Madoff and how the victims con masters like best

Two weeks before my obligatory Madoff post I admired an article on spotting a con man:

Gordon's Notes: Rule #1 for spotting a con ...

[Portfolio.com] ... The sharper someone makes you think you are, the more likely you are to believe that you're in control—and the more vulnerable you'll be when the loop of deception is closed. 'The easiest person to con,' says Robbins, 'is someone who thinks he's too smart to be conned...

One of the many astounding aspects of the Madoff con was that people had to go to him to be conned. Only the savviest, the smartest, the most wealthy and clever, those blessed by fortune and fame could be accepted.

I wonder how long we'll all remember this lesson.

Six months?

No, we're not that smart.

Update 1/6/09: A wonderful and insightful essay by a writer who lost a third of her assets, a child of Auschwitz fleeced by Madoff.