May 6, 2009
the uptick rule should be reinstated because...generally speaking there are two categories of inveestors..those that are for all intents and purposes long the market...pension funds mutual funds individual investors 401k holders retirees and those that are short...professional traders and hedge funds. recently a well known short seller asked why shouldn't people who spread rumours causing a stock to go up be as liable as people who spread negative rumours helpng a stock to decline...easy...short sellers are by definition professional traders and cannot be compared to the vast majority of holders of stock who benfit from increasing stock prices. there is no comparison. an illiquid stock can be more easily sold down forcing margin calls to create a downward spiral from which a stock can often not recover benefitting only professional traders...besides reinstituting the uptick rule you might add a rule requiring a certain number of shares to be traded daily and at a price of perhaps not less than $10.00 before one can short a stock. thank you for your attention and for your diligence in allowing public inquiry.