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Saturday, January 10, 2009

1/10/09 PRESS RELEASE: I'VE HAD IT WITH WALL STREET!...MAYBE YOU HAVE TOO...HERE'S A REVISED STUNNING NEW CONCEPT (with a touch of satire):

PLEASE NOTE:

The pictures sent in this emailed press release did not come out.

The press release was left as is, because Greenwich Roundup has a policy of not editting local press releases before they are published



I'VE HAD IT WITH WALL STREET! ... MAYBE YOU HAVE TOO

SO HERE'S A STUNNING NEW CONCEPT (with a touch of satire):

A 'Client Supervised' Investment Account with an Independent Custodian?

From: Peter Lundstedt, CIO, Equity Portfolio Strategist, Greenwich Asset Management Group, LLC

YES! When everyone else is saying no, we're saying YES!, and it's YES! to your very own Separately Managed Institutional Account with an independent custodian held at, Schwab Institutional for example, with real time 24/7/365 monitoring/control 'by you' and run day to day by your investment advisor, perhaps, me. No more smoke and mirrors.

Now you control the money and, if the fit is right, I conscientiously direct the investing at Schwab Institutional day to day to the best of my ability to understand your investment goals. Sort of a partnership where you can view the investment process minute by minute, not entirely unlike visiting Ben & Jerry's in Vermont and watching them make your ice cream from the elevated walkway and yelling down to the crew, "hey you, change the flavor". (In this instance, "hey you" would be me). This is the way it should be. This is the way I've always done it and my clients love it. I'm the captain of the ship, but you're the admiral. The more people looking at the ongoing investment process, the higher the probability that everyone is on the same boat speaking the same language looking at the same horizon and smelling the same salty sea air. This is how to guarantee true transparency, where you are in control.

Our goal is not to advertise, although it appears to be necessary, but to find the right clients for us, (when referring to us or we I am including myself and those at Schwab Institutional, Fidelity, or any other acceptable custodian), increase assts under management by providing a superior equity portfolio construction methodology. I do not custody assets and I work with limited trading authority only. Indeed, this may sound somewhat startling at first, but if this concept makes sense to you then please send for more information to: gamgllc@earthlink.net or visit http://www.gamgllc.com/ The process follows:

Index

1. Profound Philosophy

2. Seven measurements

3. Topic - Institutions that invest in equities - Do you know what you really own?

4. Linear Regression

5. More Stunning Information



ABOUT US

1. Profound Philosophy

Remember the old saying, "we make money the old fashioned way - we earn it"? Well, I think it's time everyone started doing it again, except, that's the way I've always done it.

Think about the 'reality' of investing and imagine, for a moment, that all money managers are equally lined up, noses pressed firmly against an imaginary wall, the other side of which is called the future. Behind them lays the past.

Now, no one can see what is on the other side of this wall, making for an even playing field. Money managers can only pick stocks when constructing a portfolio. They can't make them go up or down. Hence, the portfolio is completely at the mercy of what 'unknown' others may or may not do. Yet all have devised techniques to 'predict' what will eventually come to pass.

Above them are those who hire the money managers, a group who leverage their time and resources for the benefit of the portfolio. Their job is no less daunting for they must 'predict' what the predictors will, ah, predict.

But the elements which control the markets are finite. They are, indeed, comprised of all the decisions made by all the other 'predictors', who buy and sell as a whole.

So, the predictors are predicting what all the other predictors will predict, each equally blinded by this imaginary wall, the future, the other side of which lies either success or failure.

To be a money manager, then, one must have a way to predict what the other predictors will do. Not knowing what these other predictors are thinking is a major problem for the professional predictor, err, money manager.

You could know that you have the best company in the world, but if 'other people' don't buy it, it won't do much for the portfolio.

Yet, what if one could 'measure' demand, if at any one time it were to exist, in a way that resulted in a higher probability of a positive future outcome? Information that 'is already public', compiled in such a way that reflects which stocks will potentially attract more buyers than sellers. This is what we do. Sort of like combining certain criteria from Value Line, S&P research, Investors Business Daily, Fibonacci technical charting, along with the art of reading 'Monetary' Tide Tables or waves, to come up with a grading system for stocks.

