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[lprkn]

Well, dividends.

[Nabubrush]

I have never really gotten the Stocks thing. I mean... they are selling a lot of stocks because they are worried that the world market is going down or whatever... but... the value of the stocks only goes down if everyone sells them. So, everyone sells the stocks because they are afraid everyone else will sell them...

there has to be a less ridiculous way to do this. I know that a thing's value is only what people will pay for it but... it basically seems like Stocks are an entirely fake concept. Do they have any value other than as little pieces of paper that people will buy from you, in hopes of later selling them for more money?

If you actually get the little pieces of paper (also known as stock certificates), you can use them to build fires. Also, really cool paper airplanes. You can also stuff them into your shoes to patch holes.

[Arachno-capitalist]

Do they have any value other than as little pieces of paper that people will buy from you, in hopes of later selling them for more money?

Nabu asked this in a thread about retirement. You dont actually get pieces of paper any more, unless you pay extra for them (they have to be printed and the broker has to get them and mail them to you and its just a pain in the ass). Stocks are shares of ownership in a company, that is what you are buying, it is not a fake concept. Stocks are very real.

[AugustWest]

Do they have any value other than as little pieces of paper that people will buy from you, in hopes of later selling them for more money?

Yes.  A share of stock is an ownership interest in the corporation.  Of course, it's usually far more complicated than this, but if a corporation has issued 1,000,000 shares of stock and you own one share, then you own one-millionth of that company.

[Arachno-capitalist]

Yes.  A share of stock is an ownership interest in the corporation.  Of course, it's usually far more complicated than this, but if a corporation has issued 1,000,000 shares of stock and you own one share, then you own one-millionth of that company.

Also I forgot to mention par value. Stocks have a par value that they can be traded in for regardless of the market price. This is actually kind of joke though, being that most par values I have ever seen are like 1/1000th of a cent or something ridiculous like that.

[theinevitable]

but, see, what are you getting with that. If I buy one share or 10 of Coca Cola, I do not get anything other than the ability to later sell that share, correct? That just seems silly to me.

Oh what the dogg?  We are about education.

For realzz.

[jaydub]

If you buy enough to own a significant part of the company, then you get a say in how its run.  This isn't easy to do with corporations like Microsoft or Coca Cola, but there's nothing preventing you from doing it if you can raise the scratch.

[AugustWest]

Also I forgot to mention par value. Stocks have a par value that they can be traded in for regardless of the market price. This is actually kind of joke though, being that most par values I have ever seen are like 1/1000th of a cent or something ridiculous like that.

Well, sort of. 

Most stocks are issued "No Par value" these days.  About the only place par value is relevant anymore, that I'm aware of, is in insurance companies.  The par value of the stock is the company's "capital" and the amount paid for the stock above par value is "surplus".

[AugustWest]

but, see, what are you getting with that. If I buy one share or 10 of Coca Cola, I do not get anything other than the ability to later sell that share, correct? That just seems silly to me.

You get the right to vote on who will be on the Board of Directors and on certain other issues of corporate governance.  In a sense, it's like being a "citizen" of Coca-Cola.  You also get the right to collect any declared dividends, and in the event the company is liquidated, your pro rata share of the corporate assets (less its liabilities).  It's the same as owning a part of any business, only on a much smaller scale.

Also, people purchase many things, both tangible and intangible, with the thought that the value will increase.  Does the subject's intangiblity make it useless?

[KeithHernandez]

Bill Hicks always taught me that the market is fake, is this not true?

Seriously though, a much more important thing:  I just graduated and am moving to Boulder/Denver in a couple weeks, is this going to effect my ability to get a job?  Are people really losing their retirements today?  Like, I have the little apple stock thing in my dashboard but I don't understand what it means?  I know my dad always told me about people with degrees working at mcdonalds during the Reagan administration. 

If it gets bad enough will the news stop talking about dead white women and the men who kill them?  That would almost make it worth it.

Okay, just turned on Fox News, it is crime, MSNBC is Chris Mathews masturbating on hilary clintons dead political career as he sees it and CNN is talking about this.

[Arachno-capitalist]

I just graduated and am moving to Boulder/Denver in a couple weeks, is this going to effect my ability to get a job?  Are people really losing their retirements today? 

Unemployment is still historically low for America and relatively low compared to global rates (ours is about 5%, the EU has an average rate of 8.5). The fact is that most, 95%, of the people in america who want a job, have a job. This is little consolation to the other 5%, however. UE is rising which means employers aren't going to work as hard to recruit new employees, which means lower starting salaries and less frequent 'raises'. You may or may not feel this directly, but if you can't find a job and you want something to blame, go ahead. I think one would be hard pressed to find anyone who lost their retirement today - these losses are paper losses, you don't actually lose any money until you sell the stocks.

[AugustWest]

Unemployment is still historically low for America and relatively low compared to global rates (ours is about 5%, the EU has an average rate of 8.5). The fact is that most, 95%, of the people in america who want a job, have a job. This is little consolation to the other 5%, however. UE is rising which means employers aren't going to work as hard to recruit new employees, which means lower starting salaries and less frequent 'raises'. You may or may not feel this directly, but if you can't find a job and you want something to blame, go ahead. I think one would be hard pressed to find anyone who lost their retirement today - these losses are paper losses, you don't actually lose any money until you sell the stocks.

95% of the people who are looking for work are employed.  As I understand it, there is a certain percentage of people who are not working and are no longer seeking work.  Is this number measured anywhere?

[wombat]

That is an interesting question but is it perhaps getting to be time to split this thread?

[Arachno-capitalist]

95% of the people who are looking for work are employed.  As I understand it, there is a certain percentage of people who are not working and are no longer seeking work.  Is this number measured anywhere?

Yes, the bureau of labor statistics does this. There are 6 kinds of unemployment and all of them are counted as best as these things can be. There is a measure of part time employed workers who want full time work, but to my knowledge there is not a measure of fully employed people who are looking for another/different job.

[Lister]

I own stocks.

I am not destitute.

Sometime this year or next, I will sell those stocks and use the proceeds to buy a house in a market that is finally inching back towards reality.  If it turns out those stocks are worth less than I paid for them, I will take that as a net loss and pay less money to the government.

I'm also putting money in an IRA that buys stocks, and this year's contribution will buy more stocks (because they are worth less, individually).  When the market recovers, this year's money will be worth a lot more than last year's money.  Over time it will be worth a lot of money.

This is basically how it works if you don't panic and/or think that day trading and house flipping are legitimate uses of economics.