<p>This 90-year-old man was forced to take a job after losing his life savings to Madoff:</p>
<p>[msnbc.com</a> Video Player](<a href=“http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/29301248#29301248]msnbc.com”>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/29301248#29301248)</p>
<p>I feel like adopting him. My father died several years ago. </p>
<p>I must say that he seems incredibly healthy and vigorous for 90.</p>
<p>Why would a 90 y/o invest any money in a risky proposition or even in a run of the mill mutual fund? Someone that age, if they ever want to use the money themselves, should only invest in areas that are guaranteed to not go down in value even if they’ll get low interest rates. I’d say he was asking for it to invest in a high risk scheme like Madoff’s. I feel bad for him but it was a very poor investment choice at the time he chose to place his money there. Ditto with everyone else who was grasping at the potential extra few percent of return at a risk where they ended up losing.</p>
<p>Katie Couric ran this story last night at the end of her show. I believe this man had a money manager who put all his funds with Madoff. I don’t think you can blame this 90 yr old (former) retiree who had a money manager looking after his funds. </p>
<p>Her story (on the CBS website) is a little more detailed. They reported $700k vs msnbc “quarter million dollars”. Also, CBC interviewed Mr Thierman’s wife. Summary, “Instead of focusing on what they lost, they think of what they still have.”</p>
<p>nice</p>
<p>My thought exactly UCSD. In fact, when you invest in such risky ventures you must sign an acknowledgement that you have at least X net worth and this is not all of your funds. Of course all assets are off and it is sad for this guy, lucky he’s healthy!</p>
<p>My MIL is in her 80’s . She would not have any idea what anyone did with her money. No, she’s not senile. Just unaware. She does run things by my husband and her investments go through him. However, when she was younger, she was no more aware of how things were invested. She just trusted whoever her money managers were. They were all associated with banks her family used and trusted all of her life.</p>
<p>We have investments and accounts that I don’t have all of the info. We are conservative in our investments and do not have huge amounts, but I have to say that I cannot explain every penny. I am now working on getting that knowledge. When you put your money in mixed funds, you often do not know what exactly is happening. You do put your trust in the managers.</p>
<p>The Madoff situation is made even more crazy in that he was well known and respected in his social circles. People begged to have their money invested by him. He turned many people away. Also the composition of his funds were such that there were enough non profit items, that he was not subject to some of the disclosure many funds are. Also hedge funds have strange investments. It’s the nature of the beast. I think most people involved in that sort of investment do not know how it works exactly.</p>
<p>I think putting money under the mattress was the way to go these last several years.</p>
<p>I have known our financial advisor since we were in hs together. My H and I both speak with him and email him regularly and know where all of our investments are. We are an upper middle class family, but even before all the trouble on Wall Street we took an active interest in all of our investments and as a result we have not been hit as hard as many others have.</p>
<p>We have worked hard for our money and we keep a close eye on it!</p>
<p>The author in NYC who lost all her money in Madoff funds who was featured a few weeks ago said that she was told that all of her money was in extremely low risk treasuries.</p>
<p>This just about breaks your heart.</p>
<p>I think the older generation was taught to trust their “professional” money managers. Our generation will have a different perspective on money management.</p>
<p>It depends on the MIL. Mine are too smart, she only invested in T-bills. She also trusted no one. The only problem is she is good at savings but not good at spending. We have to encourage her to spend like heat up her house for example.</p>
<p>Madoff is a despicable horse’s ass. so smug. I can’t even fathom an appropriate punishment for what he has done to so many people</p>
<p>Many people had no idea that they were investing with Madoff. Some investment advisors just turned funds over to him, after assessing a large fee. And some people thought they were investing with their bank. Even people who were investing directly with Madoff believed did not realize that they were in a high-risk investment. He paid 10% no matter what the market did, and had for years. Given the positions he had held in the past, he was considered trustworthy.</p>
<p>I don’t know too many who understand hedge funds.</p>
<p>Were Madoff’s funds hedge funds?? It seems like a lot of people who invested in them didn’t qualify to participate in a hedge fund.</p>
<p>I didn’t think they were presented as hedge funds. Weren’t hedge funds supposed to make fabulous returns? His fund made 10% every year. (At least that was the story.)</p>
<p>I invest through Schwab, and I rely on them to tell me what funds are reasonable and to keep me properly asset-allocated. But truth be told, how do I really really know that all the $$$ I turned over to them and for which I get regular statements is really there? </p>
<p>I can go on-line and see what’s there, and I get written statements every month, but – just like Madoff – it could all be a complete fraud. All fantasy. No one knows if their money is really there until they try to access it.</p>
<p>Luckily, none of the checks I’ve sent to our S’s college have bounced!</p>
<p>Man talk about blame the victim with hindsight bias. </p>
<p>Sure folks approaching the end of their horizon should be much more conservative but at worse, he was merely investing in the risk of the stock market-- no way he could have known he was investing with a total fraudster. Far smarter and more able people could not predict this guy. And Madoff aside, even some of the smartest folks don’t have a real understanding of where they are investing or ‘how it works’.</p>
<p>We pulled out much of our money from the stock market two years ago (we are both b school professors) but we aren’t pointing fingers in judgment at the folks that didn’t see it coming. Nor should we blame this old guy for his mistakes either.</p>
<p>^^ The point is - no one within 20 years of his age should have their money invested in anything other than bullet-proof investments that can’t go down in value - like T-Bills. He made a poor investment decision, tried to go with the bigger than normal return, and lost as a result. Call it what you want but he made a poor decision. If it was invested in Maddoff through another firm, then he made a poor choice in selecting that firm or not directing or being aware of what his money was invested in. If he had invested it all in the stock market at his age it wouldn’t have been a wise decision either. </p>
<p>This doesn’t lessen what Maddoff did how or dispicable it was but people simply shouldn’t invest in these risky ventures when they’re close to needing the money and have no potential recovery period or can’t stand to lose it. </p>
<p>So - the victim does deserve some of the ‘blame’ here.</p>
<p>What Madoff did was lower than low…his punishment should be a public flogging!</p>
<p>As far as the 90 year old man having to return to work…that is sad but at least the gentleman had 30 good years of retirement. How many other victims will not even be able to retire now due to this mess.</p>
<p>Sadly for Madoff’s victims investments are a risk, but just like the law ignorance in where your money is invested is no excuse.</p>