You'll notice on the internet, they refer to tide tables as 'tide predictors'. Apparently, even the world's oceanic tides are not guaranteed, and it is just that, i.e. monetary tides, which are measured by the 'velocity' of money flowing around the world, and ever more so in the last 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Today, it seems as if most markets are in relative sync with each other, and this seems to be the policy commonly referred to as 'Globalization', but perhaps it should be more accurately redefined as 'International Economic Interdependency', for it is this political policy which is intended to promote stability and peace, just as the Euro was created to promote stability and peace by making everyone in the EU dependent on each other.



2. Seven measurements

We use seven measurements, to start, when searching for stocks to add to a portfolio. Very few stocks have all seven measurements, at the same time. These measurements reflect a stocks' strength on a fundamental level first and then a technical level. These are companies which rank in the top 15% on all seven levels as measured by leading financial information providers and represent the financial health and overall demand by stock buyers. We then give each stock a score; (a higher score equals higher 'confidence' in the stocks held in the portfolio).

Imagine if you would, once more, 100 horses racing around a track and that each horse represents a stock. We focus on the first three houses. But there are not 100 stocks, rather, there are 10,000 stocks. So, now, imagine 10,000 horses running around the track. Instead of the first three horses, we focus on the first 300 horses, or in this case 300 stocks.

Our way of making money is to buy good stocks with a high score and hold them for 3 to 5 years, and sell the ones that don't follow their long term trend line. Add 20 years of experience and you have a workable system which we think can benefit almost any portfolio. Call us to see more information if you think this philosophy would fit with your style of investing at: USA (203) 622-1305. Peter Lundstedt is the sole owner of Greenwich Asset Management Group, LLC.



3. Topic - Institutions that invest in equities: Do you know what you really own?

From: Peter Lundstedt, CIO, Equity Portfolio Strategist, Greenwich Asset Management Group, LLC

I can show you how each stock you hold really ranks; which stocks to keep and which stocks not to hold. I can show you how the top half of your portfolio has performed compared to the bottom half. I can show you how your top 10 stocks performed and then the top 15 and the top 20. I think I can position Institutional equity portfolios in the best way for an uncertain future by holding only the highest ranked issues in a broadly diversified portfolio while at the same time being client specific. So, if you need an energy portfolio, I can create a portfolio of 30 - 50 of the highest ranked energy stocks. If you have an asset allocation model, I can create a portfolio of the highest ranked stocks in each sector chosen. If you need to 'reconstruct' a health care portfolio, I can create a portfolio of 30 - 50 of the highest ranked health care stocks, and so on. Here is how I do it:

I use seven measurements when searching for stocks to add to or to 'reconstruct' a portfolio. These measurements reflect a stocks' strength on a fundamental level first and then a technical level. These are companies which rank in the top 15% on all seven levels as measured by leading financial information providers and represent the financial health and overall demand 'by stock buyers'. I then give each stock a score; (a higher score = higher confidence). Currently, a perfect score would be a 598. I found that the higher the score, the fewer the number of stocks were available. I like to limit the portfolio to stocks with a minimum score of 470 to 490 which I feel gives you a higher probability of success. You could imagine ranking all 500 stocks in the S&P 500 and creating a portfolio with just the top 50 or top 100 stocks with the highest rank.

For example, with a $100 million dollar separately managed account held at Schwab Institutional, I would most likely divide it into 30 - 50 equal segments and then 'conscientiously' fill each compartment with care and with superior, "liquid", stock selections. I learned this style of portfolio management from the former manager of the now $140 billion NY State Common retirement fund, who traded actual client accounts thru me for five years using this technique. While at the State, he had 12 money managers under him. He saw how each one did over time, which systems worked and which to avoid. He settled upon a sector rotation model that averaged 25% per year. I've added the seven measurements above to the formula, among other important criteria, to create a uniquely diversified Institutional quality equity investment process. I operate under the theoretical assumption that, it doesn't matter what you own; what really matters is what other people are buying and how diversified you want to be.

If this concept makes sense to you, call or email for more information. The process follows:



4. Linear Regression


So, let's look at an example of what we are looking for in a stock when building a portfolio.

Here's a one month December, 2008 chart of a very popular stock.

It doesn't look like something you would want to write home about.

Let's zoom out to one year and see if it looks any different.

Hmmm. Looks like it's trending down according to it's one year

Linear Regression Line. Certainly doesn't look like something

you would want to own. Let's zoom out 10 years and see if it

looks any different.

Now that looks like a stock I might want to have owned. The

company is Nike, Inc. They make tennis shoes. But how do we

manage our expectations and will it continue on its same course?

