Gamestop frenzy

gbesq

I respectfully disagree. By utilizing dollar cost averaging, investing in any of the major equity indexes (S&P 500, NASDAQ, Russell 2000), and not panic selling during market downturns, an average investor will do very well over the long haul. I’ve been doing exactly that for 30 years and I’ve done very well despite some disastrous downside markets.

gbesq

an average investor will do very well over the long haul.

STANDY

You are just betting each way like a gambler backing every horse in the race

Archer

Not really, but it depends on how you invest. Are you investing based on the true value of the company, earnings, etc., or just what's hot at the moment? One isn't gambling, and one is.

STANDY

But a stock market crash could wipe it all out tomorrow. (1987 and 2008 wasn’t a good time for many)

And

Your comparing everything as a whole but not as a individual stock.
You are just betting each way like a gambler backing every horse in the race



So does the average gambler.
But there is the extreme like the stock market. Big winners and big loosers


I do see and agree with your point @gbesq but it is a gamble to a lot of people and a bookie has a lot in common with a certain group of people in the stock market game that are being targeted by what’s happening.

STANDY

But a stock market crash could wipe it all out tomorrow. (1987 and 2008 wasn’t a good time for many)

STANDY

I agree with both of you. Like you I have held long and done well. The educated investor will always do well.

But there is a gambling element to modern Stock Market trading in shorts and younger day traders. That are betting just like gambling.
That’s all I am saying.

Observer

People talk about gambling, or speculation, as if it’s a bad thing. It’s not. There are some people who tend to walk away from a poker table with more money than they sat down with, and there are people who tend to get cleaned out. Gamble without understanding the game and how it’s played and I have no sympathy for you.

Investing is based on fundamentals, and it’s far easier on your peace of mind than gambling. If you buy high quality companies that pay an ever-increasing dividend when they trade at a good price, and hold them indefinitely with a plan to sell at a stop-loss price, you are investing. For some reason, most people are as bad at this as they are at gambling. When you do this, you can celebrate higher prices because you feel like a stock market guru, and you can celebrate falling prices because your dividends will reinvest at a better rate. I call it ‘buy it and forget it’ investing.

The thing that tells me I’m a decent gambler is the fact that my gambling accounts have outperformed my investing portfolio which has done well. So I love gamblers, especially the bad ones. They make the world a better place.

Observer

Agreed. I don’t enter them as trades. Better to set price alerts or use a service like Tradestops.