Jon Stewart Hammers Jim Cramer on Comedy Central (Video)

Jon Stewart hammered Jim Cramer and his network, CNBC, in their anticipated face-off on "The Daily Show," repeatedly chastising the "Mad Money" host for putting entertainment above journalism.

This is worth watching. The complete unedited version.

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The Huffington Post

NEW YORK -- Jon Stewart hammered Jim Cramer and his network, CNBC, in their anticipated face-off on "The Daily Show," repeatedly chastising the "Mad Money" host for putting entertainment above journalism.

"I understand that you want to make finance entertaining, but it's not a ... game," Stewart told Cramer, adding in an expletive during the show's Thursday taping. The episode was scheduled to air at 11 p.m. EDT on Comedy Central.

It was perhaps the hardest lashing Stewart has given to a TV commentator since 2004 when he called Tucker Carlson and his then co-host Paul Begala "partisan hacks" on CNN's "Crossfire," the since canceled political commentary program.

The program opened in mock hype of the confrontation, which caught headlines through the week as each snipped at the other over the air. The show announced it as "the weeklong feud of the century."

In his opening, Stewart announced that it was "go time." He played a video clip of Cramer's Thursday guest appearance on "The Martha Stewart Show" in which Cramer beat a mound of dough, pretending it was Stewart.

Said Stewart: "Mr. Cramer, don't you destroy enough dough on your own show?"

Once Cramer came out for the interview, Stewart wondered: "How the hell did we get here?"

Cramer, his sleeves characteristically rolled up, said he was a "fan of the show."

But the humorous tone _ at least for Stewart _ changed as the interview continued.

Stewart repeatedly said Cramer wasn't his target, but aired clip after clip of the CNBC pundit.

"Roll 210!" announced Stewart, like a prosecutor. "Roll 212!"

Most were from a 2006 interview not meant for TV in which Cramer spoke openly about the duplicity of the market.

"I can't reconcile the brilliance and knowledge that you have of the intricacies of the market with the crazy ... I see you do every night," said the comedian.

Stewart said he and Cramer are both snake-oil salesman, only "The Daily Show" is labeled as such. He claimed CNBC shirked its journalistic duty by believing corporate lies, rather than being an investigative "powerful tool of illumination." And he alleged CNBC was ultimately in bed with the businesses it covered _ that regular people's stocks and 401Ks were "capitalizing on your adventure."

For his part, Cramer disagreed with Stewart on a few points, but mostly acknowledged that he could have done a better job foreseeing the economic collapse: "We all should have seen it more."

Cramer said CNBC was "fair game" to the criticism and acknowledged the network was perhaps overeager to believe the information it was fed from corporations.

"I, too, like you, want to have a successful show," said Cramer, defending his methods on "Mad Money." He later added: "Should we have been constantly pointing out the mistakes that were made? Absolutely. I truly wish we had done more."

Cramer insisted he was devoted to revealing corporate "shenanigans," to which Stewart retorted: "It's easy to get on this after the fact."

At one point, Cramer sounded the reformed sinner, responding to Stewart's plea for more levelheaded, honest commentary: "How about I try that?" said Cramer. "I'll do that."

Bob DeMarco is a citizen journalist and twenty year Wall Street veteran. Bob has written more than 500 articles with more than 11,000 links to his work on the Internet. Content from All American Investor has been syndicated on Reuters, the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Pluck, Blog Critics, and a growing list of newspaper websites. Bob is actively seeking syndication and writing assignments.

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Jim Cramer is a Crybaby

On Mad Money yesterday Jim Cramer cried like a baby--like the little boy that cried wolf.
This is the same Jim Cramer that was nutsy bullish when stocks were above 1300 and getting ready to crash.

The same Jim that failed to understand the interconnectedness of financial services companies, banks, and insurance companies. It never dawned on him, despite his many years in the markets, that all these companies were doing business with each other and they were all in the same boat.

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Jim wants to blame President Obama for the nose dive in the stock market. In fact, Jim wants to blame just about everyone but himself.

Jim knows, as well as anyone, that much of what is happening right now in the stock market was inevitable--it was already baked in. If the government had not intervened on behalf of AIG the stock market would be lower than it is today. There was no alternative. Jim knows this.

Last week, Jim threw out one of his great brainstorms--give everyone in the United States a 4 percent mortgage. The government would pay for this. I guess that is Jim's idea of a plan.

