No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller: Difference between revisions

Cassandra was a beautiful Trojan princess who Apollo blessed with powers of clairvoyance but, when she rebuffed him, he cursed her by ensuring no-one would believe anything she said. Thus, her admonitions about the fall of Troy (it may have been she who warned “beware of Greeks bearing gifts”) fell on deaf ears and, as Wikipedia beautifully puts it, her "combination of deep understanding and powerlessness exemplify the tragic condition of humankind".

At that level, this is a fascinating account of a genuinely Greek tragedy — irony intended — which contains exactly the elements of Cassandra's tale (except, perhaps, the unbearable beauty: the author's publicity photos capture an ungainly, if not altogether unlikely, figure doing his best to look resolute and loyal in front of the Stars and Stripes). Harry Markopolos was possessed not just of vague discomforts that, after the event, a know-it-all windbag might use to claim fore-knowledge: quite to the contrary, he identified, in gruesome and glaring detail, that [[Bernie Madoff]] was necessarily running a [[Ponzi scheme]]; precisely why, precisely how, helpfully suggested some precise and simple measures by which an investigating authority could cheaply verify his allegations (as simple as "ask to see his transaction confirmations"), and he sent this, in writing, to the [[Securities and Exchange Commission]] about five times over the course of a decade.<ref>Underlying the solid good sense and solid financial analysis lurks a grandstanding conspiracy theorist. This undermines his credibility to some extent. Markopolos repeatedly mentions checking beneath his car for explosives, the risk he took from organised crime and terrorist cells who might have invested in Madoff (none has been reported, and while I guess you wouldn't expect it, it still doesn't make Markopolos' allegation justified).</ref>