So the whole Gamestop/Robin Hood short-the-market Gamestonk thing has been playing non-stop in my (U.S.) media landscape.

How is it playing outside the US? Dunno.

Super fascinating, as I purposely consume a mix of American politcal
spectruum information feeds, but there's an interesting--and common--
populist sentiment around how broken this financial market is, how the
stock market has been rigged against the "little people" in favor of institutional investors, the Casino Jacks of the world etc. "Socialism
for the rich, Capitalism for the poor." It's a common refrain on both
sides. See: Ted Cruz, AOC, et al.

Interstingly enough -- I'm not a financial professional, but I've read
enough to know that before the 1990's, growth in the stock market
actually reflected real economic gain for workers--e.g., more jobs,
increased opportunity and wages--but that train has left the station.

Needless to say, I'm cheering on the little guys in this case :)


|04[] |11Alpha
|03The Drunken Gamer |08/ |14TheDrunkenGamer.com:2323
|07A Talisman BBS

--- Talisman v0.10-dev (Linux/x86_64)
* Origin: The Drunken Gamer BBS (21:4/158)

Re: Gamestonk
By: Alpha to All on Fri Jan 29 2021 05:15 pm

I like it that short operators are getting screwed, because short operators are mostly cheating bastards.

When you take a long position, what you are doing is saying "Hey, this thing is probably gonna be more useful in the future than it is now, so let's grab some of it and take care of it until it flourishes!"

When you take a short position, what you are doing is to say: "Hey, this thing is gonna crash. If it does not, I am gonna make it crash. So I am gonna get some now and ensure some other bastard pays me the depreciation of this thing using shady tactics!"

If you listen to Intereconomía (Spanish newscast for investements etc) it is very clear that some locutors are trying their best to crash some values that are not doing that badly... I always suspect these are in the pocket of some short investor.

I have heard Taxes is suing a bunch of brokers that locked purchases in Gamesop and company in order to protect shorters. I hope those brokers get obliterated.

I have also heard they are trying to link the guys who are squeezing the shorters with Gamergate and other similar activities. It is pathetic. When the small "poor" guys manage to beat the filthy rich investors, you get the same people who claim to critizise the rich and protect the poor complain.

Fun.

--
gopher://gopher.richardfalken.com/1/richardfalken
--- SBBSecho 3.12-Linux
* Origin: Palantir * palantirbbs.ddns.net * Pensacola, FL * (21:2/138)

When the small "poor" guys manage to beat the filthy rich investors, you get the same people who claim to critizise the rich and protect the poor complain.

What's so interesting about this one, is that pretty much everyone who's not super wealthy and involved with short-selling hedge funds are pulling for the buyers of GameStop and AMC.

This has led to AMC getting better financing (they swapped debt for stock),
and the only people being injured are short-selling hedge funds and people who are buying into it with no rational expectation of making money.

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A46 2020/08/26 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Storm BBS (21:2/108)

What's so interesting about this one, is that pretty much everyone
who's not
super wealthy and involved with short-selling hedge funds are pulling
for the
buyers of GameStop and AMC.

This has led to AMC getting better financing (they swapped debt for
stock),
and the only people being injured are short-selling hedge funds and
people who
are buying into it with no rational expectation of making money.

I mean, this doesn't help the larger issue--a fundamentally un-sound or
failing business model, bad management or both--but hopefully it's a
life-line for some of them, and maybe Congress will do something about
making the stock market less of a casino?

HAHAHAH, wait. That last part probably won't happen :)
|04[] |11Alpha
|03The Drunken Gamer |08/ |14TheDrunkenGamer.com:2323
|07A Talisman BBS

--- Talisman v0.10-dev (Linux/x86_64)
* Origin: The Drunken Gamer BBS (21:4/158)

I mean, this doesn't help the larger issue--a fundamentally un-sound or failing business model, bad management or both--but hopefully it's a life-line for some of them

I'm certainly biased with AMC. While I don't care if they in particular survive, I would like to be able to go to movie theaters in the future.

GameStop... I would like all the various independent game sellers to continue existing, but I'm hard pressed to think of something GameStop provides that
I'd care if they did versus someone else or it not existing.

But maybe there's something? My games purchases in recent times have involved more Steam or the Oculus, and years ago were more about old-school handheld systems.

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A46 2020/08/26 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Storm BBS (21:2/108)

Alpha wrote to All <=-

Super fascinating, as I purposely consume a mix of American politcal spectruum information feeds, but there's an interesting--and common-- populist sentiment around how broken this financial market is, how the stock market has been rigged against the "little people" in favor of institutional investors, the Casino Jacks of the world etc. "Socialism
for the rich, Capitalism for the poor." It's a common refrain on both sides. See: Ted Cruz, AOC, et al.

