In the continuing Wall Street drama about Gamestop, popular trading apps such as Robinhood have blocked further purchasing of the stock. There is a mainstream backlash against Robinhood now, so here is a list of online trading platforms that you can use instead.
Tradezero:
Thanks to Jeremy from TheQuartering for mentioning Tradezero on his YouTube page. Tradezero makes money through the “freemium” business model; there is a free version and a paid version with advanced features. This means they aren’t as beholden to other companies the same way Robinhood is to Citadel. Tradezero has experienced 200% growth this week as Robinhood users made the switch. The video below reviews Tradezero, and lists reasons that it’s ideal for new traders.
Tradestation also allows buying Gamestop stock. Their own blog reports GME is the most popular symbol on their platform. Tradestation is better suited for experienced traders, but they have made updates to appeal to the mainstream. The following video by Israel Santana provides a beginner’s tutorial to the platform.
PrimeXBT is a cryptocurrency and commodities exchange that lets you trade using Bitcoin. You can also trade indices, which are groups of the top performing company stocks. You probably can’t buy Gamestop stock directly on this platform, but you can if it’s in an index. If the Gamestop surge ever runs its course, it will be important to move on to digital assets and commodities. The Crypto Zombie channel, who I’ve referred to in the past, provides us a PrimeXBT tutorial in this video:
Injective Protocol is a decentralized exchange which no single person or organization can control. It launched very recently, and is seeing a huge boost in Gamestop stock purchases. In this video by Boxmining, the host interviews the cofounder of Injective Protocol to learn what it’s about:
In this video by Ivan on Tech, Ivan rails against the Robinhood app for blocking future purchases of Gamestop stock. He then explains the benefits of decentralized exchanges such as Uniswap. Decentralized exchanges run on blockchain technology, therefore no single person or organization can control them.
By now most people know the story, but in case you don’t: Gamestop, a failing brick and mortar retail chain, got a shot in the arm when the e-commerce veteran Ryan Cohen joined its board. Gamestop stock jumped for a time, and elite Wall Street hedge funds shorted it, hoping to make money when the stock dropped. Meanwhile, casual stock traders and meme dealers on Reddit caught wind of the short strategy and decided to buy Gamestop as a joke. However, it snowballed, and ordinary investors using the Robinhood trading app have piled on the stock and made fortunes in the process. The hedges that shorted the stock have to pay back their initial investments and are on the hook for billions of dollars- billions that will bankrupt them. The common people are using the strategies of the elites and beating the elites at their own game.
The latest development is Robinhood siding with the Wall Street insiders, and prohibiting further purchasing of Gamestop, AMC, and other “meme” stocks. Robinhood is run by a company and executives who are either beholden to, or in league with other tycoons. This makes decentralized exchanges so important. In the video, Ivan goes on to explain Uniswap and how it is used to trade Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He predicts that publicly traded companies will be available on Uniswap in the near future.
This video by Jake Tran gives a simplified summary of the banking industry, and how it’s able to print limitless money. Banks make revenue by collecting interest on loans. Using a hypothetical scenario, Tran explains that a bank is required to keep only 10% of your deposited money, and can loan the rest to other customers. Those loans are deposited in other people’s bank accounts, which can be loaned again, and the cycle continues.
Banks don’t directly print money, but they’re insured by the FDIC, and the Federal Reserve supplies money to cover customers’ existing accounts. The U.S. dollar used to be backed by gold, but it is now a fiat currency, backed only by trust in the government. When the Federal Reserve can print any amount of money, the value of your bank account is at risk. This is why it’s important to invest in assets like precious metals, cryptocurrencies, stocks, land, etc.
In this video by Clownfish TV, Kneon and Geeky Sparkles discuss older animators either leaving or being pushed out of Western studios. In decades past, animators could keep their jobs into their 60’s and even 70’s. They would pass on their knowledge to younger generations, and preserve aspects of the art while still enabling progress. Nowadays, it’s rare to find animators over the age of 40 in studios. Either the companies refuse to pay their salaries, or they find better opportunities going into business for themselves.
Ageism in the workplace isn’t limited to animation. The video mentions the problem in tech companies, video game development, and advertising and marketing. Young people are made to work hard and long hours; when they reach age 40, they’re burned out. According to hrdive.com, ageism occurs in 3 ways: a bias toward hiring younger people; older workers being denied advancement over supposed lack of tech skills; and dismissal of older workers due to salary advancement.
Although Disney is the gold standard in animation, many Disney veterans have left to either join or start new studios. Inc.com reports that one’s 40’s and 50’s are actually the best age to start a new business. The article says that experience helps to develop better work and execution tactics.
In this video by Stephanie Lyn Coaching, Stephanie Lyn explains why it doesn’t work to directly tell other people about a narcissist. Instead, you must create conditions in which the narcissist exposes themself. Narcissists create a public image of themselves as better than they are, and appeal to other people’s emotions. If you’re in an abusive relationship with a narcissist and want validation, you’ll need to separate yourself from that circle.
Halfway into the video, Stephanie reveals that the first step in revealing the narcissist is setting boundaries and enforcing them. This is important for your own well being. You must come to understand your emotional triggers. Then you must learn how to respond rationally to an abuser rather than react emotionally. Narcissists thrive on drama and conflict, so when you cut them off from your emotions, they get desperate. It takes work and struggle, but when you separate yourself from the narcissist, they will act out publicly for other people to see.
Political and government corruption is narcissistic abuse writ large. After the January 6 fiasco in the U.S. Capitol, President Trump appeared to surrender to the Far Left and duplicitous Republicans. He calmly said there would be a peaceful transition, and chose not to attend this week’s inauguration. Since then, Big Tech companies blatantly de-platformed him; Joe Biden (or his handlers) enacted globally infuriating executive orders; and the mainstream media has lower credibility than it’s ever had, which is saying something. The crooks in our government and corporations can’t hide anymore.
In order to root out the corruption further, U.S. citizens will need to untangle themselves from the rotten institutions. We’ve become dependent on Big Tech platforms, and central banks for our mortgages and business investments. This is why I promote blockchain technology now. Decentralized social media should be a safer platform for free speech, and Bitcoin serves as digital gold to preserve people’s wealth.
