> Nothing they are describing, if you ignore histrionic language like "counterfeiting", seems especially nefarious. It sure does to me though: First of all, t

> Nothing they are describing, if you ignore histrionic language like "counterfeiting", seems especially nefarious. It sure does to me though: First of all, there's the whole self-fulfilling prophecy thing. On a technical level, everything borrowed is eventually given back, so the effects should cancel out in the end. The problem starts when the borrowing and selling of stocks happens at a scale where it influences the stock price. At that point, you're a) actively hurting the company b) expecting to profit from it c) sometimes without even expecting the stock price to fall if it weren't for your intervention. Like, I don't see how financially hurting others for personal gain is not a bad thing, but what makes it even worse is that these might be companies producing actual goods, driving humanity forward, and this is being hindered by economic parasites that are only throwing sticks in peoples way. It's easy to understand why many believe this should definitely be illegal, and why people without much knowledge of stock markets would expect it to actually be illegal in the first place. This is the equivalent to shouting "fire" in a crowded theatre... intending to loot whatever people leave behind.