Why I don't feel sorry for Martha Stewart

[NoMoreRedInk]

Contrary to popular belief, there are victims from her utter stupidity in regards to her trading of ImClone. The investors in Martha Stewart Omnimedia lost half of their value when she sold her shares upon insider news that the CEO was selling. The current investors in MSO will take a beating on Monday when trading begins. The people who bought her ImClone shares lost their butts as well.

People here want to give her a pass because she contributes to our causes and is friends with Hillary, but not me.

She committed a crime, lied about it, and cost a lot of other people a lot of money.

I don't think she deserves jail time, but I do believe she deserves to be punished.

I'm glad the jury found her guilty.

Bernie Ebbers and Jeff Skilling are next. And one day, probably not until the Kerry administration, they'll get Ken Lay.

[sendero]

1. Well...

... I see your point, to a point. My claim has always been that she could have handled this whole thing in a simple "did I do something wrong?" way, but instead she handled it in a "I did nothing wrong fuck you" way.

That is almost never a good plan.

I agree with the majority here tho, in that she is being made an example of. And selective enforcement is something that riles me a lot.

[NoMoreRedInk]

3. I would bet that 99% of these cases get charged and prosecuted...

in the same manner. I wouldn't call that selective. The only 2 people I have ever heard of NOT prosecuted for something like this are Ken Lay (Enron) and W (Harken).

If you looked at the court dockets in NYC, you'd find them riddled with cases just like Martha's. They happen every day.

[Dookus]

2. ahh...

but if the authorities had simply fined her and moved on, those investors would've taken a small hit, then recovered.

The stupid prosecution is what's hurting the MSO investors. She was never even charged with insider trading.

Sounds like the attack against Bill Clinton - catch 'em for lying about something that wasn't a crime in the first place.

[Dogmudgeon]

4. Why I do

She committed the crime of talking on the phone. When her partner went down, he gave the cops one story about the call and Martha gave them another.

I'm more inclined to give her a pass because the SEC spent a huge amount of money and effort prosecuting this case in both the media and in the courts. You may think that the SEC is an objective organization, but long history tells me otherwise. The GOP filled many pages in the Congressional Record bitching and moaning about how Clinton was using it for political purposes.

Ebbers and Skilling will probably get off, just as the Tyco Gang went free this morning. Martha has at least one round of appeals to go through. They want her Democratic ass, and all the crocodile tears for her "victims" won't change that. Whether "Kenny Boy" Lay even gets close enough to court to warrant buying a new Bible is also a matter of chance.

As for ImClone, the anti-cancer drug in question (Erbitux) was approved recently and the stock is doing quite well.

--bkl

[Q]

5. I guess the hypocrisy escapes you...

...that the 'president' of the US made much more money off HIS insider trading and illegal loans and was never punished.

- Republicans committ crimes and lie all the time. Few if any of them are ever put on publc trial or punished in any way.

- Equal justice is dead.

[patcox2]

6. She was not charged for trading in Imclone.

She was not charged with it, she was not convicted of it.

It was legal for her to act on the information she received from her broker.

She has now been convicted of lying about lawful behavior, and conspiring to lie about lawful behavior, and obstructing an investigation into lawful behavior.

Just like Bill Clinton was impeached for lying about a legal BJ.

I suppose you supported that impeachment, "the rule of law" and all?

And by the way, Imclone today is selling higher than she sold it for.

And those who will be hurt by the effect of this over-the-top prosecution have been hurt by the government, not by Stewart.

[NoMoreRedInk]

10. I disagree

It was illegal for her to trade ImClone stock when her broker told her that the ImClone CEO was selling his in large volumes. The reason they didn't charge her was because they couldn't prove it beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury. But they knew she did it.

I have a hard time believing she didn't engage in insider trading when I look at the facts objectively. The arguments I've heard about the "$60 Stop Loss" sound like pure Repug spin.

So, because they couldn't charge and convict on insider trading, they used some other strange, but legally valid, charges to nail her.

It is similar to the way they used tax evasion charges to punish Al Capone. They couldn't prove he ordered people to be killed, but they knew he did it.

[Indiana Democrat]

7. Martha's arrogance did her in.

She could have gotten off with just a slap on the wrist if she hadn't lied and conspired. Plus, her company wouldn't have gone in the tank.

She's screwed a LOT of her stock holders...SCREW HER!!

[AJ BENDER]

8. She's a Greedy Fool

The insider trading case was so blatant ... and just what real harmed would have occurred to her and she just let it go.... after all the woman is worth BILLIONS... and she has a nice office in Manhattan that she owns where they buy her coffee for her.


Serves her right.:bounce:

[Imajika]

9. The support for Martha by many on DU..

..is a perfect example of absolute partisan political hypocrisy. Had Martha been a contributer to GOP candidates and organizations, virtually everyone here would be applauding her convictions. Because she apparently supports left leaning causes and people, she is suddenly a hero to many.

Martha Stewart committed crimes, then lied about it. She was found guilty and that is a good thing. Period.

Because some people feel like there are "bigger fish to fry" does not mean that we excuse all other crimes in the meantime. The justice system would fall apart overnight if we absolved everyone of crimes because some people feel more damaging criminals are not being properly investigated and prosecuted.

I am quite certain that numerous conservative message forums are probably hailing Martha's conviction as a wonderful thing. Those types of posts from rightwingers are also complete hypocrisy. If Martha was a conservative, every wingnut across the country would be supporting her and screaming that she was being wrongly prosecuted in the first place.

Every single thing that happens in the world does not have to viewed through a partisan left/right political lens. If Martha broke the law, especially one that most people agree is absolutely necessary to ward off rampant insider trading, she should indeed be convicted and sentenced accordingly.

I've absolutely no sympathy for Martha Stewart.

Imajika

[Pathwalker]

12. So, if I support Martha, I am a partisan political HYPOCRITE???

And Jr., who sold MILLIONS of dollars worth of stock - in blatant violation of the law - sits in the White House. That's okay? Thanks for the name-calling - at least I know what I am now. :eyes:

[RedEarth]

13. I agree 100%.....

I don't care who it is, if the broke the law they need to pay for. Those of us that have had money in the stock market have suffered due to the corporate scandals of the last several years. Lay, Ebbers, Schilling, Martha, etc.......if convicted need to serve time. I too have zero sympathy for Martha or any other crooks like her.

[maxanne]

11. I suspect

the zeal with which Martha Stewart was prosecuted had to to with 2 things. Her political affiliation and her gender.

The selective pursuit of justice should concern us all. Where's the warrant for Ken Lay? Why wasn't W charged with insider trading? Why didn't Neil Bush ever answer for Silverado?

Martha was female, successful, and arrogant. She's now been punished for daring to be as big a success as a man.

[Moderator]

14. Duplicate

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1198558