I can't see into the future. So, let's assume that the company's last

ten years of growth and rate of change will continue for another 3 to

5 years. Let's zoom out further and extend the Linear Regression

Line indefinitely.

Ok, so if the 'Fundamentals' stay the same, then, the probability

is that the demand for the stock will continue and one might

expect the stock price to grow along it's linear regression line

long term. Now, if we can only find 30 stocks like this one. That

is our goal.

4. More Stunning Information:



If this email does not display properly, please click here.

Greenwich Asset Management Group

Greenwich Asset Management Group

Getting Results. Differently

What if one could 'measure' demand in a way that resulted in a higher probability of a positive future outcome? If information that was 'already public' was compiled in such a way that reflects which stocks will potentially attract more buyers than sellers. This is what I do. I believe the most successful investment firms have been those that have been separated physically and psychologically from brokerages, banks or insurance companies. That is, the best performance and also the most dynamic business strategies have generally come from independent investment management firms.

Our Investment Process

I use seven measurements, to start, when searching for stocks to add to a portfolio. Very few stocks have all seven measurements at the same time. These measurements reflect a stocks' strength on a fundamental level first and then a technical level. These are companies which rank in the top 15% on all seven levels as measured by leading financial information providers and represent the financial health and overall demand by stock buyers. I then give each stock a score; (a higher score equals higher confidence in your stock portfolio).

My way of investing private capital is to buy good stocks with a high score and hold them for 3 to 5 years, and sell the ones that don't follow their long term trend line. Add 20 years of experience and you have a workable system which I think can benefit almost any portfolio.

Why Invest With Us ?

I offer independent, unbiased, transparent, and investment banking-free advice.

I am paid a management fee, not commissions. Our goal is in line with client goals, which is a higher account value, not higher commissions or more trades.

I invest discretionary capital for clients in the equity markets through Separately Managed Accounts typically held at Schwab Institutional or Fidelity, which have very low commissions and fees.

What I Look For

My stock screening process is based in part on a proprietary system as well as statistical information produced by leading financial information provider's stock screening process. I look for:

- Fundamental Data Rating
- Earnings Per Share (EPS) Rating
- Sales + Profit Margins + ROE Rating
- Return on Equity (ROE)
- Moving Averages and more !

What I Do

I Advise and Manage "Growth Stock" Separately Managed Investment Accounts:

For client accounts held at Schwab Institutional, I buy stocks of companies that have the fundamental and technical characteristics I "screen" for growth accounts and that fit with each client's risk tolerance, financial situation and investment goals.

Fundamentally, I screen for companies that have a high score as reported by leading financial information providers which include fundamental ranking, earnings per share ranking and SMR (sales, profit, margins, and return on equity) ranking, as well as, return on equity, greater than 100 employees, and positive earnings expectations, and more.

Technically, I screen for stocks whose prices are usually above several moving averages.

logo

I was a Top Ten Performer in the Second Quarter 2008 Top Guns Ranking. Our Global Equity Universe Fund has exhibited superior performance compared to my peers in the PSN Investment Manager Database.

PLEASE REMEMBER:
Past results are not indicative of future returns. There is risk of loss as well as opportunity for gain when investing in separately managed stock accounts.

PHONE:

(203) 622-1305

FAX:

(203) 622-1306

WEB:

http://www.gamgllc.com

E-MAIL:

gamgllc@earthlink.net

MAILING ADDRESS:

Greenwich Asset Management Group, LLC
Sound View Dr. Suite 100, Greenwich, CT 06830



Copyright (C) 2008. Greenwich Asset Management Group, LLC. All rights reserved.

1/10/09 The Raw Greenwich Blog And Rss Feed


Does Walter Feeder Fund Noel Even Remember When He Was Clowning Around With His Partner Jeff Tucker At Fairfield Greenwich?.....
Is Walter Noel Having A Great Deal Of TroubleTrouble Remembering Where He Put The $6.5 Billion He Did Not Give To Bernard Madoff?


Greenwich Bloggers Are Wondering If Walter "Feeder Fund" Noel Is Suffering From Alzheimers Or If This An Excuse For Walter To Say."I Don't Recall Those Meeting Where Others Questioned My Fairfield Greenwich Investments In Madoff's Ponzie Scheme.


The New And Improved "For What It's Worth" (Wordpress Edition)
Does Walter Noel suffer from Alzheimer’s? - That’s the word being put around here in Greenwich by his friends. I wouldn’t wish that horrible condition on anyone and if it’s true, I feel terribly so...

