SPLITs Followers' Thoughts for 2005

During the Split-Cap crash, I wrote some very bitter letters to Mr Piers( sorry - not Piers but Daniel) Godfrey, "Chief Executive" of the AITC, maintaining that, in my opinion, he had done more than any other single individual to destroy the reputation of the split-cap industry - particularly with his repeated reference to some of them being the "walking dead" of the investment trust world, this being inevitably misinterpreted by the financial press as "Mr Godfrey says split-capital trusts (in general) are the walking dead etc.

Subsequently, when some S-Cs were registering asset-value gains almost as rapid as the falls, I again wrote asking why he was not publicising this? Surely, in his position, he should have been doing his utmost to support all aspects of the industry?

Anyway, may I make a suggestion to Firkin that he might do us all a favour by recounting the amazing results he describes above, not only to Mr Godfrey of the AITC, but to as many financial publications etc., as he can, to try and offset at least to some extent the damage that has been done to what was, fundamentally, (and still is) an idea that has been a very good one in many ways?

PS according to my calculations, he "only" needed a gain of 150% to recoup his 60% fall. To have an increase of 250% surely deserves some sort of firkin medal!