sorry stocktrader, I probably didn't express myself well if you think that I missed the point. I can only agree with you on the Flemington analogy.
I have seen a penny stock miner that was languishing in the unloved column for years, have a 'red heart' appear, mention it on a site that he previously had some success with and all of a sudden it was swamped with new posters, doubled in value. Now he got in low, before he cross promoted it, probably sold high, and it now sits back where it was before he arrived. with a lot of people under water.
To quote you ....`People are too lazy, need a quick fix or incapable of researching`....and I agree from what I have seen. take ownership of your decisions.
I think that if you use the most discussed on HC or don't recognise the Chaff, fail to do the research and follow the leader you do yourself a disservice.
But that doesn't detract from some of the knowledge that you can gather from some of the posters
or the enjoyment of simply discussing a stock.
(20min delay)