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To: Ilaine who wrote (14460)	2/4/2002 11:06:15 PM
From: Maurice Winn	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74559

I agree CB that a footnote is an agreement and people should read and observe their contracts without complaint. But <"Oh, I just ripped his face off." > is a very ugly attitude to somebody else, even if they are on the short end of a negotiated agreement. It's one of those comments which taken out of context can sound horrendous, so I'd reserve judgement on that. Of course we all negotiate as good a deal as we can, but the other day, out walking, some children were selling plums for $1 a bag, which I thought too cheap so I raised them to $2. I would not want to "rip their face off". At a golf course recently, I needed to rent a trundler to put my golf bag on. The sign said $5 [among a list of other prices such as Green Fees etc]. At the bottom it said "No haggling on prices" or words to that effect. So I figured I should get a deal for $3. I waited at the window until the guy came over and said I'd like to rent a trundler please. He said to just take one - no charge. I complained that I wanted to negotiate a discount from $5 and felt ripped off that he'd undercut me and wouldn't he accept $3. He laughed and said sorry, no haggling! A few years ago a broker got me a Globalstar IPO document [when it was more difficult to get such things here quickly]. I could have bought the shares through a discount broker and ripped his face off, but I bought through him and paid a large premium [compared with the discount option]. He sent us a photo [email] of his new baby the other day. My wife sent him and his wife a nice card [hand-made]. In my business life, I was welcome at [nearly] all customers I ever had [and lost very few - and I made sure I'd done all I could for them]. [Haahaaha --- sounds like that guy in Death of a Salesman... "well respected by customers"....]. I haven't ripped their faces off [though I always got as good a deal for my company as I could, which was usually very good]. It's easier to get customers who pay premiums if they don't feel their faces are being ripped off [premiums are a matter of service, trust and stuff than manipulation, tough negotiation or smooth-talking; a happy customer is a paying customer]. There's more to life than ripping off people's faces in hard-nosed negotiations. There's also fair and square and playing nice and stuff. Longer-term interests and things; business as social integration rather than possession. Just another theory, Mq

To: Ilaine who wrote (14460)	2/4/2002 11:25:33 PM
From: Raymond Duray	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 74559

You don't get it. The culture of MS-FI was to sell these instruments with the intention to de-fraud by writing instruments of such byzantine complexity that the "mark" could never understand his exposure. It was an aberrant culture that was totally predatory in nature. That is what nauseated Partnoy about the derivatives business, as executed by Wall Street, and why he's moved over to academia where he can ethically make a living. The culture of predatory amorality that pervades Wall Street is something that we really ought to address through this Enron-inspired round of hand wringing and reregulation. I'm not naive enough to suggest that we can regulate the feral, sociopathic nature of Wall Street completely. But we can at least control some of the most wretched excesses. -Ray