4 ms·

haha insider trading is like copying assignment answers in college...its not 5% of potential insiders who are doing it...its 5% potential insiders who AREN'T do

haha insider trading is like copying assignment answers in college...its not 5% of potential insiders who are doing it...its 5% potential insiders who AREN'T doing it. its like driving in the carpool lane by yourself...now and then the cops throw a $500 fine at someone during rush hour to deter others from abusing the rules, but the reality is that the other 22 hours a day you can get away with it, and countless people do

sachinag 18y ago
Really? Do you have stats to back this up? Cause I'll tell you that there's so much more money to be made in legal ways that the benefits of insider trading, coupled with the fact that the SEC loves to make examples of people, that insider trading is very rare nowadays. Everything is logged electronically. (I'm sorry, but this is the sort of "the rich and powerful get away with murder" crap that makes me want to smack a bitch.)
- fallentimes 18y ago
  They like to make examples of people, but they also settle a lot, don't have adequate resources and are undermanned. It's a constant cat & mouse game except the SEC is the mouse. Sachin, you live in Chicago - venture over to the CBOT or talk to some of your friends that work there. While the OP's post is certainly an exaggeration, the rich & connected have access to privy information. This: http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2004/02/good_news_our_s.html http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2004/02... Is not a coincidence.
  - sachinag 18y ago
    Dan, I agree - but to say that "everyone's doing it" is crazy. It's easier to trade on material, non-public information if you're exposed to it on a regular basis because your patterns aren't readily apparent. That said, there are a lot of people who will trade on rumors that they consider "inside information" that things don't work out as well as you'd think they would. Look at the volatility in stocks right before earnings announcements. It's hysterical.
    - fallentimes 18y ago
      Agreed, which is why I said the original OP was almost certainly exaggerating. You can long or short volatility :).
    - crabapple 18y ago
      but going back to a point i make...there are also lots of people are indeed trading on insider information but don't even know it, because they don't know the full spectrum of SEC insider rules. there are millions of trades every day, by individuals, funds, even computers trading on behalf of people. its simply impossible for the SEC to know what each party understands or should understand before they transact. the antidote to this is near-full transparency in financial reporting...instead of trying to keep track of who knows what secrets, the SEC errs on the side of no one having secrets for long (disclosure)
- crabapple 18y ago
  Do you have stats to back this up? of course! go look at any pivotal event in a stock to the upside or downside...look at the huge trading blocks that take place just before the huge swings (in either direction) just prior...do you think those people are just speculating? do you think you compete with elite trading firms on a level playing field???
  - pchristensen 18y ago
    http://www.slate.com/id/2203121/pagenum/all http://www.slate.com/id/2203121/pagenum/all Did people who knew about secret, CIA-led coups use that information to game the stock market? Sure looks like it.
dustineichler 18y ago
I hate your attitude if that's the case... lawlessness is not something i'll tolerate, no one should. Don't get me wrong, i'm all for helping friends out, but unqualified... i'd flatly say no and have. Having said that, Mark Cuban is someone i've definitely come to respect because of this community. i'd be a little bummed if he wasn't practicing what he was preaching and holding himself to higher noble truths for which he presents.
- crabapple 18y ago
  I hate your attitude if that's the case... lawlessness is not something i'll tolerate, no one should. don't confuse my post with advocation. if insider trading pisses you off, do a little research into corporate taxation...you'll be amazed to know many of the banks getting in line for $700 billion in cash also pay little to no taxes, and some of them indeed exploit loopholes to get tax REBATES in the hundreds of millions. wachovia is one for sure that got hundreds of millions in tax credits. let me break it down for you: - poor people pay no taxes - corporations pay few taxes (via loopholes) - the rich pay few taxes (via offshoring and loopholes) - you and i pay all the tax
  - dustineichler 18y ago
    I realized as much, np. At the very least appreciate what you wrote, but i'll checkout "corporate taxation". Thanks.
  - jfornear 18y ago
    How are you coming to these conclusions? The latest IRS reports show that the wealthiest 10% and large corporations still pay over 60% of all taxes despite loopholes and creative accounting techniques.
  - pchristensen 18y ago
    Sorry dude, the rich and corporations might not pay all the tax they're supposed to, but they pay the majority of the taxes collected. http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1118/do-the-rich-pay-very-little-tax http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1118/do-the-rich-pa...
tomsaffell 18y ago
Not at my college it wasn't, and I'm proud of it. (I can't speak for the whole college, but those I knew did not copy assignment answers)
- crabapple 18y ago
  well we can talk about our personal experiences all day long, wikipedia cites show 70% of college students have cheated at least once http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_dishonesty http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_dishonesty
run4yourlives 18y ago
My experience has been the opposite. Usually people are so tight lipped about things because they fear prosecution. Honestly, it's not really worth it.

