August 2, 2008
I'm not the most experienced investor and don't know all the intricacies of the stock market.
From what I've learned from various investment web forums I frequent, there is a serious problem with naked short selling of stocks, especially for the small individual investor like me. A person or institution should not be able to short sell a stock they have not actually borrowed. All short sellers should be required to cover their short sale with actual stock at some point by buying back actual stock in the open market. The practice of naked shorting and failing to deliver on the short sell is devastating to investors like me. I have seen 2 of my holdings get beaten to a pulp by this practice. I am almost to a point of concluding that the stock market is a manipulated market with an uneven playing field for people like me and not worth the risk.
I've also read that the removal of the "uptick rule" regarding short sales has caused the problem of naked shorting to be intensified.
My understanding is that naked shorting is already not allowed, but that enforcement is all but non-existent. Please, make the practice of naked shorting illegal and enforced for all stocks, not just for the ones covered by this emergency order. If not, you'll find that millions and millions of individuals investors like me will lose all confidence in the markets and the SEC. That is already beginning to happen.
Thanks and best regards,
Jeff Moeller