May 8, 2009
I am a retired, single woman, age 77. My modest IRA investment account was devastated in the past year and I attribute much of the losses to the short sellers. Even as an individual investor with little sophistication in the way markets work, I could easily see how this practice manipulated the markets and drove good stocks into the ground, creating unnaturally extreme volatility. I believe allowing unfettered short selling and ultrashort ETFs (along with other accepted, but destructive practices motivated by excessive greed)has driven a huge number of honest individual investors permanently out of the market.
Please restore the uptick rule and/or whatever other reforms that will help to keep fairness in the market.
Thank you.
Vivian Taylor