the house's edge
- Thread starter chasinfla
- Start date
you've basically said what I did. if you were to search my posts using 'gambling' as a keyword, you might find that interesting as well.
my fascination with 'randomness' has taught me that it seems to permeate so much of life -- that is, what we call randomness, which needn't really be chaotic at all. In fact, it really isn't, when you think that 98% or whatever of all events usually fall within some predictable range.
what humans bring to the table, in a world of wide ranging events, is (among other things) the ability to know when and how to act and when to refrain.
but the point of this thread is that advantage needs to be respected.
if one is to stare at a screen in the 'dead zone' and watch the specialist weave webs of price action designed to communicate one thing, planning to do the opposite once someone takes the bait, that person needs to be able to know how to do nothing until something real presents itself.
thank you, i hope youre as profitable as you are intelligent... i know many traders and i know many gamblers, however why is that the traders are well off, and the gamblers are typically in debt and or running from a bookie??? when was the last time you found yourself hiding from a specialist??? lol obviously this is an exaggerated statement to add humor to this thread... however in reality trading and gambling are two different entities... the only thing that is the same between the two is that we both use the same money and we both are either winners or losers... bottom line...
that's about the meanest thing i've had said to me here.
actually, the issue with gambling is, imho, more about the ability or lack of ability to control the outcome of an endeavor. that obviously is different for different people, up to an extent. there are, of course, some events that are completely out of the control of any mortal.
seeking to take control of the outcome of an endeavor (while playing by the rules) is, i'd say, a pretty healthy and responsible thing to do. throwing caution to the wind for a thrill, which is what most think of as gambling, isn't.
when the specialist invents quotes and fills orders at a whim, i'd say the element of gambling (lack of ability to control the outcome) is in place for the trader, if he is trading on the specialist's time frame. likewise of the actual market is hidden from the screen trader.
still, if the trader's nose is keen, he may see through the specialist's games and understand the underlying, probably inevitable trend (if there is one) or not.
the responsible trader must focus on what he can control.
<i>trading is not gambling.</i>
Webster defines gambling as âto take a risk for some advantageâ and gamble as âan undertaking involving riskâ
To me that would also be the definition of trading.
<I>when playing games using cards youre forced to play with what you have, noone here forces you to trade certain stocks or options or what have you, you dont like whats dealt (ie chart) you change your the ticker, you cant change hands if you dont like what your dealt</I>
You pick your game and you pick your instrument to trade. You decide on how much you want to risk and place your bet. If you are a competent card player you can make money, why else would casinos ban card counters. If a poker player doesnât like the cards dealt he folds. A good poker player, one who knows the odds and can read people, will take money off the tourists on a consistent basis.
You have no guarantee that when you enter a trade that it will go the way you expect it to. You limit your risk as best you can with stops but you canât control what the market does. If it were a sure thing then none of us would have a losing trade and if itâs not a sure thing then I submit that it is a Gamble.
Webster defines gambling as âto take a risk for some advantageâ and gamble as âan undertaking involving riskâ
To me that would also be the definition of trading.
<I>when playing games using cards youre forced to play with what you have, noone here forces you to trade certain stocks or options or what have you, you dont like whats dealt (ie chart) you change your the ticker, you cant change hands if you dont like what your dealt</I>
You pick your game and you pick your instrument to trade. You decide on how much you want to risk and place your bet. If you are a competent card player you can make money, why else would casinos ban card counters. If a poker player doesnât like the cards dealt he folds. A good poker player, one who knows the odds and can read people, will take money off the tourists on a consistent basis.
You have no guarantee that when you enter a trade that it will go the way you expect it to. You limit your risk as best you can with stops but you canât control what the market does. If it were a sure thing then none of us would have a losing trade and if itâs not a sure thing then I submit that it is a Gamble.