If no one gambled against the grain in good times, there would be no winners to inspire people in the bad times. - Aaron C. Brown

Monotheism introduced the idea that we should passively accept whatever fate God dealt. Gambling seemed to be a refusal to do that.

But you can't ignore dense people-they're not unarmed; they're armed differently.

If you want to understand financial markets, and their effects on the economy, you have to understand the trading game. Many short-term price movements are neither random nor caused by economic fundamentals. They're caused by investors buying and selling.