Hi, Jenny,

It seems that we agree on some points (i.e., Madoff and Icelandic gangster ponzi scemes). You are also right that Ross Beaty took some gambles. Also, I believe he made a lot of decisions on the fly. In his type of work, you have to. You are basically responding to volatile markets that fluctuate from day to day. Therefore, what may be your intent one day, may change tomorrow, as markets and other circumstances change. You may say "I'll never take this course of action" but turn around and do it out of either necessity or opportunity. That's the nature of the business. Even small investors often have to make similar decisions on the fly. The master plan is simply a template to be filled in as things change.

I cannot comment on what happened with his Switzerland offshoot company as I don't have enough information. But I can tell you it must have been frustrating dealing with a country that clearly had nationalistic and what appear to be almost racist investment policies. I don't know his intent, and do not pretend to know.

Finally, you are right. I have never been to Iceland, and it is not fair for me to judge or pretend to know the situation fully. But, on the other hand, sometimes fish cannot see the water because they are in the midst of it. For example, when George Bush screamed Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), the whole rest of the world knew it was a lie, but most of America bought into it.

Clearly, Dick Cheney and a group of oil company conglomerates were behind the Iraq war. This was much more unethical than anything Ross Beaty has ever done. Another example, would be Austin Taylor with BC Packers and the TASHIME Gold mine in the 1940s. In both cases, Dick Cheney and Austin Taylor played on people's fears by creating an outside enemy. Now, Eva Joly is doing the same. On the other hand, Ross Beaty has never resorted to such tactics. Quite the contrary!

Finally, the quote about Ross Beaty hating foreign invest was taken out of context. He later said in the same interview that if it is in the best interest of the shareholders, than he accepts it. Ross is obviously more of a true blue Canadian than I'll ever be.

Still not convinced anything unethical was done, though.

Just my humble take.

Thanks!

Sammy