Greenwich Diva
Rumor is Greenwich is that Walter Noel is suffering from Alzheimer’s…….yeah, right! - My fellow Greenwich blogger Chris Fountain over at http://christopherfountain.wordpress.com/ says there is a rumor going around town that Walter Noel is ...
More From Citizen Journalists And Bloggers Who Are From, Work In Or Used To Live In Greenwich........

Jane Genova: Speechwriter - Ghostwriter
"Obama Snubs Boozing Bush!" - GLOBE, 1/19/09 - The cover story in the January 19th, 2009 edition is about how W's boozing, including alleged drunken phone calls, have been turning off President-elect ...

John Ferris Robben - T-shirt Philosophy Page At Our Greenwich
It’s Greenwich - [image: It's said that some people "poke each other in the face" with what they say or what they do.....so.....in this photo the female cat 'pokes' the mal...

The Fox Trot By Nick "The Sly" Fox
Smackdown Results!! HHH Loses Triple Jeopardy! - SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero retaliated against Triple H for the humiliation she endured last week by forcing him to compete in Triple...

Rock Star Diary
New Years Eve - I had a New Years Eve party this year! I'm so smart. I did not even have to leave my house on what was one of the most freezing nights of the year! I also in...
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Please send your comments and blog links to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com

1/10/09 Are Hearst Newspaper Rumors Being Comfirmed At The Greenwich Citizen (Updated)

HEARST NEWSPAPERS WANTS IT'S WEEKLY GREENWICH FISH WRAPPER TO GET BIGGER SO THAT IT CAN BE A LARGE FORMAT GROCERY STORE AD WRAPPER TOO !!!!

THE GREENWICH CITIZEN PROVIDES FUEL TO THE FIRE THAT THE HEARST NEWSPAPER RUMORS ABOUT GREENWICH JUST MIGHT BE TRUE.


AS MANY IN TOWN HAVE HEARD THERE IS A RUMOUR THAT THE GREENWICH TIME AND THE OTHER DAILY HEARST DAILY NEWS PAPERS ARE GOING TO BE FOLDED INTO AN EXPANDED BRIDGEPORT POST.


THE GREENWICH TIME, STAMFORD ADVOCATE AND NORWALK ADVOCATE ARE ALL NOW PRINTED AT THE CT POST PRINTING PLANT IN BRIDGEPORT.


THE GREENWICH TIME AND GREENWICH CITIZEN OFFICES HAVE ALREADY BEEN COMBINED AT A HEARST NEWSPAPER NEWS BUREAU IN RIVERSIDE.


Now The Greenwich Citizen has switch from a tabloid format to a broadsheet format.


This switch is very odd, because a broad sheet format is much more expensive to print in these tough economic times.


Daily news papers from the New York Times, USA Today and the Wall Street Journal have been trimming back the size of their broadsheet papers in order to save on printing costs.


Many national broadsheet newspapers have been converting to the cheaper tabloid format in order to save on printing costs.


Tabloid newspapers like the New York Post have also been trimming back the size of their papers in order to cut costs.


More over, scores of newspapers like the Christian science monitor have stopped printing their tabloid newspaper all together and went to a web only newspaper in order to cut costs.


So why would the Greenwich Citizen increase it's printing costs and convert to a Broadsheet that is accented with a CT Post blue like banner?


Well Hearst Newspaper insiders say that the Greenwich Citizen with it's print run of 25,000 papers is being enlarged to be a wrapper for grocery, drug store and other big box store fliers.


This is so that the Hearst Newspaper Ad Men can tell national retailers that once a week they can deliver a wrapper full advertising to the majority of households in town who refuse to subscribe to their daily newspaper in town.


Gannett uses this same strategy in neighboring Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties. The All of Gannetts Daily newspapers in these counties were folded in to one newspaper called the Journal News, which is now printed in White Plains.



All of the previous daily newspapers converted to weekly advertising wrapper that included the word express. So that subscribers to the Port Chester Daily Item were converted over to the new tri-county Journal News. Non-Journal News subscribers were sent a new weekly free advertising wrapper call the Port Chester Item and Express.


However, Hearst Newspapers Has A Different Spin On As To Why They Would Spend More Money Printing And Mailing A Broad Sheet Version Of The Greenwich Citizen......


Note to Readers: New Year, New Look

It is with great pleasure that we introduce a new chapter in the history of the Greenwich Citizen.



