Quote from rcj:
Dont know yet what you have in mind when stating:
"... missing an enormous inconsistency...". Lets see it.
The amount of money "HFT" could make scamming retail with bid-stuffing wouldn't even pay their colo nut - yet that nut is in fact covered. Therefore the only reasonable conclusion is that the HFTs are engaged in internicine warfare amongst themselves and don't give a damn about "the rest of us".
The net effect on anybody not stupid enough to try and wage a microsecond battle with a millisecond machine gun is roughly...zero.