Fooling Some of the People All of the Time, A Long Short (and Now Complete) Story, Updated with New Epilogue

by Einhorn, David; Greenblatt, Joel

• ISBN13: 9780470481547
• ISBN10: 0470481544
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-12-07
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

A revealing look at Wall Street, the financial media, and financial regulators by David Einhorn, the President of Greenlight Capital

Could 2008's credit crisis have been minimized or even avoided? In 2002, David Einhorn-one of the country's top investors-was asked at a charity investment conference to share his best investment advice. Short sell Allied Capital. At the time, Allied was a leader in the private financing industry. Einhorn claimed Allied was using questionable accounting practices to prop itself up. Sound familiar? At the time of the original version of Fooling Some of the People All of the Time: A Long Short Story the outcome of his advice was unknown. Now, the story is complete and we know Einhorn was right. In 2008, Einhorn advised the same conference to short sell Lehman Brothers. And had the market been more open to his warnings, yes, the market meltdown might have been avoided, or at least minimized.

-Details the gripping battle between Allied Capital and Einhorn's Greenlight Capital

-Illuminates how questionable company practices are maintained and, at times, even protected by Wall Street

-Describes the failings of investment banks, analysts, journalists, and government regulators

-Describes how many parts of the Allied Capital story were replayed in the debate over Lehman Brothers

Fooling Some of the People All of the Time is an important call for effective government regulation, free speech, and fair play.

Author Biography

David Einhorn is the president of Greenlight Capital, which he cofounded in January 1996. Greenlight Capital is a value-oriented investment advisor whose goal is to achieve high absolute rates of return while minimizing the risk of capital loss. Einhorn is the Chairman of Board of Greenlight Capital RE and also serves on the boards of Hillel; The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research; and of the Robin Hood Foundation.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. xi
Allied Capital Stock Price Chart	p. xiv
Who's Who	p. xvii
Introduction to This Edition	p. xxi
The Spark of a Speech	p. 1
A Charity Case and Greenlight Capital
Before Greenlight	p. 9
Getting the "Greenlight"	p. 13
Greenlight's Early Successes	p. 23
Value Investing through the Internet Bubble	p. 33
Dissecting Allied Capital	p. 43
Spinning So Fast Leaves Most People Dizzy
Allied Talks Back	p. 55
Wall Street Analysts	p. 65
The You-Have-Got-to-Be-Kidding-Me Method of Accounting	p. 73
Fact-or Maybe Not	p. 81
Business Loan Express	p. 97
Disengaging and Re-engaging	p. 105
Me or Your Lyin' Eyes?	p. 111
Debates and Manipulations	p. 121
Rewarding Shareholders	p. 127
BLX Is Worth What, Exactly?	p. 135
Would Somebody, Anybody, Wake Up?
The Government Investigates	p. 145
A Tough Morning	p. 157
A Spinner, a Scribe, and a Scholar	p. 165
Kroll Digs Deeper	p. 171
Rousing the Authorities	p. 179
A $9 Million Game of Three-Card Monte	p. 193
How the System Works (and Doesn't)
Hello, Who's There?	p. 213
Whistle-Blower	p. 223
A Naked Attack	p. 237
Another Loan Program, Another Fraud	p. 245
The Smell of Politics	p. 255
Insiders Getting the Money Out	p. 265
Greenlight Was Right à Carry On
Charges and Denials	p. 275
Charges and Admissions	p. 283
Late Innings	p. 297
The SEC Finds a Spot under the Rug	p. 311
A Garden of Weeds	p. 319
A Conviction, a Hearing, and a Dismissal	p. 331
Blind Men, Elephants, Möbius Strips, and Moral Hazards	p. 351
Epilogue
Looking Back: As the Story Continued	p. 359
The Lehman Brothers Saga	p. 361
If They Asked Me, I Could Write a Book	p. 367
Just Put Your Lips Together and Blow	p. 377
Some Final Words to and from the SEC	p. 387
The Last Word	p. 397
Glossary	p. 401
Acknowledgments	p. 407
About the Author	p. 409
Index	p. 411
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