Beginning with today's issue, our print edition has changed to provide additional space for more news and feature stories and larger photographs. We will still continue to give you everything you need to know about your community. The Greenwich Citizen always has strived for excellence, and with our new look, we just got even better.

Our reason for the changes is simple - as our community has grown, we needed to grow, too. You have asked for more and we will fulfill your request.

Please take a few minutes to look through this week's issue and subsequent ones and let us know what you think. You may e-mail your comments to the editor, Don Harrison, at dharrison@bcnnew.com , or the general manager, Michelle McAbee, at mmcabee@bcnnew.com

UPDATE:
Chris Fountain At For What It's Worth Has A Different Spin On The Resizing Of The Greenwich Citizen.
Over at Greenwich Roundup they’re wondering why the weekly Greenwich Citizen has suddenly grown bigger now that it’s been taken over by Hearst, which also owns Greenwich Time. They speculate that it’s so recipients of the unwanted rag can wrap larger fish which is a good guess, but I suspect that it has more to do with Roundup’s ongoing speculation that Greenwich Time is slated to be folded into Connecticut Post with the Citizen sent out as a Greenwich local. Right now, the Citizen has zero local real estate advertising because its tabloid format required advertisers to resize their copy, designed to fit Greenwich Time’s pages, into a smaller size. By making the papers identical the publisher can either offer coverage in two papers for the same effort or, if Greenwich Time really does disappear, one ad in the remaining local without demanding that advertisers design a new format.
Of course, either approach is academic.....
UPDATE #2
Bill Clark At Greenwich Gossip Tends To Like Chris Fountain's Theory, As Well As, The CT Post Will Soon Be The Daily Newspaper Of Greenwich Rumor That Has Town Tongues Wagging.....
The other Hearst newspaper in Town, the weekly Greenwich Citizen, has suddenly blossomed into a large tabloid format. This puzzled me greatly, until I checked out Chris Fountain's fabulous blog, which you can read for yourself at http://christopherfountain.wordpress.com/.
Yes, folks, there's a method in the seeming madness here. When - not if, mind you - the Local Rag, aka Yellowwich Time, finally fades into the mists of history, what will happen to the local Friday real estate section with all the ads? Bingo! Hearst will merely switch them over to the Citizen, which, as it happens, is also datelined on Fridays.
Your scribe finds this an ingenious solution. The soon-to-be-late-unlamented Yellowwich Time will be replaced with a regional edition of the Connecticut Post, and the pretty pictures of the houses will now fit quite nicely into the weekly Citizen.
One imagines that the folks at Hearst are patting themselves on the back at this ingenious journalistic arabesque. And your scribe hereby offers them a congratulatory pat on the back as well. Nicely done!


Here Is Some More Late News Crap From The Greenwich Citizen That Is Thrown Together Once A Week In Order To Be A Free Weekly Advertising Mailer For Those Who Refuse To Subscribe To The Daily Rosebud Newspaper Currently Known As The Green Kitty Litter Liner....


Town humanitarian gets early Christmas gift
... family picked through garbage to find food. Coming to America in 1970, Rodriguez first worked as a butler for a Greenwich family. Weekends he washed dishes in a restaurant. . To advance his philanthropic work, Rodriquez founded and is president of ...


Rash of burglaries reported along Parkway
For motorists traveling to and from both I-95 and the Merritt Parkway, a familiar sight are the silent sentries of Greenwich police patrol cars often parked near entries and exits.


Tree Supervisor Saving Town's Champion Liberty Elm
... "Champion" as the largest of its kind in the state. Elms can live, said Spaman, "to 200 years" or more. The Old Greenwich American elm has escaped the ravages of Dutch elm disease brought accidentally from Europe in the early 1930s that wiped out ...


Mongo's Love Rewarded by USATF
Greenwich High girls track and boys and girls cross country coach Bill Mongovan


Google's ad man wows RMA with success story
There's an impressive Google presence in Greenwich and for an hour Google's president of America's operations & senior vice president, Tim Armstrong, 38, of Riverside dazzled more than 100 members of the ...


Uganda Diary Part II: De Csepel on a mission of mercy
... from Uganda, where he is volunteering with Mission Doctors Association. De Csepel, who was raised and educated in Greenwich, has undertaken medical relief missions to Darfur in 2006 and Nigeria in 2007. He was formerly chief of minimally invasive ...

