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Monday, November 03, 2008

And that explains the stock market.

Rethinking Investing - Part 2 (Plus: Election Thoughts) - The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss:
"Connecticut, 2003

There were 4-6 screens per person, and chairs were lined up at a single 30-foot desk in hierarchical pecking order. Commands would come down the line and trades were made.

“Who the f*ck are you?” asked one of seniors, swiveling back to his glowing screens before I could answer.

It was my first time inside one of the largest investment banks on the planet, and I was just observing a friend in the hopes of learning something. Before I knew it, lunch had arrived and a 20-minute break was announced in a poetic slew of 4-letter words.

“Name a company.” It was a voice I didn’t recognize, but it was clearly directed at me.
“Uh… sorry. Excuse me?” I asked to the room and no one in particular.
“Name a company.”
“Uh…”
“Any company — doesn’t matter.”
“OK. Ah… Genentech.” It was a shot in the dark with no rhyme nor reason.
“F*ck Genentech!!!” came the chorus.

“OK, we just sold 100,000 shares of Genentech. F*ck those guys. Lost a ton on them last week.”

100,000 shares of Genentech sold because a no-nothing guest had pulled the name out of thin air.

That was my introduction to how truly rigged the stock market is…"

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