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> Due to zero-sum game Wealth is not zero-sum, it's created. Real GDP (i.e. adjusted for inflation) in the world has increased from ~$3.4T to ~$110T since the

• throw_this_one 7y ago
  Yeah, but what does that have to do with trading? When you create something that physically benefits people/the world, you usually extract your own value (profit) by providing even more value and selling it. When you trade like this, what net value are you providing? It seems like they are just extracting value. Also, if all the smart minds were doing advanced trading in 1900, would the GDP have risen as much? Instead people were creating aircraft, fighting disease, creating the internet, etc.
  • patentatt 7y ago
    Agreed. And as you mentioned above, many believe the “real value” or whatever of liquidity is indeed capped and has diminishing returns. Trading financial instruments doesn’t just perform the capital allocation task that we were told it does in Econ 101. It’s also a fantastic way to take other peoples money. Why is that so hard to believe? And to those feeling a need to deny such behavior as an attack on capitalism, I’d suggest that it’s the purest expression of capitalism. The goal of investors or capitalists isn’t to do anything useful other than acquire more money. To the extent useful stuff happens, that’s just a side effect of acquiring more money. There’s no altruism involved. So it should be something that a true capitalist would embrace.
• sweeneyrod 7y ago
  The parent comment is talking about hedge funds. It does not seem likely that they are responsible for the increase you are talking about.