Soon afterward, the following conversation took place by another two Enron traders.

Enron traders also commonly were under the threat of being fired if they did not produce the desired results.

Donkey punch was one of several slang terms used by Enron traders to refer to their price gouging methods.

It decided to strike when dozens of laid-off Enron traders began to flood the market late last year.

Enron traders have developed a reputation for their hard-charging approach, often putting the closing of a deal above all else, people in the industry said.

"How do you deal with aggressive Enron traders?"

Here he is in 1987, for instance, confronted with clear evidence that some Enron traders were engaging in fraudulent behavior.

Enron traders would identify power as firm even when it was not, and would be paid more, the complaint says.

"People are coming out and triangulating that through these memos the markets were manipulated," one former Enron trader said.

I heard that Enron traders purposely overbooked that line, then caused others to need it.