May 11, 2009
First, I'm in favor of banning short selling completely, as I don't consider that investing. If you think a stock will drop, don't buy it until it does and buy at the bottom. If we are really a open, supply/demand market, then the stock will naturally fall as investors back away. I consider shorting as MANIPULATION of the market.
That said,IF short selling has a place in the market, the following MUST be implemented to restore confidence, increase transparency and disclosure while reducing market manipulation, fraud and corruption:
1) All short positions must be published for public review in advance of the short i.e: Who the short seller is, What stock they are shorting, How many shares are shorted, Who did they "borrow" the shares from etc.
2) Anyone reporting, writing or publishing on a stock or a position that any broker, individual investor, fund or any other entity is taking on a stock, that the report MUST by law, report on the short or long position held by reporter, publishing media and any entity included in the article. Use FDA disclosure policies as a model for this disclosure.
3) Strict % circuit breaker followed by the up-tick rule on all shorts. Once the circuit breaker trips, all short positions are canceled and must be resubmitted / re-published before the can be put back on the market.