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For those of you still watching Mad Money for anything other than pure entertainment value, I need to have a word with you. Jim Cramer isn't you financial adviser. I can't believe how many people I talk to watch this show religiously, for investment advice.

Jim Cramer has been in the news quite often over his career. He's also stirred up a lot of controversy. They say there is no such thing as bad publicity. I think Mr. Cramer is living proof of that.

What's Cramer's latest controversy? How about supposedly recommending that viewers hold on to Bear Sterns in the wake of a pending disaster. Here's the video from his show:

Here's the transcript:

[Reader Question] Should I be worried about Bear Sterns in terms of liquidity and get my money out of there?

No no no. Bear Sterns is fine. Do not take your money (mumbling) … If there is one take away other than the plus 400 points, Bear Sterns is not in trouble. They are more likely to be taken over. Don’t move your money from there. That’s just being silly. Don’t be silly.

Of course, he claims he was talking about taking deposits out of the bank, not selling the stock. In that context the above makes some sense. I'll let you be the judge in this case.

However Bear Stern's stock did drop 92% by the following Monday. I wouldn't feel that secure about my bank if it's shares dropped that much that fast. I would be a little nervous just from the fact that I'd have to deal with an FDIC workout to get my money back. Plus did the viewer have money in FDIC insured accounts or what is in something else with them?

I'm going to examine Mr Cramer's investment record a little more in depth in future articles. He had an interesting take on Benjamin Graham during the dot com fiasco. He also has stirred some controversy with an TheStreet.com interview with his statements about market manipulation.

Also Eliot Spitzer is a close friend of Cramer's. I'll leave you with a fitting quote.

A man is known by the company he keeps.

Tags    Investing    Jim Cramer

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