In this case, I think the "little people" have done something not so
bright. That stock is worthless and I doubt they will get their money back
on what they spent to jack up the price.

Interstingly enough -- I'm not a financial professional, but I've read enough to know that before the 1990's, growth in the stock market
actually reflected real economic gain for workers--e.g., more jobs, increased opportunity and wages--but that train has left the station.

The problem that started in the 1990's was at least, in part, due to the
"dot com boom (and bust)" that took place. Companies that didn't sell any physical product (and maybe didn't sell *anything*) were putting out intial public offerings and, if they had ".com" in the name, people were eating
them up. The initial offering prices were driven up into "outrageous" territory.

Netscape was a part of one of the many offerings involved.

Because these companies made no money, the stock would eventually plummet. There have been several documentaries, some straight and some with added dramatizations, about that time period. There was one company (forget
which one) whose top execs all went to a California car dealership and each bought a Ferrari. Folks like them also bought huge houses.

The Simpsons also made fun of this in an episode where a ".com" prints
their stock certificates on toilet paper.

When the bubble started busting, c1997-99, that is when the housing market
in California starting having difficulties also. People bought a lot of
crap they could't afford, including big houses, and that was the first
thing they would often default on. That had a domino affect across the country.



... Direct from the Ministry of Silly Walks
--- MultiMail
* Origin: Possum Lodge South * possumso.fsxnet.nz:7636/SSH:2122 (21:4/134)

Hello Blue!

** On Sunday 31.01.21 - 11:46, Blue White wrote to Alpha:

In this case, I think the "little people" have done
something not so bright. That stock is worthless and I
doubt they will get their money back on what they spent to
jack up the price.

Gamestop is still doing pretty good despite the criticisms.

From about $3 to $100 in 5 days, and now over $370 in as many
days. That would have been a fine result to cash out even at
$200.

Interstingly enough -- I'm not a financial professional,
but I've read enough to know that before the 1990's,
growth in the stock market actually reflected real
economic gain for workers--e.g., more jobs, increased
opportunity and wages--but that train has left the
station.

But the stock market is not just a reflection of "real" value. A
stupid rumour can send a stock to swing either way.

When the bubble started busting, c1997-99, that is when the
housing market in California starting having difficulties
also. People bought a lot of crap they could't afford,
including big houses, and that was the first thing they
would often default on. That had a domino affect across
the country.

I don't own stocks, so I wasn't affected by any of that. But
wasn't there a more complex matter regarding so bad hedge funds
engineered by Goldman Sacks that was the crux of the matter?

--
../|ug

--- OpenXP 5.0.48
* Origin: (} Pointy McPointFace (21:4/106.21)

Re: Re: Gamestonk
By: Adept to Alpha on Sun Jan 31 2021 10:02 am

GameStop... I would like all the various independent game sellers to continue existing, but I'm hard pressed to think of
something GameStop provides that
I'd care if they did versus someone else or it not existing.

But maybe there's something? My games purchases in recent times have involved more Steam or the Oculus, and years ago were m
about old-school handheld systems.

GameStop in my province has a nice section of second hand games. You can purchase used games from old consoles for dirty cheap.

I guess pawn shops do that too, but they are not widespread in Spain, and the ones that exist don't have a good videogame
catalogue.

--
gopher://gopher.richardfalken.com/1/richardfalken
--- SBBSecho 3.12-Linux
* Origin: Palantir * palantirbbs.ddns.net * Pensacola, FL * (21:2/138)

On Sun, 31 Jan 2021 15:09:17 -0600
"Arelor -> Adept" <0@138.2.21> wrote:



--
----
Nighthawk - 21:1/146 - Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
fcbessa@gmail.com

--- Sylpheed 3.4.1 (GTK+ 2.24.21; x86_64-apple-darwin10.8.0)
* Origin: Andromeda - Saturn's Orbit NNTP Gateway (21:1/146)

I guess pawn shops do that too, but they are not widespread in Spain,
and the ones that exist don't have a good videogame
catalogue.

I suppose I wouldn't pass either by if I noticed them, in whatever country I happened to be in.

Though most of the time I was actively collecting things, I was looking for
the less-common systems, and Game Stop really only ever had Game Boy stuff, with only the occasional exception.

But these days I'd probably be looking for random things to give to my
brother, anyway.

--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A46 2020/08/26 (Linux/64)
* Origin: Storm BBS (21:2/108)