Martha Stewart Pal Backtracks

[Pale Blue Dot]

Reuters

A close friend of Martha Stewart admitted on Friday that some of her most damaging testimony against the domestic trendsetter may have been a figment of her imagination.

The dramatic testimony of Mariana Pasternak, whose friendship with Stewart goes back 20 years, took a strange twist as she conceded under cross examination that parts of the testimony she gave on Thursday could be fabrications.

At issue is testimony the friend offered in which she said Stewart boasted "Isn't it nice to have brokers who tell you those things" during a vacation in Mexico just after the trendsetter dumped her shares of ImClone Systems Inc.

[On the Road]

1. If True, Wouldn't That Tend to Exonerate Martha?

Against this specific charge, at least. She's charged with acting on information from the CEO of ImClone. Not something coming from her broker.

[Westegg]

2. I'm sure Martha's baking her a bundt cake even now...

...because it's only polite, once you've testified in court that your friend admitted to commiting a felony, and you then remember that it was probably just a figment of your imagination, to apologize.

Indict fucking Enron Kenny now! But I'll bet they never will...

[MisterC2003]

3. Martha's a smokescreen

For Enron Kenny and a lot of big players on Wall Street who were up to their ears in insider trading practices in the 90s. By getting everybody focussed on her trial, the hope is that we won't notice the CEO cockroaches scurrying into their hidey-holes.

[Westegg]

5. Yep. Fuckin'-A correct.

[Hamlette]

9. are they purposfully gonna lose their case against

Martha so they can say "we can't go against Kenny, we'll lose that one too"? These guys are creeping me out.

Don't get me wrong. Martha's been "chicked" (treated unfairly because she's a woman).

[seemslikeadream]

4. I heard on Imus this morning

the friend and her husband also owned stock and sold it a couple of days before that conversation took place. Imus for the past two days has been baffled why Steward's good friend and god-parent to that friend's two children would testify against her.

[AndyTiedye]

6. How Much Do You Suppose KKKarl Paid Her to Testify Against Martha?

Prosecute Kenny-Boy? No way!
We're gonna fabricate a case against someone
who is a Democrat and a woman instead.
Can't have people with money supporting the Democrats,
that isn't allowed.

[seemslikeadream]

7. Imus was inferring that the "friends" must have got their info

from someone else, not Martha. He wonders who that could have been and maybe she was just trying to save her own butt.

[JCMach1]

8. Free Martha!

http://www.thesyndrome.com/archives/00000558.htm

http://www.thesyndrome.com/archives/00000384.htm

[Dont like Bush]

10. I think Martha Stewart is just as bad as those Enron guys. She is rich

and evil and probably hasn't paid a dime in taxes since she was born. You can't trust the rich in this world. They are all Reublicans and want Bush to win.

[Bridget Burke]

11. B. S.

She's from a middle-class Polish-American background. She got a good education, modeled a bit & worked in the stock market. After her marriage she went into catering, began writing about extreme housekeeping, and built a successful career.

She's smart & aggressive--and a Democrat. Her alleged crime is penny-ante compared to the crooks at Enron. They threw thousands out of work & stole their pensions. They screwed the state of California & laughed about it.

But Kenny Boy is a good friend of Bush--and he hasn't been charged yet.

[Dont like Bush]

12. No offense but Martha and Kenny Boy are the same in my book. They

took advantage of power that their pocketbooks purchased and the little guy was left holding the bag. She sold her stock and some working man bought it thinking it was worth something. She got away with insider trading because she was rich. Just like Kenny boy taking advantage of his insider information to sell his stock when he saw the ship going down.

[Bridget Burke]

15. Oddly enough, the stock is worth more now than previously....

So your hypothetical "working man" playing the stock market did quite well--if he held on to the stock. The courts & the media are giving Martha special attention because she was a big Democratic contributor.

The people that Kenny Boy screwed over are still mad--and he may or may not have to pay. Today's Chronicle, had an article on the chances that he'll be charged:

'"I always thought Ken Lay was innocent in a way because Skilling was coming up with all the schemes, so then I think he probably didn't know," said Bryan Lari, a former data analyst. "But as CEO of a company, it's his responsibility to know. If he didn't know, he should have. I feel bad for him, because I truly think he probably was innocent, but because of this job he should have known."'

www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/business/2411841

So Lay may use the "clueless idiot" excuse--just like your boy Bush. By the way, have you checked into Bush's insider trading with Harkin oil?

[radwriter0555]

13. The 'case' against MS is over $40,000 which is NOTHING. I've made that

much on a single trade as well. and know what? I USED INFORMATION to buy and sell those kind of stocks!

Information like THE OWNER IS TRYING TO SELL SOME STOCKS.

That's all legal information that is public knowledge.

How else would we buy and sell stocks if we don't have information?

It's not roulette. Its using information to buy and sell investments.

She's going to walk free and clear.

[Dont like Bush]

14. The thing is she was not using information that the public had at the time

She was told by an insider at the company. I didn't have that information and you didn't either. Once the common man found out about it, they had already lost theiir shirt. And if 40,000 bucks is no big deal to you, what kind of deal could it have been for Martha Stewart? She is a billionaire and she had to screw a working man out of 40,000.

If she was a Republican you would be 100% in agreement with me.

To me she is a an example of what is wrong with this country. She used her economic power to get information that no one else at the time had(except insiders) and used that information to make money off someone else's back. It was wrong and she broke the law.

[Bridget Burke]

16. Correction: It's Harken oil, not "Harkin"

Here's some information on your boy Bush's adventures in insider trading:

www.buzzflash.com/perspectives/2002/Bush_Harken.html

[Dont like Bush]

17. Hey Bush is a scumbag that you will not see me defending. Kenny Boy

needs to be locked up right next to him. I'm talking about the powerful taking advantage of the people. I don't care if they are Democrats or Repugs. It is wrong for them to screw the little guy so they can buy a third home somewhere in the Hamptons.

[xchrom]

18. the point is, in this case, she didn't

screw the little guy.
kenny boy lay? jeffery skilling? much different story. in the light of ruined employees and investors -- why so long to indict kenny boy but go after martha?

[Piperay]

21. What working man in particular

did Martha screw out of $40,000?

[Lucille]

22. She has not been charged with insider trading

The government has charged her with lying about insider trading to the feds, but they HAVE NOT actually charged her with insider trading--and believe me they would if they thought they had the evidence. She is being tried for lying about a crime when they can't actually prove there WAS a crime. Interesting, huh? The judge herself said this is a "novel application" of securities fraud law.

Slate has a pretty good rundown if you can stand the tedium and don't mind clicking onto a site that give Mickey Kaus a regular paycheck.

[captain_change]

24. Her charge is even more strange

She is charged with making a false statement as a officer of a public company. Her false statement is declaring that she is innocent, a right everyone I thought have until proving guilty. I guess "Kenny Boy" saying that Enron was as solid as a rock doesn't count when you have that magic "R" after your name or donation history

[Bake]

23. Not public that the owner is "trying" to sell. Only that the owner SOLD.

ONce the trade is made, it's public.

Bake

[mobuto]

19. Uh - what are you talking about?

Martha Stewart's a Democrat.

And her crime - small scale insider trading - is small potatoes compared to Enron.

You can't trust the rich in this world. They are all Reublicans and want Bush to win.

Um, no.

[Piperay]

20. "ALL rich people are repukes"????

That will be news to the Kennedys,how ridiculous! :argh:

[Lindacooks]

25. Wrong

She's a democrat, and a strong woman who started from a poor family.

[UTUSN]

26. Kick for Martha's-a-Dem AND Ken LAY's NOT n/t