I wish I didn't let 33 years roll by before diving deeper into spreads, although I am not nearly into strategies as you have written, find it very informative. As far as my Long term system, been trading it since mid 1991, I don't use trend at all, I seek to sell extreme highs and buy 9 year percentage lows, I try to take as many add on trades I can, and some trades have taken up to 5.5 years to complete-many rollovers, so I stay in no matter what news events. Only time I have even changed from major rules was 9-11. Just today Live Cattle hit 102 that I had posted few days ago was reversal point I could consider and intraday was making right pattern and reversed/I hedge every opening, I been short since Nov 2014 after 5-6 tries. I manage risk and concentrate on only the risk, I know if I can manage risk well enough, the profits will come. And been able to get good enough to hedge open profits as well, but still need to get better. I applaud anyone who trades well or trades in different ways to start dialogs on this Forum. I post cause I have much more time now, I find helping others generates more ideas and I always seem to come away ten fold. I think if folks put down their shields more, they can learn a bit more, trading are like steps, find something new to plug into trading is another step. And I thank Baron for making a good forum that has lasted many years, he is here day in and day out maintaining the site. Like where else could we ever go? Our better halves start running for the door if we chat about our day, people reverse when they see me at stores, well maybe it is my happy disposition they run as well, LOL. Starbucks time.
I actually understand that persons frustration, but people forget at least two things: This site is free to users but is payed for by advertisers. Baron has a difficult position of both trying to keep the eyes on the site, and at the same time trying to grow or at least maintain his business. So my first point is, unless you are really offended by the way Baron runs this site, or you are really offended by what is posted on the site, allow people freedom to be themselves, even those people that are clearly shady (in no way am I suggesting this is a shady thread). Even though there is a strong internal evolutionary predilection for yelling, "snake in the area" to other members of our species, one thing that I think most of us learn as we mature on the internet is that we can't save everyone from themselves. To the rabbit the snake is the devil. But to the snake the rabbit is either eat or die. So psychology and "Predator-Prey" doesn't just play out in the markets second by second, it plays out in websites about trading second by second too. There are many people that come on this site pretending to be successful traders, giving advice and often selling something. Just like anything else in life, no matter where you go people are constantly trying to sell you something. So one skill that you acquire as you mature is knowing when to simply calm yourself, and let people learn the hard lessons on their own. Remember Marketsurfer? He tried for years to "save" chartists from themselves, all to no avail. If you have been here for a long time, you have seen the site evolve. One thing that I think has been a big boon has been the addition of forums and classifications withing those forums. So before, I would have to put up with people posting utter nonsense (imo) in certain forums. Now, I rarely if ever see or even visit those forums because they are not in my path of interest. Win-Win. So I say, let people be themselves, and if it bothers you, as long as they are not really hurting anyone (except the lesson of emptying their wallet which everyone has to learn on their own), why not let them have their say? If the person is a wanker, the thread will die on its own anyway. If there is a way to improve the readability of the site and lower its frustration level, Baron is a good listener and suggest a way to make it better. There is often a tech solution to many problems - the ignore button being the holy grail. Find your own truth, on ET or otherwise. Live and let live.
I believe in my heart that 99% of the signals, reasons to not take signals, nuances, almost all of it was discovered before I discovered it or read about it, and much I found through backtesting. I think 99% of my time especially early on was backtesting something in background while I traded. I have gone to many seminars, some of the cheapest ones were the best and expensive ones did serve lunch and or dinner. There really only so many ways of working with price and some news. I think you make it to next hurl takes more perseverance than the other 95% of the traders.
I know. That guy was such a jerk. He needed to go. It's one thing that he acted as if he is the greatest trader with all the secrets and that he had forgotten more secrets than anyone would ever know but it's another to constantly insult and belittle people with name calling. I don't mind people with different views and ideas...that's one of the many reasons I think we are here,...to learn something from everyone. Just some people with such negativity provide nothing of substance to a discussion and only inflame opposing views as opposed to helping people understand varying points of view as most others do.