The Bashers Handbook

IS IT EASIER TO SCARE PEOPLE INTO SELLING THAN IT IS TO SCARE PEOPLE INTO BUYING A STOCK?

I have asked some knowledgeable investors this question and the answer is always:

"YES, OF COURSE YES!"

WHO BASHERS PREY UPON

Consider the elderly that are investing for retirement, they find their way to the message boards for validation only to see false posts about "SEC Violations" and "Class action suits"... or the head of a "typical growing family", with children to put through college, who is monitoring a message board only to read posts by a "pack of 15 to 20 Bashers" (probably 5 or 6 under various alias's) posting continuous disinformation... what do you think these new investors will do?

It's safer to not buy or even sell the stock, put the MONEY back in the bank than to deal with all this whirl wind of "unsupported" negative chaff.

The Internet has lured a whole new class of investor into the market. A new investor is just that - New! This new investor, while learning the basics, is particularly vulnerable to the tactics of professional Bashers. New investors tend to lurk in the background of message boards, content to form independent opinions based on what they read with their own eyes. Very often, honest, intelligent and cautious people can easily be overcome by a well orchestrated propaganda effort.

You must always remember that their is a lot of money to be made in just the motion of a stock UP or DOWN it doesn't matter! And Bashers have money at risk just as you do. But they have the edge of fear, lies, and falsehoods to post while preying on the un-initiated. The average investor dose not have the edge of organized deception.

Recent revelations have indicated that even Market Makers (those charged with keeping the playing field level) have been involved in stock manipulation by Bashing on a stock message board. HAVE NO DOUBT THAT THIS IS A REAL THREAT!

Lesson 1: Remember, BASHERS NEVER Bash A BAD STOCK. Check the boards for stocks with no potential. They never have any Bashers. Bashers only go after stocks that are moving up or have excellent potential to do so. Bashers work to bring the price down to either increase their position at the expense of others or help a Short make their bones.

Lesson 2: BASHERS ALWAYS BRING UP OLD NEWS THAT YOU HAVE HEARD MANY TIMES. New startup companies always have a few bits of bad news. The Basher will post this over and over again. Unsophisticated Bashers will try to freshen up old news with a new date or by-line in an attempt to fool you.

Lesson 3: BASHERS POST MANY TIMES A DAY. They try to wear you out. They comment on everything, every other post, and can answer every question. THEY KNOW IT ALL! There is no positive comment they won't Bash. They try to control the board. True longs may have to confront the Bashers or they will appear to the newbies as being the people with all the information. This is best accomplished by posting positive, well researched data on the company, repetitively, while trying hard not to engage the Bashers in direct repartee. REMEMBER - LONGS... RESIST USING THE BASHERS ALIAS!

Lesson 4: BASHERS WILL LIE TO YOUR FACE. Never trust a Basher. The truth on startup companies is that they make mistakes. What new company hasn't? The Basher will compare your issue to a another companies, financials - deals - management, etc., trying to lure you into making an Apples to Oranges comparison. Remember each company is unique and while it is prudent to seek out established indicators, do so with care and don't take someone else's word for it. Strive to come up with at least a "six-pack" of indicators so your vision of the state of a company is not tied to a single barometer. Not doing so is tantamount to going to a Race Track and betting on the "Pretty Brown Horsey". BASHERS WANT TO WHISPER IN YOUR EAR - PLANT A SEED OF DOUBT, AND HOPE THAT YOU ARE NOT SAVVY ENOUGH TO RESEARCH THE TRUTH ON YOUR OWN. This is how they achieve their greatest success.

DOUBT + FEAR + LAZINESS = BAIL OUT!

This is your investment... work for it, protect it and don't panic on the words of very shadowy figure that "has your best interest in their heart". Consider that one factor: Someone you have never met, is not a member of your family, is now, out of the goodness of their hearts - GIVING YOU FREE ADVICE (that you didn't ask for). It's a no brainer. They have motives $$$$$$$$$$$$.

Lesson 5: Bashers know YOU CAN'T VERIFY THEIR STATEMENTS. That's why they make the vague statements they do. They rely on you being to lazy to research their droppings other than to scan the board for others opinions. This is particularly dangerous when you consider that Bashers work in packs and often validate and back up each others nonsense with what appears to be "innocuous and unsolicited" verification by comrade Bashers. Let's face it, we are all conditioned to "believe" everything we see in writing. If others by virtue of their "posts" also confirm this belief, then we are subconsciously doomed to swallow the hook, line and sinker... Basher - 1 Honest Investor - 0

Lesson 6: The Bashers PLAY ON YOUR LACK OF KNOWLEDGE. They can lie about information and you won't know the difference (unless you have done your own DD on the company and know the truth and facts).

