I am not sure I understand the jokes. Competent practitioners of...

I am not sure I understand the jokes.

Competent practitioners of technical analysis do not need to persuade others that it is a useful tool.

Anyone can draw a line between two points and make an interpretation. They will be correct 50% of the time - similar to flipping a coin. The key is knowing which points to draw the lines.

Technical analysis can not forecast the future. Those that attempt to use charts to forecast the future will be right 50% of the time (similar to flipping a coin). This will provide a false feedback loop.

I rarely read the technical analysis commentary on Hotcopper because I do my own analysis. However, I note that some (but not all) do not know which points to draw lines. They also attempt to forecast the future.

I found SreeHC's post interesting because he/she believes he/she is correct around 60 to 70% of the time. This is similar to my experience. It could indicate the extent of the success of charting. (Of course, the far more important criteria is discipline and sticking to your rules).