sachinag 18y ago

Really? Do you have stats to back this up? Cause I'll tell you that there's so much more money to be made in legal ways that the benefits of insider trading, coupled with the fact that the SEC loves to make examples of people, that insider trading is very rare nowadays. Everything is logged electronically. (I'm sorry, but this is the sort of "the rich and powerful get away with murder" crap that makes me want to smack a bitch.)

fallentimes 18y ago
They like to make examples of people, but they also settle a lot, don't have adequate resources and are undermanned. It's a constant cat & mouse game except the SEC is the mouse. Sachin, you live in Chicago - venture over to the CBOT or talk to some of your friends that work there. While the OP's post is certainly an exaggeration, the rich & connected have access to privy information. This: http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2004/02/good_news_our_s.html http://www.marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2004/02... Is not a coincidence.
- sachinag 18y ago
  Dan, I agree - but to say that "everyone's doing it" is crazy. It's easier to trade on material, non-public information if you're exposed to it on a regular basis because your patterns aren't readily apparent. That said, there are a lot of people who will trade on rumors that they consider "inside information" that things don't work out as well as you'd think they would. Look at the volatility in stocks right before earnings announcements. It's hysterical.
  - fallentimes 18y ago
    Agreed, which is why I said the original OP was almost certainly exaggerating. You can long or short volatility :).
  - crabapple 18y ago
    but going back to a point i make...there are also lots of people are indeed trading on insider information but don't even know it, because they don't know the full spectrum of SEC insider rules. there are millions of trades every day, by individuals, funds, even computers trading on behalf of people. its simply impossible for the SEC to know what each party understands or should understand before they transact. the antidote to this is near-full transparency in financial reporting...instead of trying to keep track of who knows what secrets, the SEC errs on the side of no one having secrets for long (disclosure)
crabapple 18y ago
Do you have stats to back this up? of course! go look at any pivotal event in a stock to the upside or downside...look at the huge trading blocks that take place just before the huge swings (in either direction) just prior...do you think those people are just speculating? do you think you compete with elite trading firms on a level playing field???
- pchristensen 18y ago
  http://www.slate.com/id/2203121/pagenum/all http://www.slate.com/id/2203121/pagenum/all Did people who knew about secret, CIA-led coups use that information to game the stock market? Sure looks like it.

dustineichler 18y ago

I hate your attitude if that's the case... lawlessness is not something i'll tolerate, no one should. Don't get me wrong, i'm all for helping friends out, but unqualified... i'd flatly say no and have. Having said that, Mark Cuban is someone i've definitely come to respect because of this community. i'd be a little bummed if he wasn't practicing what he was preaching and holding himself to higher noble truths for which he presents.

crabapple 18y ago
I hate your attitude if that's the case... lawlessness is not something i'll tolerate, no one should. don't confuse my post with advocation. if insider trading pisses you off, do a little research into corporate taxation...you'll be amazed to know many of the banks getting in line for $700 billion in cash also pay little to no taxes, and some of them indeed exploit loopholes to get tax REBATES in the hundreds of millions. wachovia is one for sure that got hundreds of millions in tax credits. let me break it down for you: - poor people pay no taxes - corporations pay few taxes (via loopholes) - the rich pay few taxes (via offshoring and loopholes) - you and i pay all the tax
- dustineichler 18y ago
  I realized as much, np. At the very least appreciate what you wrote, but i'll checkout "corporate taxation". Thanks.
- jfornear 18y ago
  How are you coming to these conclusions? The latest IRS reports show that the wealthiest 10% and large corporations still pay over 60% of all taxes despite loopholes and creative accounting techniques.
- pchristensen 18y ago
  Sorry dude, the rich and corporations might not pay all the tax they're supposed to, but they pay the majority of the taxes collected. http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1118/do-the-rich-pay-very-little-tax http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1118/do-the-rich-pa...

tomsaffell 18y ago

Not at my college it wasn't, and I'm proud of it. (I can't speak for the whole college, but those I knew did not copy assignment answers)

crabapple 18y ago
well we can talk about our personal experiences all day long, wikipedia cites show 70% of college students have cheated at least once http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_dishonesty http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academic_dishonesty

run4yourlives 18y ago

My experience has been the opposite. Usually people are so tight lipped about things because they fear prosecution. Honestly, it's not really worth it.