Lesson 7: Bashers play on your lack of patience. You have held a stock for a while. You knew it will be a big stock someday, but the BASHER CAN GET TO YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE TIRED OF WAITING FOR YOUR GAIN. That's when the Basher is best. You are tired. You have forgotten the goal for the stock was to hold it for one year. The Basher is bothersome, so you dump it on a bad day. Some others also dump. Then you get mad for your loss and return to let everyone know how mad you are. Then you turn into a semi-Basher as well. THE BASHER HAS WON, AND GAINED A NEW ALLY - YOU!

Lesson 8: BRING THE PRICE DOWN. That is the Basher's job. The truth is not important. Lies are the norm. Post continuously on the board every day. They are trying to scare the newbies that are just investigating a stock. They are trying to wear down the faithful longs on the board and gain free reign and control.

Source

It was a nasty flashback to August.

Central banks buttress shaky markets

HEATHER SCOFFIELD

Thursday, November 15, 2007

It was a nasty flashback to August.

The Bank of Canada and the U.S. Federal Reserve injected huge amounts of cash into wobbly money markets Thursday as lenders lost confidence in borrowers and drove up short-term credit rates around the world.

The Bank of Canada infused $1.57-billion into the overnight market Thursday, the biggest such injection since 2000, surpassing even the large infusions made during the height of the credit crunch in August.

The Federal Reserve also intervened heavily, pumping in $47-billion (U.S.) to maintain its key interest rate.

“It seems like it's a global issue,” said Ted Carmichael, chief economist at J.P. Morgan Securities Canada.

“It's an indication that banks are extra cautious about lending to each other.”

Volatility has been rattling stocks for days, and the Canadian dollar's ups and downs over the past week have been nothing short of remarkable, economists noted.

After zooming up past $1.10 (U.S.) last Wednesday, the currency has since dropped precipitously, closing Thursday at $1.0151. The Canadian currency hasn't seen moves this extreme for at least a decade, economists at Bank of Nova Scotia and Toronto-Dominion Bank said.

Since last January, when faith in securities tied to subprime mortgage lending began to soften, distrust about credit in general has been rising, and risk premiums have been under pressure, said David Wolf, chief economist at Merrill Lynch Canada.

Market fears crested in August, when lenders stopped trusting borrowers and short-term credit dried up.

Central banks injected liquidity daily, nursing the credit markets back to life.

And when the U.S. Federal Reserve cut rates in September, some confidence returned.

But the past two weeks have seen a return of volatility and a renewed distrust about the ability of markets and financial institutions to withstand the fallout of the U.S. subprime problem.

“There's a tremendous amount of fear in markets over all,” said Camilla Sutton, a Toronto-based currency strategist for Scotia Capital.

That's partly because of risk-aversion, too.

With an eye on a slowing U.S. economy, skittish speculators are pulling out of the carry trade market (which makes bets against the Japanese yen) and piling into the safer U.S. dollar, sideswiping other currencies, especially commodity-based currencies such as Canada's.

This week, the queasiness spilled over from foreign exchange and stock markets and into short-term credit markets – which were still on edge anyway, because of the trouble in August.

“We've been noticing there's been pressure in the overnight market for the past few days,” Ms. Sutton said.

Fuelled by rumours about certain banks refusing to lend to other banks, or certain borrowers finding it hard to access credit, interbank lending rates have risen in the past few days, and the Federal Reserve's key rate has been bouncing frequently above the Fed's target.

Thursday, the Bank of Canada needed to intervene to defend its target, too – making a $980-million injection just before noon, followed by another $700-million in the early afternoon.

(The central bank is obliged to defend its target rate. If the overnight rate trades above the bank's target, it needs to lend money at the lower bank rate to drag the market rate back to target.)

Still, the Bank of Canada is being careful not to send signals of panic, Mr. Carmichael said. “They're not indicating that this is anything other than them going about their normal business,” he said.

The broader context of Thursday's liquidity problems, however, can't be ignored, he added. The central banks' injections are the tip of the iceberg, signalling that commercial banks are afraid of lending to each other.

“And if they're cautious about lending to one another, then they'll be cautious about lending to businesses and consumers,” Mr. Carmichael said.

“They're protecting their balance sheets and are defensive.”

With files from reporter Tavia Grant

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