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Please send your comments to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com or click on the comments link at the end of this post.

1/10/09 Today's Greenwich Post Press Release




Visual artist Barbara Ernst Prey has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve on the National Council on the Arts, the advisory body of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The confirmation follows her nomination by President George W. Bush to serve on this advisory body to the Arts Endowment.

"Barbara Prey’s nomination continues our tradition of having prominent visual artists as members of the National Council on the Arts," said NEA Chairman Dana Gioia. "We welcome her participation and counsel."

A visual artist who specializes in watercolor, Barbara Prey’s work is included in the collections of the Brooklyn Museum and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, as well as the White House. As an artist chosen to participate in the United States Arts in Embassies Program, her painting, "God and Country" is on exhibit at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, and Reunion at Dusk was recently shown at the U.S. Embassy in Prague. More works are on exhibit at U.S. embassies and consulates in Seoul, Baghdad, Abu Dhabi, Bogota, Mexico City, Athens, Cairo, and Rangoon. Recently, Mr. Prey was commissioned by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to paint four paintings for their collection.

Ms. Prey earned her undergraduate degree in art history from Williams College and her master’s degree from Harvard University. She was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and a grant from the Henry Luce Foundation, enabling her to travel, study, work and exhibit extensively in Europe and Asia. The New York State Senate has honored Ms. Prey with its Women of Distinction Award.

The National Council on the Arts advises the NEA Chairman on programs and policies. Council members review and make recommendations to the Chairman on grant applications, funding program guidelines, and national initiatives. Members are chosen for their widely recognized knowledge of the arts, their expertise or profound interest in the arts, and their established record of distinguished service or achievement in the arts. The council consists of 14 private citizens and six ex officio Members of Congress. Previous members include noted artists such as Leonard Bernstein, Marian Anderson, John Steinbeck and Isaac Stern.

Ms. Prey was confirmed to serve a full six-year term until 2014. She will replace outgoing council member Mark Hofflund, managing director of the Idaho Shakespeare Festival.

For more information on the National Council on the Arts, including biographies of its members, please visit Arts.gov/about/NCA/About_NCA.html.

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Please send your comments and press releases to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com

1/10/09 MAYBE NEW MANAGING EDITOR BRUCE HUNTER IS MAKING A DIFFERENCE: Look At All Of The News That The Greenwich Time Has Up Online On A Saturday

Why Wasn't Ex-Greenwich Time Editor Jim Zebora Able To Get This Much News Up Online At The Local Hearst Newspaper?


TODAY'S GREENWICH TIME TOP STORY:


Ronald Reagan's budget director, David Stockton Is Off The Hook.


Even Though four other former Collins & Aikman executives, including then-Treasurer John Galante, have pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy, admitting they falsely represented the company's health in reports.



QUOTE:


"David Stockman committed no crime," Stockman's Manhattan attorney, Elkan Abramowitz said. "The case against him and his co-defendants was dismissed and there was never any criminal conduct or fraud committed."


Stockman charges dropped: Prosecutor says evidence disproves accusations


By Martin B. Cassidy


Staff Writer


Federal prosecutors dropped a case against Greenwich resident David Stockman, a former budget director under President Ronald Reagan, that alleged he swindled investors while serving as chief executive of an auto parts company that later went bankrupt.


U.S. District Judge Barbara S. Jones in Manhattan dismissed charges against the 62-year-old Stockman and his three co-defendants after prosecutors filed a motion stating additional evidence disproved accusations Stockman dramatically overstated earnings of the now bankrupt Collins & Aikman, the auto parts company, to investors, according to court documents.

"The government has concluded that further prosecution of this case would not be in the best interests of justice," said Lev L. Dassin, acting United States Attorney for the U.S. Attorney's Office in a Friday statement.

Stockman and three fellow Collins & Aikman executives were indicted in March 2007 and pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, conspiracy, securities fraud, and obstruction of justice, according to court documents.

Reached Friday, Stockman's wife, Jennifer Stockman, said her husband was relieved, but that the prolonged investigation and prosecution had tarnished the reputations of her husband and the company's workers.

"This is a huge vindication, especially for all those people who have been so unfairly prosecuted and unfairly treated by the law for 3 1/2 years," Jennifer Stockman said. "É Many lives have been destroyed in this process."


Authorities alleged Stockman and his three co-defendants conspired to file false financial accounts about Collins & Aikman's performance that were used to convince investors and banks that the ailing company was sound, according to the indictment.

