Newbie said:
on the issue of gambling
i find that poker and the stock market share many similarities
except that poker is more fun
With a lot of experience in both, I wouldn't agree. Poker hands aren't really comparable to stocks in the sense that poker hands have dynamic value based on the incomplete information from other players, and its possible to win the pot (cf get cash flows) without ever showing down (i.e. completing information). Also, the 'price' one pays for a hand is uncertain, unlike the market.
While information in the stock market is incomplete, its not in the sense of an incomplete information game. ALso, the stock market is run by demand/supply of multiple participants..imo the stock market is most comparable to sports/track betting (which is fitting since sports betting is essentially the buying of a derivative priced based on subjective probablilites).
imo stock market is boring except for the thrill of watching thousands of dollars fluctuate before you.
poker is fun except if you play it to actually earn an income (.e.g. 4 tabling 5/T or 10/20 online), it gets boring very quickly.
Sports betting is also great fun (obviously you have to like the sport) but its pretty hard to beat reliably in liquid markets).
And I think that was the most finance-geeky post one has ever made about sports betting or poker.
unfortunately those stop losses were too low anyway. looking to build capital up by surfing the index trades lol. oh well. market will take a few weeks to recover me thinks. ftse has fallen quite a bit since it opened today. it is probably a good idea to wait and keep your cash to see where they market goes imo. that is what most analysts are suggesting.
