I was once asked if I felt guilty about short selling. I think they felt that profiting from other people’s loss was morally wrong. To be fair, I could sympathise, but I think I provide a useful service. For big money allocators, it is very hard for them to not be fully invested in the S&P 500 or the Nasdaq - even when it seems overvalued. It is much better to fail together, than to go it alone. However, if you can provide short exposure at the right time, a short fund not only makes money, it greatly mitigates career risk for allocators. I see short selling as buying insurance - most of the time a stupid cost - but when things go wrong, the best thing you can possibly own!
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