Quote from Dr. Zhivodka:
Many "traders" need to go back to their "other." jobs.
I would vote for this.
"When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I was not a Jew.
When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out."
- Pastor Martin Niemoller
Good luck with that ostrich approach, Dr Z. You really think that if they close down daytraders, floor traders, scalpers, that they'll stop there? They won't stop there, they will just become emboldened. To them you're a speculator, a parasite just as much as someone tick-fucking GS for a living - arguably more so, since longer-term traders don't provide as much liquidity. If they can close down daytrading and floor trading with a transactions tax, or a "hedging only" bill, they can close down speculating by introducing an "unearned income" tax, or minimum holding periods, or some other economic monstrosity.
Rats will eat their own kind, sometimes not even waiting for the moment of death before turning cannibal and feasting on the still-living body of their fellow rat. It would be a shame if traders started emulating that kind of behaviour.
