This is true

My father's stock broker jumped ship, leaving Smith Barney for Merrill Lynch. Dad liked the guy, had worked with him for a long time, but he wasn't eager to move his account. When the broker called, my father met with him and a junior guy who would handle my father's account if he went to Merrill Lynch. Dad said he'd think about it.

The supervisor at Smith Barney then called, telling Dad his account had been reassigned. Dad agreed to meet with his new account rep, but they didn't quite see eye-to-eye. I don't know what the problem was, but this guy was a no-go.

The next thing Dad knows, this new guy had also jumped ship for Merrill Lynch, and was telling them he could bring Dad's account along with him! That must be a bigger account that I realized.

So the Smith Barney supervisor calls again, apologizes, asks Dad to come meet with a team of three people they want to assign to his account now. He agrees to the meeting, which goes a little better, but he's still not nearly as happy as before this all started.

Next thing he knows, this team of three has left Smith Barney for UBS, and they solicit his business from their new perch!

Apparently, because Morgan Stanley has acquired Smith Barney, all the Smith Barney brokers are very nervous. Dad says a lot of them are jumping to Merrill Lynch, which surprises me. Maybe there's something funny in the Minneapolis water.