Where does something go when it wasn’t anything but a claim after the claim is withdrawn? Where did the money go? An asset on the books, now erased. Where is the number now that it has been changed? This is like a childhood riddle of mine:

“Where is the light after it is turned off?” did it turn black, or just disappear?

In the case of Madoff or Bear, the result is the same. As the claim at value is viewed clearly, the value is equally empty. Bets are taken, stakes are paid, they never net out. Just like the smoke from a cigarette. Just like the dirt from a hole. Expectation makes the sum seem greater than it ever was, or could ever be. It doesn’t go anywhere, since it never was all there.