Actually there has been a lot of fuss about this 'robber baron' short selling game...

In Aus there has been a lot of fuss about 'share lending' which is exempt from Capital Gains Tax. the Robber Baron gets a bank loan to borrow a large number shares of a particular company from a super fund (and from several funds at the same time) for a fee and agrees to return the shares at a future date. These are then dumped in the market in a big block, which drives down the share price. The robber baron has 'short sold' the shares, which means that he has agreed to buy them back at a future date at a lower price. This means that he has made a profit - then the lower priced shares are returned to the super fund. All 'expenses' are a tax loss...

Only one person gains - eberybody else loses - the other day it was reported that Aussie super funds gave a negative return this year - which means that your super packages WENT DOWN IN VALUE this year - i.e. you LOST MONEY from your retirement payout...