That's true and I tried to join paranoids anonymous but they won't tell me where the meetings are held.
yeah they are out to get us, tight ranges, all of us looking at the same things, initiating trades at the same times...that's why mkt got so erratic and unpredictable as of late, we are trying to squeeze each other out for a tick for crying out loud.
Your home state doesn't touch water, does it? Anyways, read about the collapse of LTCM, when you get big enough and/or wrong enough, "they" will eventually come after you. Zero-sum, baby.
there is no clearer sign of an amateur and LOSING trader (or one who will be a losing trader given sufficient "n") than a trader who refuses to take responsibility for his own trades, and blames Market makers, "manipulators"... whatever NO clearer sign. for many people, trading is the first time in their lives that they have to confront REALITY vs. their happy little comforting cloud of (false) convictions about who they are. trading will tell you, in regards to trading, exactly who you are - in your P&L. unlike politics, personal relationships, etc. you cannoy sink into cognitive dissonance to explain away uncomfortable reality. it's really sad, frankly. but it's actually a good thing. because, to a large extent, winning traders can rely on these losers to pad our accounts with money every day.
Don't get me wrong, I'm in complete agreement with taking full responsibility for your own actions. But at the same time, many try to protect their egos behind the illusion that the markets are some benign collection of random movements to be taken advantage of at your leisure. Practically, I suppose it just comes down to which attitude makes you the most money.
You sound a little defensive. Having trouble trading against the Masons and the Bilderburgs? Comparing the LTCM situation to the average independent trader or even small to mid sized institutions is silly.