it. What now? I think some of the early success was attributable to the self-full-filling prophesy that a giant, successful fund can create as it continues to show interest in, and purchase, specific stocks. If you read James Cramer's book, "Confessions of a Street Addict," you can see how huge mutual funds manage to move markets to their advantage. Like a forest fire, they create their own updraft. Unfortunately, when markets turn down and these funds have to sell stock to meet redemptions, that same forest fire can singe the managers.

Janus has had problems as an organization starting with a very unflattering article a few years ago in FORTUNE. Basically, it depicted an organization that may have been a victim of its excess-or at least the excess of its founders. The new CEO, Mark Whiston, has been with the firm for eleven years, but there is no evidence that he actually has run money as successfully as Jim Craig, his predecessor. Craig, who has been out of money management but who has been training and mentoring younger managers has recently left the firm. So, the jury is out on Janus at this point. The question for us is whether or not we who have invested there want to be part of what may be a noble experiment. After all, there are 9,500 other mutual funds out there.

When we eventually look back on the first few years of the Millennium, we will see it for what it certainly is-a time that forced us to sharpen our investment intellect and improve our investment discipline. The nineties made all of us look like geniuses without even trying. Since then, it has been different. Most companies that survive tough conditions wind up stronger in the end. We need to appreciate this period for the valuable lessons it forces us to learn.

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enemies."

What bothers me about mutual funds controlling corporate America is the fact that so many of their managers are relatively inexperienced. A friend of mine runs a billion dollar company. Once a quarter he has to fly to a mid-western city to meet with the 26-year-old manager of the fund that owns over 10% of his company's stock. He has to continually make the case for not dumping the stock, and fortunately he has been successful at it for years. Frankly, if I had to choose who was ultimately running my life, I'd go with the Establishment over any collection of mutual fund managers. But I must confess, the Establishment probably performs better under the threat of young guns. In other words, our "Shadow Government" has its own checks and balances system just like our elected officials and the courts.

The purpose of this short practical lesson in corporate governance is to help us become more rational investors. We tend to fear what we don't understand. Therefore, it is easy to get upset and even frightened when we experience recent dismal results while reading about corporate crime in the newspaper. Understanding how the system works can make us feel more confident in a tool that has proven to be one of the best for building long term wealth.

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