May 5, 2009
1. Require unique, serial numbering of ALL stock. VERY EASY to implement with today's computing power and technology.
2. Based on unique serial number of each stock, each share of said stock is ONLY allowed to be borrowed ONCE for a short sale. Just as each share is only allowed to be purchased once by a single investor at a time (i.e., no multiple owners of a share at any given time), each should only be allowed to be shorted by a single investor at a time. Current rules may allow the same shares to be shorted multiple times, a scenario utterly ridiculous.
3. ALL short sales MUST be reported daily, just as all long stock sales are.
4. Reinstate the uptick rule.
5. Eliminate the "Madoff Exemption", allowing Market Makers to naked short stock.
6. Impose SERIOUS, stiff penalties, including SUBSTANTIAL monetary (125% of the offense) and incarceration for abuse of the rules.