Literally. Today's KNS has the sad tale [1] of a local investment manger who was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to repay $8 million after being convicted of investor fraud.

His first mistake: shorting Google. His worse mistake: trying to cover it up.

I never understood the point of shorting a stock. The downside is virtually unlimited and the upside is limited to essentially the value of the shares you sell, which is exactly the opposite of a long position and a lot more dangerous.

I'm sure somebody understands it and can make money on it. Not me. Which is why I no longer dabble much in the stock market.