Market gurus returning to same risky 'alternatives' that blew up in meltdown

Apparently undeterred by the second-most significant crash in the history of the U.S. stock market, the majority of institutional investors and financial advisors plan to increase their use of alternative investments despite their poor performance during last year's financial meltdown. A recent survey from independent research firm Morningstar and Barron's financial magazine indicates that instead of the market's meltdown leading to more conservative investor behavior, money managers and financial advisors are doubling down on some of the same investments that wiped out trillions of dollars and ruined many.

"Both institutions and advisors continue to view alternative investments optimistically, despite their questionable performance, correlation, and liquidity during last year's global downturn," said Steve Deutsch, director of the pension, endowment, and foundation database at Morningstar. "Again this year, the majority of participants indicate that they plan to increase allocations to alternatives, but with greater scrutiny and due diligence given to those investments."