YOU KNOW YOU'RE GETTING OLD WHEN ...

Had an odd experience a couple of weeks ago in Accounting class.  We were reviewing a Harvard Business School case about a company that got into some trouble for not clearly disclosing information to investors.  The professor was trying to make a point about how accounting information can be manipulated to hide problems.  This one turned out to be a bit more than manipulating; the company and its CEO and CFO were charged by the SEC with violations of anti-fraud and securities laws.  The company settled with the SEC for $10M and the CFO settled the personal suit for $100K (and the agreement that he not serve as an officer in a public company for the next 5 years).  The names of the CEO and CFO were included in the HBS case write-up that we reviewed in class.  Turns out the CFO is a guy that I worked with when we were both working for the same large company about 20 years ago.  Made me feel a bit old having personal experience with someone that is subject of a cautionary tale case study.  Small world.