I have to agree with the spirit of your post, unfortunatly. I'm not opposed to shorting any stock. Shorting in itself doesn't sink a company. When management isn't working hard for the business to succeed, companies become easy targets. GM comes to mind. About a year ago one friend recommended shorting GM when it was about $30. The obligations that management subjected GM to became too onerous. Some things like the esculation of benefits were not foreseen. Maybe they should have or could have. It's the practice of brokers who loaned the same block of shares more than once that has become a big part the problem. The rules also leave loop holes that shouldn't be there. Your statement that the rich look after the rich is, sadly, right on. These are the guys who make the rules. Now with the sub-prime business, the one good thing coming out of it is making the shorting rules what they should have been from day 1. My question is.......will they follow through?