The economic numbers are getting better, and every time the bears call an overbought market the market just gets even more overbought. Even some of the bulls are surprised at how there has been no pullback. The housing prices and consumer confidence reflect this data.

Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

Dow 9,539.21 +29.93 (0.31%)
S&P 500 1,028.00 +2.43 (0.24%)
Nasdaq 2,024.23 +6.25 (0.31%)

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According to The Wall Street Journal, securities regulators will be heading over to Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) to examine weekly meetings where research analysts give tips to traders and big clients.

The problem, as regulators may view it, is that financial firms are not treating all clients equally. Should there be an expectation for equal treatment? Theoretically, yes. But do I expect GS to share trading tips with me for free? Nope.

In a word: yes.

Despite all the talk about regulating these speculative investment vehicles, "Obama's financial overhaul plan included no big surprises or threats to the lucrative, secretive industry," writes The Wall Street Journal.

The name of the game is lobbying, which is easily funded by the $1.3 trillion dollar industry. Even after numerous Ponzi schemes and frauds have recently been exposed, the U.S. government has failed at regulating hedge funds, the most speculative area in finance, in part due to the industry's lobbying efforts.

Isn't it finally time to put someone in charge of the SEC who really cares about investors?

There are many well qualified candidates. Here are a few suggestions:

William Galvin: The highly respected Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He has taken on the industry and recovered millions of dollars of damages for aggrieved investors.

Joe Borg: Executive Director of the Alabama Securities Commission. Mr. Borg has a stellar record of protecting the interests of investors in Alabama.

Andrew Cuomo: The Attorney General of New York. He knows the industry and has shown great tenacity in exposing the recent fraud involving Auction Rate Bonds and other misdeeds.

Mary Schapiro, who is President-elect Obama's choice, has spent her career protecting the securities industry from investors.

FINRA (The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) decided to look into whether risky subprime mortgage securities were sold inappropriately to individuals who aren't suitable targets for these risky collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), Bloomberg reports this morning.

On its website, FINRA warns that CMOs should be sold to "sophisticated investors" who will be "prepared to do a lot of homework." FINRA sent letters on Dec. 14 to find out if this warning was heeded in sales of CMOs to the general public.

In the letter, FINRA asks more than a dozen firms to supply "sales spreadsheets, marketing materials and procedures and methods for matching products to clients' investment needs by Jan. 8, according to Bloomberg. in addition, these letters ask for training materials and a list of customer complaints related to these investors. One lawyer, Brian Rubin, whose clients received the letters, told Bloomberg that "FINRA believes these are potentially risky and complicated products, and they have concerns about suitability." He would not name his clients, and right now the letters were sent to a cross section of the industry without any suspicion of wrongdoing.

The big question is whether these risky products were sold to retirees or others who do not meet the standards of "sophisticated investors" who would be suitable targets for these types of investment products. In September, FINRA CEO Mary Schapiro first indicated that she planned to scrutinize sales of mortgage-backed products to retirees.