SAC Capital Fallout; Matthew Martoma To Be Sentenced!

 And the beat goes on. In the wake of  Martoma's conviction, the US Attorney's office is seeking 8 years in the can. Wowee...Crime may not pay. We'll see if  the Judge  is going to be   as kind to Martoma as the Court  was to Michael Steinberg .  Or  will the Court  be intent on sending a message  to Wall  Street ?
   Either way, to me the fact that  Steven Cohen has escaped indictment and prosecution so far  is mind -boggling! He definitely has been wounded, but somehow , some way remains alive and kicking(Minus a few Monets and Manets).
  So  let's wait and see. I'm sure of one thing though ;  not gonna be a pleasant  4th of July holiday for the Martoma family......

World Cup; Thank You , Thank You, Thank You Ghana!!!

 Don't want to put a damper on the US's advancing out of " the Group of  Death". Quite an accomplishment. I'm very proud of our team. Round of 16 should be like Olympic Hockey.  Check your vitals!
   But here's the rub. The   2  goals allowed by Ghana(especially the 2nd) resulted from  horrid defensive plays from the Ghanian defenders.The first they don't clear the ball. On the winning goal, Ghana's goalkeeper  makes arguably one of the worst plays in World Cup history. A  fu__in  gift. Should have just caught the ball. Oh well. Might not have mattered with the point differential and all.
  So  I guess we all need a little luck.  Next up, Belgium!!!

Lebron, Carmelo; If You Ask Me They're Both Staying Put!!!

 First  Melo opts out. Then Lebron. To be expected of course. Are these "opt -outs " anything more than players exercising their contractual rights, gaining some leverage, testing the waters? While I think this will make  for an intriguing off-season, at the end of the day, Melo stays in New York. And the King. While he might be tempted to go to Cleveland and reunite the love affair, Miami still is  best chance to get a ring.
  Should be fun while it lasts!!!

OJ Freeway Chase 20 Years Ago; Can You Believe It?

One of  the most  surreal  moments I can vividly remember  was the OJ  freeway  chase; June 17th, 1994. Of course, if  I remember correctly,it was  either a Friday or Saturday  night. What was I doing ? The same thing as most sports' fans and New Yorkers, watching the Knicks play the Houston Rockets in the NBA  Finals.
   The pursuit  of OJ  pre-empted much of the game as I recall  on NBC. What a night!  Almost anyone I've ever asked knew exactly where he or she was that night . As I said, Surreal!!!

Tony Gwynn Passes At Age 54, Very, Very Sad!!

Saw the news this morning. Shocked. Another  great athlete  taken from us before his time was up.  You never fu_in  know. Gwynn, one of the greatest hitters of his generation and frankly of all-time. Hall of   Famer! God rest his soul. So  sad, first  Kirby  Puckett, now Tony  Gwynn .
   Best hitters  in their respective leagues.  Legends.  God Bless.

Spurs; A Great Team In All Respects!!!!

  The Spurs  put on a classic "team performance ", great passing, great shooting, great "D" and great unity. They took the heart and soul  out of Miami. At the  end of the day,  I think Miami   recognized and accepted that  the  Spurs were superior.  Five titles in 15 years!  Let the parade begin....
   And so many questions for the Heat.  Did someone say Melo????

Stanley Cup Finals; Rangers Alive By An Inch!!!

  Amazing, simply amazing!!  The Rangers and  miraculously Henrik  Lundqvist (40 saves, many impossible)  survived an all-out, no holds barred  frontal  assault  from  the Kings, sending things back to L.A.  for game 5.  Hockey lives on another night  for New Yorkers.  Play of the night, puck behind  Lundqvist  somehow stops an inch from the goal-line, cleared from danger, Rangers win.
  I  stood for the last  4 minutes sweating, hoping and praying time would expire. It eventually did . Pure agony. We can all dwell on  what would have been  had we won one of first 2 in L.A.  But we didn't.  So let's concentrate on the here and now.  One game at a time...... See you in L.A.!!!

Which Is More Horrific, GM Recall Debacle or the Pinto?

Look  I  tried  cases for 20 years. Litigated against  Ford, GM,  Chrysler, Japanese manufacturers....you name it. These  companies fight to the death. Biggest, baddest  defense attorneys. No negotiations. Three day depostions of plaintiffs. Hundred page sets of interrogatories. Experts , discovery  blockades and much , much more. Seen it, done it, been there. And they're very good at what they do. Protecting  their product and of course, their bottom-line !!
  So  with the airing of GM's very, very dirty laundry, it brought back  memories of the  Ford Pinto cases. Yes, in the early 1970's  ,  the Pinto, as a result  of the location of its fuel tank , was involved in rear-end  exploding gas tank accidents. Horrifying injuries and  deaths. It came to light during discovery, that Ford knew of the defect, but on advice of it's bean-counters it was deemed to be  less expensive to defend all the cases than it was to undertake a massive recall. As I recall, at trial Ford got hit with a massive  punitive damages verdict! Couldn't happen to nicer guys.  Respectfully , I wish the  same fate for GM  in their current  nightmare...And remember, punitive damages can't be extinguished in Bankruptcy Court.....

Rangers: Game 1 to Kings In a Thriller !!

  What a game !  Cup Finals.  Game 1 in L.A.  NBC   National Audience . Rangers grab a 2-0 lead.. Speed vs. size. NY  vs. L.A.   Man o man !  Struggling to stay awake during. OT.  Tough stuff.  Huge overtime goal and Kings win in OT!  Heartbreaker.   Can't wait for game 2....But actually have  the NBA  Finals tonight.

Stay tuned....

Carl Icahn, Phil Mickelson, Do They Really Need The Headache ?

  Carl  Icahn is worth in the billions of dollars. Phil  Mickelson,  while I'm  not privy  to his balance sheet, I'd venture to say is  worth north of $100  million.  Wouldn't  you think?  Anyway,  how  in the world  could they even remotely be involved in  a transaction which could get the SEC's or  FBI's attention?  For what? Neither needs the money.
  Did Icahn breach a duty ?  Did  Phil make a "quickie profit"  on  an improper inside tip ?  Right,  wrong or indifferent,  when you're as famous and  "squeaky clean " as these two,  you protect your   reputation that took  a lifetime to build, 24/7.  These are very, very smart and sophisticated individuals. One mistake can be very costly.
  So without knowing  more, I'll take a wait   and see approach. But Phil, be more careful, will you?