Let’s see if this one will do it…

I’m sick of our Gambling getting a bad rap! I’ve been saying for years and years that it is better than playing the stock market.

Today, I discovered some more proof:

Say you had followed a buy and hold strategy on the S&P 500, re-investing the dividends as they became available. Had you bought in 1966, once you take into account inflation, you wouldn’t have turned a profit until 1992.

Now, I’d venture to guess that a) this isn’t something most brokers tell their clients and potential clients, b) most people who bought stock in 1966 were retired by 1992 and living off their shrunken (had they invested in stocks) savings and c) a lot of brokers made money in that period.

Of course, in the 1990s, the stock market exploded, but a lot of companies in which people owned shares turned out to be fraudulent. If you had your money in Enron, or any number of other companies, you’d be screwed.

So that raises a question… how different, really, is investing in shares of companies listed on the stock exchange from gambling? At least with gambling – betting on horses or poker or whatever – there’s some degree of transparency.

At least there’s some degree of visible, immediate (almost) outcome. You can see 1) whether you won or lost, 2) WHY you won or lost 3) WHO to thank or blame 4) WHEN exactly you won or lost 5) WHAT you won or lost… NONE of those are available when you “invest” in the Stock Market. So, tell me why that’s respectable?

I’ve seen Jockeys pull their horses up, I’ve seen Card Counters, I’ve seen elaborate cheating schemes…. But, WHOA … NONE of that compares with a little trick commonly referred to as “Insider Trading”.

Even Martha Stewart went to Jail for that one!

But, let me tell you a story…..

A few years ago, there was a “cowboy” from Texas. He “acquired” an oil company. (I’m gonna have to use the Hell outta quotation marks (“) in this story!!!!!

But this “cowboy” shoulda stuck to riding his horse… ahem, excuse me, ridin’ his pickup, ’cause he can’t ride a horse any better than he can run a company.

Wasn’t long before this “Oil company” was doomed (as were ALL of his other businesses – just who could possibly fail with a sports team these days????????)

Guess what? He sold ALL his stock in that company. Yep, got a pretty penny too! Can you say “Baseball Franchise”?

Within a WEEK… that “Oil company” went bankrupt, kablooey, poof! The stock holders today can frame their worthless certificates and say, “Yeah, But… look where he is today!”

Insider Trading… Part two to the story:

He was then investigated by the SEC. ‘Cause somethin Stunk!

But, before the investigation even got going…. it was stopped, and dropped by the head of the SEC… our “cowboy’s” Daddy!

His Daddy got him into Yale (where he failed), his daddy got him into businesses that he screwed up… His daddy got him into the Military with a sweet assignment… he went AWOL!

His Daddy got him into Politics, where he…. well you know…..

If you voted for him….. are you sorry yet?