells-fargo-a-growth-stock-during-the-great-depression?source=feed#comment-268050 268050 Sun, 28 Sep 2008 22:40:51 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/97370-dollar-rally-could-be-short-lived?source=feed#comment-265353 265353 The $64,000 question these days seems to be whether deflation or stagflation relative to the dollar and gold. The economists and smartest minds seem to disagree. Who is right!?!]]> Thu, 25 Sep 2008 20:14:41 -0400 The $64,000 question these days seems to be whether deflation or stagflation relative to the dollar and gold. The economists and smartest minds seem to disagree. Who is right!?!]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/94811-8-advantages-of-the-gone-fishin-portfolio?source=feed#comment-251640 251640 Thanks for your thoughts.]]> Thu, 11 Sep 2008 11:26:46 -0400 Thanks for your thoughts.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/93239-things-that-matter-more-than-the-gdp?source=feed#comment-242163 242163 Sat, 30 Aug 2008 11:41:42 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/92885-on-recent-financial-stories?source=feed#comment-241251 241251 Thu, 28 Aug 2008 20:18:44 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/85831-revised-upside-targets-for-fannie-and-lehman?source=feed#comment-227291 227291 Sun, 10 Aug 2008 16:51:24 -0400 http://seekingalpha.com/article/58607-5-tactics-for-2008?source=feed#comment-107836 107836 EWS), Malaysia (EWM), Taiwan (EWT), and Germany (EWG), as well as individual Chinese holdings.

You refer to EWS as being Sweden - it's actually Singapore.]]> Wed, 02 Jan 2008 13:03:13 -0500 EWS), Malaysia (EWM), Taiwan (EWT), and Germany (EWG), as well as individual Chinese holdings.

You refer to EWS as being Sweden - it's actually Singapore.]]> http://seekingalpha.com/article/52386-the-solar-sector-tomorrows-winners-today?source=feed#comment-100664 100664 thank you Solar Jim.]]> Fri, 02 Nov 2007 04:09:10 -0400 thank you Solar Jim.]]>