Posted by moy23 on 10/20/2011 11:46:00 AM (view original):
Madoff is more of an outlier... and he will serve his time for committing atrocious crimes.
As a registered investment Rep I can attest that I wouldn't have a job if I was selling aggressive investments to the elderly. That has been heavily monitored by firms for at least the last decade while I've had a u4. Any IA will tell you they need to 'know their client'. The norm is not Madoff.
Right. The norm is not Madoff.
The norm is what I just posted, it is typically a safe bet, unless there is wrongdoing, which there certainly was here.
As Taint said, there was too much turning a blind eye, and the victim should not be held solely responsible.
Should they share
some of the blame?
I guess from a strictly legalistic interpretation, but we can not absolve the criminal element that is far more responsible than the people who only did what millions have done successfully over the last 50+ yrs.
I totally agree that a big problem in America is lack of taking "personal responsibility".
Far too often there is always someone else to blame. Which is definitely hurting the nation as a whole.
However, I think when you try to spin this type of scamming into a lack of personal responsibility, you weaken the cause.
Similar to when certain members of the African-American community cry racism at the drop of a hat, it hurts the cases where racism actually exists.