The indictment alleged that Stockman and those executives, Paul Barnaba, a vice president at the company, J. Michael Stepp, a former chief financial officer, and David Cosgrove, a former controller, exaggerated the company's performance to attract capital and avoid defaulting on credit agreements.

The men were accused of using false documents that improperly showed rebates received from vendors as profits, according to the indictment.

Stockman was fired by the company in 2005 following an internal probe just before the company filed for bankruptcy......
Full Story

Town readies for first storm of 2009
The new year's first major snowstorm is on its way, with the National Weather Service predicting up to 8 inches by Sunday morning.
Full Story

Nurturing customer relationships key to business survival
In this challenging economy, the Greenwich Chamber of Commerce is helping local merchants get by with a little help from their friends - some old and many new.
Full Story


Parents Should Not Worry - Failed School Administrators Sue Wallerstein And Anthony Byrne Say Western Middle School Students Can Breathe Easy


Western Middle School Principal Stacey Gross Says That She Will Not Be Like Hamilton Avenue School Principal Rau And Endanger Her Students, Her Staff Or Herself


Sam Romeo, a former Representative Town Meeting Member Says The Greenwich Board Of Education Should Address Asbestos At All Schools, No Matter How Non-Threatening Failed School Administrators Say The Materials Are Said To Be.


QUOTE:

"If there's any doubt, take it out," Sam Romeo Says. "When it comes to children, asbestos and mold, it should all come out. It shouldn't even be a question."

Western officials: Asbestos on pipe not a health risk



By Colin Gustafson


Staff Writer


While public school officials take extra precautions to fix a leaky pipe at Western Middle School believed to contain asbestos, the school's principal says repairs won't create a health risk to students or staff.


With a specialist called in to ensure that the repairs proceed safely, WMS Principal Stacey Gross said Friday that parents, teachers and students should have no concerns about exposure to airborne asbestos particles.

"There are absolutely no issues with asbestos, and nothing that is airborne," she said. "Believe me, if there was an asbestos threat, we'd be out of here. I'm not going to endanger my students, my staff or myself."

The leak was discovered after a teacher reported a lack of heat in one of the classrooms after returning from holiday break, Gross said.

To fix it, district officials have hired a licensed environmental contractor to identify and repair a leak in the heating pipe in the service tunnels below the school's gymnasium, said Anthony Byrne, director of school facilities.

Under district policy, school maintenance staffers are not allowed to make the repairs because of concerns that their work could cause the toxic particles to become dislodged, creating a potential hazard in schools.

"This is routine maintenance that happens all over town," Sue Wallerstein, assistant superintendent for business services said Friday.

Asbestos fibers are not viewed as hazardous when encased in floor.....
Full Story

WWE to lay off 10 percent of workers
STAMFORD - Stamford-based World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. announced Friday it will lay off 10 percent of its staff - about 60 of its 600 total employees, according to the company.
Full Story

Police blotter
Jillian Schwabe, 18, of 4 Dempsey Lane, was arrested early Friday morning and charged with criminal trespassing, police said.


Schwabe admitted to police that she was in her grandparent's house at 39 Vista Drive without permission and that her guests were not aware she was there unlawfully, police said.

Police said Schwabe was initially unable to post the $500 bond and was later released. She is scheduled to appear Friday in state Superior Court in Stamford.

********************************************************************************

Jesus Fernandez, 37, of 229 Valley Place, Mamaroneck, N.Y., was arrested at 9:55 p.m. Thursday and charged with violation of a protective order after an incident at 34 Harold Ave., police said.

Fernandez was unable to post his $5,000 bond and was scheduled to appear Friday in state Superior Court in Stamford.

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Brian Jendraszek, 44, of 7 Cypress Lane, Ridgefield, was arrested Sunday night and charged with third-degree assault, risk of injury to a minor, disorderly conduct and interfering with a 911 call, police said.

Jendraszek assaulted a victim at 400 Valley Road early Sunday and prevented them from calling 911, police said. Jendraszek was later found at his residence and taken into custody by Ridgefield police, according to the police report.

Jendraszek was charged by Greenwich police and released on a $10,000 bond. He was scheduled to appear Monday in state Superior Court in Stamford.

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Billy Jo Johnson, 45, of 2-32 Armstrong Court, and a 17-year-old girl were arrested at 10:33 p.m. Wednesday and charged with disorderly conduct following an incident at the Armstrong Court address, police said.

