"Looking at the bigger picture, small public companies are vulnerable and can fall prey to these 'short and distort' campaigns waged by individuals, hedge funds and traders. Not only can these campaigns violate securities laws, they can also do severe harm to companies by eroding shareholder value, making it difficult to raise capital, increasing costs and legal expenses, delaying the execution of business plans, stunting job creation, and stymieing the entrepreneurial spirit of small American businesses -- all so they can profit by their actions."