Recently someone who fancies herself one of the founding mothers of the hedge fund industry offered her thoughts on what has recently befallen her industry. The upshot? It was someone else’s fault.
Specifically, she said, that managers are taking advantage of investors by using gates and side pockets, and by suspending redemptions. All of that victimizes hedge fund investors. Blame the managers, it’s their fault
Come on people. We’re better than this.
To be fair, I don’t really know this person. I think I’ve only spoken with her once or twice in the last ten years. Her reputation, however, was impeccable in my book until she put out this missive about what’s wrong with the industry.
She’s wrong. It’s not the managers’ fault. It’s the investors’. Investors need to take responsibility for the investments they make. Period. End of sentence.
Here’s the real problem, though, dear reader: No one wants to take responsibility. Everyone wants to pass the buck. The markets fall and a fund posts losses? Oh, the managers screwed up. The markets rise and a fund posts gains? Oh, the investor was a genius for investing in the fund.
It gets worse. The problem with this country is that we don’t make anything of value, we don’t buy anything that we need, and we all have gotten fat, drunk and happy on the fact that we can buy it now, pay for it later.
“Gee, thanks, Dan,” I can hear most of you saying. “I think we already knew that, genius.” But before you click away from this page, read on, because I have a solution.
It’s actually quite simple: Stop blaming other people for your problems and take responsibility for your actions. I, for one, am sick and tired of the blame game, and you should be as well. It is total lunacy. It needs to stop and it needs to stop now.
I am not just talking about making investment decisions; I am talking about all aspects of society. People need to take responsibility for their actions and stop relying on other people to bail them out.
Looking to the government for solutions is not the answer. We’ve got to stop letting the government take responsibility for the inability of people to build businesses or do things correctly.
I believe it’s going to get worse before it gets better. It’s not that President-elect Obama is a bad guy, or that he’s a Democrat. The real issue is that the precedent has been set. Bailouts are now a way of life in Washington.
It’s really too bad that only a few seem to be questioning the actions of our leaders as they spend trillions of dollars of our money bailing out one company after another. We’re somehow expected to trust these people.
But we really have no reason to. The American people need to get up and scream that they are “mad as hell and that they are not going to take it anymore,” because that’s the only way our leaders are going to hear us.
Leadership isn’t running to the government for money every time there’s a problem. It’s not writing blank checks. Leadership is developing sound financial and fiscal programs to save money, to rebuild infrastructure, to create jobs and to put the American economy — and in turn its people — back to work.
As for the hedge fund industry — and for that matter all investments — remember it is your money. You are doing managers favors by making the investment. Make sure they realize that and if they don’t find someone else to manage your money. Everyone is replaceable – hedge fund managers included. Don’t ever forget it.