Please note: GorillaTrades is a registered trademark of GorillaTrades, Inc. Neither WealthJunkie.com, its publisher, nor the authors of these articles have any affiliation with the GorillaTrades service.
A few hours ago, we received a 868-word “manifesto” from a terribly disgruntled reader. It made us realize we need to clarify something.
This web site is called “Wealth Junkie: Our Journey Into Wealth. Join Us For The Ride.” The premise here is that our writers are neither wealthy nor professionals. They are not perfect, nor are they infallible.
Any of us will tell you that Mr. Barbara has done his fair share of dumb things. Like you and I, he is only human, and just as he has erred in the past, he will certainly screw up again in the future. (We talk about this on the “About Us” page of our web site.)
Mr. Barbara’s opinion on the premise of GorillaTrades is just that– an opinion. However, we believe he makes a very valid point. There is a subtle but life-altering difference between giving a man a fish and teaching him how to fish. Mr. Barbara felt that GorillaTrades promised both but delivered on only one.
In order to keep objectivity, and alleviate us of the responsibility for his potential losses, we asked Mr. Barbara to evaluate the GorillaTrades service without making any actual stock trades. What is important here is not if he made $5000 or lost $50, but the core of the service, how it works, pros and cons, and some data. With that, you can make your own decision. (Many of you already have. And if you tried their service and are happy with it, we wish you the best of luck.)
May 18th, 2005 at 3:58 pm
So, any chance that we get to read this “Manifesto”? I think a lot of
people are interested in any info they can get on gorillatrades, so even
if it’s not the most pleasant reading, perhaps it could prove useful
in some way.
May 18th, 2005 at 5:54 pm
Hey, congratulations, Alex - your first bit of hate mail. That means two things. First, people are reading, and second, you are good enough to elicit responses. People become very defensive when it comes to finances and children, particularly when you say something that challenges their particular strategy. I can only assume the person who sent you the angry email used the service that you (rightly) rejected. That’s very interesting because it shows that he 1) missed the point of your website, and 2) is irrational. The first of those points is self-explanatory. The second merits a line or two of explanation. Any service like the one you used works best if it has fewer followers (if everyone used the same method, that method would necessarily stop working as the inefficiencies were priced out - much like Economists claim happened to the Dogs of the Dow strategy some years back). Were the reader rational, he would be overjoyed that not only did YOU stop using the service, but you also scared off other potential users/ competitors.
I have been investing for quite some time and enjoy reading your columns. Congratulations on not only getting your first scathing response, but getting one that ran no less than 868 words. Very impressive.
May 19th, 2005 at 8:27 am
Yes, of course, please let us read the manifesto. It could make for some good discussion.
December 1st, 2005 at 12:11 pm
“What is important here is not if he made $5000 or lost $50…”
Isn’t that, ultimately, the only thing that is important? I really care about how a system works, too - I spent 10 years doing computer programming and UNIX systems administration, and I spent an enormous amount of time just trying to understand how a specific application functioned, or a specific process communicated, etc. However, if I can give my money to a fund manager that will make 10% greater yearly returns on average than any other investing option I have, I’ll give my money to the manager even if he won’t tell me the metrics he values or the fundamental strategy or technical algorithm he uses to execute trades.