On Apr 10, 2006, at 7:08 PM, Gerhard Fiedler wrote:

>>> But casino gaming is certainly not riskier than being an 
>>> entrepreneur so business is not less of a 'gamble' than craps.
>>
>> Yes, it is.
>
> You got me curious and I tried to find solid data. But that
> doesn't seem to be easy. One set of comparisons would be to
> compare the numbers of business bankruptcies...

The main issue is that risky "businesses" usually means risking a
lot less than risking your rent money gambling.  Sure, you can sink
your personal fortune into a pet rock business, but MOST "business
risk" means taking a lower salary and benefits for a year or two
while working for a business you hope takes off.  You still make
enough to live on; the RISK is that you'll have wasted some time
that could have been better spent.  The gambling analogy might be
gambling the money you would have spent on other "entertainment"
anyway.  I don't think the business bankruptcy statistics tell
you much; such bankruptcies are in effect protection mechanisms
for the individuals involved.  On top of that, there's not much
stigma attached to having worked in a failed business; I know LOTS
of people who have a string of failed startups on their resume...

I suppose that part of the problem is the "unregulated gambling"
one might fall into if you're compulsive enough.


>>> The Stock Market is no less rigged against the small investor
>
>> Yes, it is (LESS rigged)
>
> Hasn't there been a wave of despair some years ago in the USA
> where many people lost pretty much all their (in some cases
> retirement) savings in the stock market?
>
I meant primarily that the stock market isn't "rigged" to favor
anyone, not that it wasn't at all risky,  Statistically, stocks go up 
(and down, but mostly up) for everyone equally.  If you're
counting on the sort of advantages given by brokers to large
traders (I don't deny such things exist), you're not investing
appropriately, you're following some weird scheme.  Whereas in
gambling, the odds ALWAYS favor the house, and any "rigging" that
may exist is on top of that.  I don't have a lot of sympathy for
people (including myself) who lost significant fortunes by having
their portfolio overloaded with Internet stocks when the bubble
burst.  Everyone's advice is against that sort of thing; it'd
be the same as a gambler doing nothing but betting their age at
the roulette table.

BillW
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