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To: T L Comiskey who wrote (46982)	1/24/2002 1:56:46 PM
From: elpolvo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 65232

TLC- ...fined $925... what country's currency? he should have called it an accident... Dateline: Kentucky-- Bob Bowling, 32, of Willard, KY, suffered a gunshot wound while dueling with a snowman in his front yard. Bowling was apparently practicing his "quick draw" skills on the inanimate snowman when he managed to shoot himself in the upper right thigh. Bowling initially told Kentucky State Police that he had the gun in his holster and that it discharged when he sat down. However, after being taken to King's Daughter Medical Center, Bowling admitted that the weapon went off while he was getting the drop on Frosty. Bowling was released after treatment and was not charged with any crime.

To: T L Comiskey who wrote (46982)	1/25/2002 2:38:45 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 65232

Recovering from the Enron debacle Commentary By Senator Jon S. Corzine Friday, January 25, 2002 The Philladelphia Inquirer In a regulatory sense, Enron was a train wreck waiting to happen. Now that the crash has come, Enron's wreckage has brought to light a number of fundamental deficiencies, not only in the oversight of auditors, but also with respect to pension safety and campaign-finance reform. Enron highlights the urgency of ending the conflicts of interest that undermine the independence of the auditing function. Supposedly "independent" auditors are earning fees as consultants. Consultants are earning fees by serving as supposedly "independent" auditors. To top it off, these questionable activities are all self-regulated by the accountants themselves. We've forgotten that, while public corporations pay for auditing services, the function is intended to benefit the public at large - to provide the confidence that what they see is what they get in their financial statements. Such confidence is crucial to the fair and effective operation of financial markets and, as with other public goods, it should fall to the government to ensure it. Specifically, we need to create and enforce clear "scope of practice" rules for auditors, limit the sharing of key employees between auditors and their clients, enhance the ability of the Securities and Exchange Commission to oversee the auditing function and strengthen the independence of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. To that end, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D., Conn.) and I are proposing legislation that would help restore a measure of public confidence in our accounting industry. As for 401(k) and other defined contribution pension plans, these, too, are in urgent need of reform. With baby boomers moving toward retirement, government created the 401(k) program to encourage retirement savings by allowing workers and employers to defer paying income taxes on contributions made to a pension plan. This incentive has been effective, but the rules make no distinction between encouraging prudent, diversified investment and encouraging risky, concentrated investment. In my 25 years of investing for myself and managing the investments of others, one fundamental principle has always guided my thinking - diversify, diversify, diversify. The tragic evaporation of Enron employees' life savings resulted, in large part, from ignoring this basic tenet of prudent investment. Worse than mere concentration, in Enron's case, with 62 percent of 401(k) assets tied up in Enron stock, employees lost their jobs and retirement savings in one fell swoop. The Pension Protection and Diversification Act that Sen. Barbara Boxer (D., Calif.) and I have proposed will help protect employees from the risks associated with concentrating retirement savings in the stock of a single company. Our bill places a 20-percent cap on the amount of an individual's 401(k) account invested in a single stock. This cap in no way limits individuals from investing other funds as they see fit - but it will restrict the level of risk and direct tax incentives to prudent retirement savings. Our bill would limit the amount of time employers could prevent employees from selling matching company stock contributions to only 90 days from vesting. The bill also eliminates administrative lockdowns of sales by employees. Surely, individuals should be able to adjust their portfolios under changed circumstances. Finally, it is difficult to talk about the long failure of government to act in the public interest without also noting the substantial presence of special interests in the fund-raising that fuels our political campaigns. We don't yet know all the facts about the administration and Enron or any causal connections between contributions and decisions in the executive branch or Congress. But one thing is absolutely certain: If we continue under the current rules, we will forfeit public confidence in our democracy. In political life, as in the markets, the presence or the appearance of conflicts of interest are both destructive. Enron should be the straw that breaks the back of the opposition to campaign-finance reform. It's time not just to say, but to demand - no more Enrons! ------------------------------------------- U.S. Senator Jon S. Corzine (D., N.J.) is a former chairman of the Wall Street firm of Goldman Sachs & Co. inq.philly.com