SOMEWHAT OFF TOPIC
Martin,
That was one of the classiest posts I've seen recently. Your attitude holds all of us to the highest standards. Thanks much.
For a little background, you may not know that I volunteered for the Motley Fool in some of its earliest days for more than a year, maybe two years. Some weeks I worked 30 hours because I believed in what the organization tries to accomplish for individual investors. During that process, I got to know a lot of the people at the Fool, learned the corporate culture, and saw how their corporate values evolved in the earliest of the online days. Having said all that, I haven't been involved with the organization for several years so it is possible that some things have changed for the worse, though i've not seen any evidence of it in the publicly available information.
The most important thing I can tell you that might (or might not) be reassuring is that the Fool wants its readers and participants to constantly question the organization. They realize they aren't perfect, that the way to achieve the closest thing to perfection is to be held accountable by their customers -- you, me and everyone else.
You asked if I have ever publicly seen Tom or David Gardner's personal portfolios posted publiclty with trade dates. No, I haven't. I have never known what stocks either of them have owned in their personal portfolios.
You are probably aware that there are some very serious consequences levied by the SEC when individuals use their position in the media for their own personal benefit. In the early days, I was aware of some grey areas that were raised by the Fool with the SEC because online stuff was brand new to everyone, including the SEC. The Fool wanted to not only comply with the spirit and letter of the law, the organization wanted to foster higher ethics than the law stipulated when the law's standard wasn't good enough.
It's unfortunate that other people haven't had the wonderful experiences I've had, the behind-the-scenes stuff I've personally experienced, and to a much more limited extent the continued experience I occasionally have as a result of my personal interaction those at the Fool. If you had sat in as many meetings as I have with Tom and Dave, if you had exchanged as many PMs with them at 3:00am in the morning as I have, and if you had enjoyed having them in your house several times as I have, I truly believe you would come to the strong opinion that if there is anything about Tom and David that is utterly beyond question, it is their personal integrity. I've met many, many people who know Tom and David. I've yet to meet one who hasn't come to that conclusion.
Hope this helps. Again, thanks for your class act.
--Mike Buckley |
