CNBC Protects Jim Cramer

In the following clip, which doesn't seem to be available on CNBC's website, a guy named Sylvain Raynes had the audacity to suggest that CNBC's previous guests had been acting as PR guys for Goldman. This provoked outrage from Jim Cramer and a firm admonishment from Erin Burnett. No doubt he will never be asked again.



Unfortunately the clip doesn't show all of Cramer's comments which were critical of the suckers who bought the CDO's. Cramer referenced his days as a hedge fund manager and said the the buyers should have understood that there was someone on the other side of the trade who might not be interested in the buyer's welfare.

This is of course bullshit. As a professional trader, I understand that when I trade options or futures the guy on the other side of the trade is hoping that I will lose money on it. However, this is not the case with all investments. When I buy a stock, the guy on the other side may be completely indifferent to whether I make money on the purchase since he is simply selling the stock because he needs the money for something else. If I purchase a mortgage backed security, the guy who is ultimately on the other side is the guy who borrowed the money to buy a house and he is hoping that I will get my money back.

This case is completely different though. This is like a case where I buy shares in a mutual fund and the guy who is managing the fund, i.e., the guy to whom I am paying a fee to pick the stocks that the fund will buy, is shorting those same stocks in his personal account. Anyone who defends that kind of conduct rightly deserves to be considered a shill for Wall Street