Johnson and the girl were issued misdemeanor summonses and released on promises to appear Thursday in state Superior Court in Stamford.

Skakel files new appeal
HARTFORD - Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel's lawyers have filed a new appeal of his murder conviction, claiming police and prosecutors failed to provide them with evidence that pointed to another suspect and discredited a key state witness.
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New film industry to defend tax credits
HARTFORD - Former Speaker of the House James Amann, D-Milford, officially retired from the legislature to focus on a gubernatorial bid.
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Nephew accused of slaying uncle, Stamford and Danbury restaurateur, seeks lower bond
DANBURY
- Accused murderer Marash Gojcaj appeared briefly in state Superior Court on Friday wearing an orange prisoner's jumpsuit and shackled in chains.
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Mianus school head to retire


The principal of North Mianus School, whose 35-year education career began as a Greenwich public schools reading specialist, announced Friday that she plans to retire at the end of the school year.


Bonnie Butera, 58, a Greenwich resident, said she decided to close her service at the school in order to spend more time with her husband, Dominic, who retired seven years ago as head of Cos Cob School.

"I love the North Mianus community so much, but it's just a great time in life to do this," Butera said. "I've had a target retirement date of 2006, but have not wanted to let go. I kept saying 'one more year, one more year.' "

Her goal now as a soon-to-be-minted retiree, she said, is to beat her husband at golf.

Starting as a town schools reading specialist in 1975, Butera went on to become a teacher at Western Middle, Glenville and Julian Curtiss schools before being hired as an assistant principal at North Mianus in 1997. She became North Mianus' principal in 2005, following a one-year stint as interim principal at Parkway School.

"Ms. Butera has been a leader in our school-improvement efforts over the past two years," said Deputy Superintendent of Schools Kathy Greider. "While we will certainly miss Bonnie, we congratulate her, wish her all the best, and thank her for her incredible contributions to the district."

Butera has earned plaudits for helping boost student scores on the 2008 Connecticut Mastery Test, with her school emerging as the only elementary program in the district to post gains in proficiency in the math, reading and writing sections.

Those improvements come on the heels of lackluster results in some areas in 2007, when about half of her students performed at "satisfactory" levels on that test's reading comprehension and reader-response sections, she said......
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Train worker killed on track
RYE, N.Y
. - A train struck and killed a Metro-North employee Friday night just west of the Rye station, a railroad spokesman said.
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Greenwich High School boys swimming team shows depth
Until Danbury came to town Thursday the Greenwich High School boys swimming team hadn't competed in a meet since it opened its season against Trumbull and Fairfield on ....


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Movie Clock Monday, Jan. 12
BEDFORD, N.Y. Clearview's Bedford Playhouse, Route 22, (914) 234-7300 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: 3:30, 7:15 Gran Torino: 3:15, 5:45, 8:15 BETHEL Bethel Cinema, 269 Greenwood Ave.
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Hedge fund gets its start at home
Two 25-year-old Harvard graduates from Greenwich are bucking the trend that has sent hundreds of hedge funds to their graves and have started their own fund, investing primarily in currencies, fixed incomes and commodities.
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TODAY'S "LOCAL" AND "HARD HITTING" GREENWICH TIME EDITORIAL: "Raise for Congress leaves bad taste

We should expect better, but Congress has let us down. By virtue of a long-standing backdoor move, the new Congress will receive a healthy raise this session without needing to vote for it.

If ever there was a period when Congress should take care to avoid even the appearance of excess, this is it. Spurred by the collapse of the housing market, the nationwide economy is staggering, and the worst likely hasn't arrived. Rates of foreclosures, unemployment and requests for assistance continue to rise.


It's not as though the extra $4,700 each member of Congress will receive could do much to change the economic picture. But in certain cases, public image matters as much as anything. And with the economy in trouble, accepting a pay raise does nothing to help lawmakers' standing.

With almost two years before any of them is up for re-election, legislators may be counting on voters forgetting about this slight when they go into the voting booth. And that's probably a safe bet, given how the world could change between now and November 2010. But it would be a good idea to change the law, regardless of the political outcome at that time. This simply isn't the right time for national politicians to accept a raise.

There is a chance for reform. A bipartisan group of 29 lawmakers is looking to the incoming freshman class to put a stop to the next automatic ..... BLAH ..... BLAH ..... BLAH ...... BLAH ...... BLAH ...... BLAH ....... BLAH ....... BLAH ........

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