I speak from a great deal of experience when it comes to takeovers and proxy contests. I believe William Ackman's present proxy battle against Target is nothing more than a desperate and empty attempt to blame Target's board of directors and management for his own poor investment timing decisions.

Anyone in his right mind has to know that business conditions in the United States and across the world are incredibly difficult and challenging. Ackman, head of Pershing Square Capital Management, reportedly wants to create a real-estate investment trust, or REIT, with Target's vast land holdings. The idea is preposterous.

Who in the world is going to invest billions of dollars in real estate in these historically difficult financial times? I don't believe there's even a remote possibility of securing any such financing in the present or immediately foreseeable credit markets. And why would Target consider irresponsibly leveraging its balance sheet at a time of such unpredictable and difficult business conditions?

If Ackman is as concerned about the Target shareholders as he purports to be, why is he attempting to divert Target management and its board of directors into wasting their time, effort and corporate funds contesting his proxy battle? I believe the real reason for his proxy contest is that he's humiliated and embarrassed by the financial losses he and his investors are experiencing through their investment in Target's stock. He's attempting to blame Target's management and board to cover up his own poor timing in investing in Target stock.

I've followed Ackman's suggestions and criticisms of Target management through the media and, frankly, I cannot for the life of me understand what he expects to accomplish by wasting his and Target's time and money in a proxy contest. Surely, under the present business conditions, Target should stay totally focused on its everyday business decisions and needs.

Ackman claims he and his slate of candidates have the answer to increasing Target's stock price. If he truly has one or more suggestions for doing so, why hasn't he stated them? If his campaign is to increase Target's stock price based on converting its real-estate holdings into a REIT, it's a total waste of time and money both for him and Target.

That Ackman has chosen short-term derivatives as a vehicle with which to make a substantial portion of his investment in Target surely says it all. For the most part, these financial instruments have terms of less than two years. He's obviously fighting the clock to try to force the value of Target's stock to rise artificially and quickly before his derivatives expire -- regardless of the long-term negative ramifications, which could permanently damage Target's long-term business opportunities and prospects.

Target is just one of the many thousands of great companies throughout America that are dealing with a historically difficult economy. Ackman's investment was just poor timing, but his ego won't let him admit it. If he continues his present nonsense and poor judgment, I predict that he'll not only lose his proxy battle, big-time, but also that his future prospects in the investment community will be substantially diminished for the rest of his career. I further believe that if he continues his proxy battle against Target, the thing he'll be best remembered for will be the ridiculously poor judgment and business decisions that he is making as part of that contest.

If Ackman had any business sense, he'd put his ego in his pocket and give Target the necessary time to increase its stock price for the benefit of all shareholders without being distracted by his Wall Street shenanigans. Short-term thinking and highly leveraged mistakes of the likes we've seen from AIG and several other financial titans are exactly what got the U.S. economy into its present crisis.

I am sure that if Ackman has the patience and business sense to give Target management and its board the time to manage the business, he and his investors will ultimately be handsomely rewarded with a higher Target stock price. There's no question in my mind that if Ackman continues his proxy contest against Target, he will not only lose; he will be humiliated.

Irwin L. Jacobs, head of the Plymouth-based Jacobs Trading Co., owns no Target stock.