Jim is crying about all the investors that are getting hurt in their 401-Ks and IRA accounts. They would have gotten hurt even if we were in the old pension age of defined benefits programs. The guys running State Funds, endowments, and the like are getting killed just like everyone else. Even the world's greatest investor, Warren Buffett, is getting mauled in the market. The big difference, however, is that Warren isn't crying like a baby.

On September 16, 2008 I wrote, Financial Meltdown--Where there is Smoke, there is Fire (at the time the S and P 500 was above 1200). In that article, I talked about the interconnectedness of financial institutions and predicted that the financial system was going to meltdown. I ended that article with these words--cash is king. This was not a popular view at the time. Shortly thereafter, the market started on its way to the current S and P price near 700. .

Jim Cramer should have seen what was coming. He didn't.

Unlike Jim, I understand that it is always darkest before the dawn. Retail investors will likely capitulate soon, and the bottom will be in--in stocks. Of course, all Jim is doing on Mad Money is helping investors jump the ship and fostering the old school idea of vilification.

Jim is too full of himself to see the Renaissance coming. We are ready to embark on a technological revolution in this country. The biggest infrastructure play in history. This is going to cost money Jim, and money doesn't grow on trees. Everyone is participating Jim, not just the rich. In all my years on Wall Street I never heard a single person complain about taxes. We made enough money to pay the tax, and had enough left over to eat all the cheese steaks we wanted. I admit, I wasn't hanging out with Jim and his crowd.

In the not so distant future we will import our last drop of Middle East oil. We will develop alternative energy much in the same fashion as when we went to the moon--sooner than anyone thought possible. Soon, our students will develop pointy heads and we will have a new generation of scientists and engineers that will ring in the innovations of the future. Utilization of existing and new technologies will cut the cost of health care by amounts that cannot yet be imagined.

This is a good thing and astute investors will make fortunes identifying the Intel's and CSCOs' of the alternative energy and infrastructure future.

My mother is 92 years old. She remembers riding on her father's milk truck--it was powered by a horse. Her grandchildren will be riding around the country on trains that go 200 miles per hour during their lifetime.

My 80 year old neighbor just drove 34 miles round trip to take her prescription over to the only pharmacy in Palm Beach county that makes compounds. The next day she drove another 34 miles to pick up the prescription. If she had our doctor she would have driven 34 miles, instead of 68 miles. Our doctor already has the paperless environment. Our doctor sends new prescriptions--via computer--directly to the pharmacy. This is our future. Save gas and same time. Increased productivity. Jim Cramer is old enough to remember when they delivered stocks certificates around Wall Street at the close of business. Same deal.

It is always darkest before the dawn. In the 1980s we had annualized inflation rates above 15 percent. The Prime rate was above 20 percent. Oil surged from the 70s price of $2 a barrel to $40 a barrel. The ten year Treasury yielded more than 15 percent. Ronald Reagan ran up the biggest deficits in the history of the planet earth. Banks and Savings and loans failed. Real estate prices dropped like a lead stone in Texas and the Southwest (and later in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut). The stock market crashed 40 percent in a couple of months. Almost 30 percent in a day. We survived.

The country is coming off a credit and leverage binge. The hangover is devastating, This is what happens when you suffer an addiction. We are in rehab right now.

Jim, we live in the United States of America. This is not the first time we find ourselves in a dire situation. When the going gets tough new leadership emerges in our country. Men and women of vision. The American people love the challenge of a new vision and we the people are ready to carry out the mission. We know it won't be easy. This is our moment Jim, stop crying.

Jim does have good ideas and that is why I watch his show. In other words, you never know where the next great investment idea is going to come from, so you have to keep your eyes and ears open.

Bob DeMarco is a citizen journalist, blogger, and Caregiver. In addition to being an experienced writer he taught at the University of Georgia , was an Asociate Director and Limited Partner at Bear Stearns, was CEO of IP Group, and is a mentor. Bob currently resides in Delray Beach, FL where he cares for his mother, Dorothy, who suffers from Alzheimer's disease. Bob has written more than 500 articles with more than 11,000 links to his work on the Internet. His content has been syndicated on Reuters, the Wall Street Journal, Fox News, Pluck, BlogCritics, and a growing list of newspaper websites. Bob is actively seeking syndication and writing assignments.

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• Who Caused the Financial Crisis?
• Option ARM--The Toxic Mortgage
• Debt Binge--The Perfect Financial Storm
• Warren Buffett's Annual Letter to Investors (Cliff Notes Version)

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