Do You Root Against the Stock Market?

[Clay Manship]

I work at an asset management shop. We trade securities and watch the markets very closely every day. Today while watching the DOW drop almost 500 points at its very bottom, I found myself, as I do many days, rooting for the stock market to go DOWN.

And I thought to myself: I always root against the stock market.

Why? I think it stems from my distaste for people with what Robert Kiyosaki calls "poor financial IQ." I am 24, and have dozens of friends who swear by the stock market and blindly throw thousands into their Scottrade accounts based on what a Yahoo finance article says. They are not interested in real estate investing because they 'don't understand' or 'don't want to fix toilets' or 'don't want to deal with any bad people.' I always smile and applaud them for investing, but I can't help but group them with those who show up at the craps table every night. Sure, you might make some money, and sure, you might have an idea for some good strategies on how to win money. But at the end of the day, you have absolutely no control over how you will make money on your investment.

So I ask you, BP friends--do you root against the stock market too, or am I just a twisted, pessimistic grump?