XPost: rec.arts.comics.strips   
   From: wthyde1953@gmail.com   
      
   Your Name wrote:   
   > On 2026-01-16 16:37:11 +0000, Scott Lurndal said:   
   >> Lawrence =?iso-8859-13?q?D=FFOliveiro?=  writes:   
   >>> On Tue, 6 Jan 2026 12:32:37 +1300, Your Name wrote:   
   >>>   
   >>>> The stock market is an idiot's game for greedy fools who can afford   
   >>>> to lose money.   
   >>>   
   >>> The most reliable way to make money on the stock market is to buy some   
   >>> shares across a mix of companies, then forget about them for a few   
   >>> years.   
   >>   
   >> The most reliable way to make money on the stock market is to   
   >> ignore any advice from the internet.   
   >   
   > The only reliable way to make money on the stock market is to invest in   
   > a normal bank term deposit or savings account with a guaranteed (short   
   > of the bak going bankrupt) positive interest rate - let the bank put   
   > that in the stock market and take all the risk.   
      
   One of the first books I read on investing was called "Wiped Out", by a   
   man who in two or three years turned a 60k inheritance into about three   
   hundred dollars, in the boom market of the early 60s. He did this with   
   professional help.   
      
   Then there was the experience of Isaac Asimov, who turned over 10k,   
   again in the early 60s, to two "financial advisors", who soon turned it   
   into $6500.   
      
   Such examples almost scared me from the market.  But I did some phantom   
   investing and the results were good (better than real investing ever   
   was, this was the late 60s boom).   
   >   
      
   I bought my first stock in 1970 for a few bucks, sold out shortly   
   thereafter, and began to put serious (for me) amounts in in 1992.  I   
   have, without any particular expertise, done far far better than I would   
   have with high interest deposits or short term certificates.   
      
   Yes, there have been bad years.  And yes, sometimes reasonable-appearing   
   CEOs seem to transform into Russian Roulette players who prefer all   
   barrels to be loaded - and the boards go along with them.   
      
   If I'd simply put the money I invested since 1992 into the indexes I'd   
   have done about as well, and would have been relived of many headaches.   
   And it would have been a particularly good idea as I was not investing   
   much in real terms, so could not afford to properly diversify my   
   holdings.  Fortunately brokerage commissions were dropping and hence I   
   could afford to buy small lots.   
      
   Why did I not invest in stocks between 73 and 92?  Well, at first   
   university tuition and other expenses soaked up all my cash, and when I   
   finally got some money together, government bonds were paying 13%, which   
   is well over the 70 year average of the (American) S&P. Thirty year US   
   treasuries in fact topped at 17%.  Wish I'd bought those.   
      
   Rule 1. Never invest more than you can afford to lose   
      
   Rule 2. When a stock's prospects look too good to be true, avoid it.   
   If a mutual fund's returns are too good to be true, avoid it also.   
      
   Rule 3. Never use margin or invest in options until you've a track   
   record of success.  Even then, hesitate.   
      
   Rule 4. If a stock is keeping you up at night, sell it.   
      
   Rule 5.  Never invest in stocks unless you are prepared to do some work.   
   Read the corporate reports, look at the competition, get a feel for what   
   is going on.  How much stock (real stock, not options) do the directors own?   
      
   Rule 6.  As much as possible, confine your purchases to stocks that pay   
   a dividend (but not too high a one, that is a danger sign).  This is a   
   personal rule that many would not agree with.   
      
   I have violated ruled 2, 4, and 5 all too often. And usually paid for it.   
      
      
      
   William Hyde   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)