This observation is the most profound I have read in regard to our economy in some time. It is both sad and true.

just remember if you're going to trade "futures" then you might as well jump into the derivatives markets as well...
you know to cover your backside....
puts & calls...

guys like Warren Buffett note that if investing is more fun than watching paint dry on a wall, then you're not doing it right.


Nonetheless, we all need some excitement. I "play" the stock market and just to keep things exciting, I take the extra risk by investing in some names that are directly linked to commodities. You don't need to be in direct commodities market in order for you to profit from their wild price swings. Specially since you say that you have a knack for prediction, you can use some stocks or ETFs as someone recommended upthread.

Take for example the skyward price rise in commodity fertilizers such as potash. You don't need to buy potash futures (if there are any!); you can figure out who the market players are in potash market, see who has the most unhedged future sales, then buy their stock. As potash prices go up, the company sells same ton of fertilizer for higher price, pushing every extra dollar straight to the bottom line.

Same thing for natural gas, another hot commodity recently. And for iron ore. Buy a low-cost miner stock.

It can be fun to see the stock go 15% up in a single day! Recently, I have seen many days where my Continental Airlines stock has rocketed up more than 10%...one day, it went as high as 40%...in a single frickin trading day! If you thought oil prices were coming down when everyone else was predicting them hitting $175/barrel, your best bet would have been airline stocks, which got beat down to a pulp..only to rise back up as oil went down!

__________________
New term of the day 1/24:
Electile Dysfunction: The inability to become aroused over any of the choices for President put forth by either of only parties in the 2008 election year.
http://www.votenader.org/index.html


5/22, because i'm feeling punny:
As the great Jedi English teacher was quoted in saying, "metaphors be with you."

I should note that the few commodities-related stocks I have, are for short-term trades only, and by no means do I risk my entire trading account on those names.

you can get started by getting an online account with any broker...there are many, I use cheapo Scottrade.

For ETFs, just beware of their expenses...some new-fangled ones can be pricey...

__________________
New term of the day 1/24:
Electile Dysfunction: The inability to become aroused over any of the choices for President put forth by either of only parties in the 2008 election year.
http://www.votenader.org/index.html


5/22, because i'm feeling punny:
As the great Jedi English teacher was quoted in saying, "metaphors be with you."

I just wanted to know the technicalities of how to purchase futures.

If I asked how to purchase gasoline at the gas station, I'd want to know where to park my car, where to pay, when to pay...not be told if I should be getting gas at that station or that I should be riding a bike instead....

__________________
~Sugarcoma
Now with more carbohydrates!
http://www.bethbrennan.blogspot.com/
http://www.myspace.com/o1o1o1o1

in that case, good luck to you because i don't know that answer. I only followed up with what others had said upthread. It's not like I said something totally out of the ballpark of the subject being talked about; you're asking a very narrow and technical question that probably most on PB wouldn't know about.

you can likely find detailed how-to guides on several financial web sites...

http://biz.yahoo.com/opt/ ....primer on options

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Futures_contract


http://www.rb-trading.com/begin.html .... futures trading primer.


good luck!

__________________
New term of the day 1/24:
Electile Dysfunction: The inability to become aroused over any of the choices for President put forth by either of only parties in the 2008 election year.
http://www.votenader.org/index.html


5/22, because i'm feeling punny:
As the great Jedi English teacher was quoted in saying, "metaphors be with you."

Just wondering how your commodities investment went?

Haven't done it yet. Not a good time to right now, and I haven't got enough info on it.

__________________
~Sugarcoma
Now with more carbohydrates!
http://www.bethbrennan.blogspot.com/
http://www.myspace.com/o1o1o1o1

[Let her invest in this , probably the only thing she can do worse then investing and living in Philly.
then give her some good stock tips and wait till she ends up in a catchment center for psychological service in (hopefully) Philly where some guys can feed her crack instead of anti depressants.

yep (*you see I am positive sometimes)