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Pastimes : The Other James Cramer Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: joe who wrote (15)	7/16/1998 11:29:00 PM
From: Michael Elizabeth Chastain	Respond to of 35

I like Cramer because of the personal element he brings to his stories. For example, I know what a short squeeze is. Academically, it's a positive-feedback situation where the stock goes up, short sellers have to cover, so the stock goes up more. Positive feedback leads to big moves away from equilibrium as the move reinforces itself. It's one thing to understand that academically. It's another thing to read Cramer's first-hand account of being on the receiving end of a one-man short squeeze in Noxell. That told me what a short squeeze is really all about. The news I got chilled me. She said, and I will never forget these words as long as I live, "Some little hedge fund's been shorting the %@## out of it and now OTC guys are spreading word that P&G's going to bid $90 for it. He's got to capitulate. They're gonna put the little guy out of business or force him to cover. Get on board." The little hedge fund guy was me. It's going to be a long time, if ever, before I make money from this story. I doubt I'll ever have such a massive short position in any stock that someone else will notice and set out to squeeze me specifically. The value in it for me is: the more I understand the market, the more I can carry out my work there without getting confused and distracted by mysterious things. Cramer's value to me is that he explains these mysterious things in a personal, real way.