Originally Posted by Lance Allison

I would hope most do know what the daily closing figure means, but it's not really all that relevant to Everyday Joe. I'm more concerned with happens within what I trade and what the quarterly statements show. A few up days and a few down days are a given. For me personally, the past few years have been a comfortable net positive. I am also aware of how that can change quickly. I learned the hard way early on...don't keep all the eggs in one basket, so to speak.

In my state of ILLinois, the graduated minimum wage hike is doing exactly the opposite of what those pushing for it expected. It's hitting small businesses pretty hard. We are toeing the line trying to keep costs in check. Does that mean we can't hire those 2-3 extra high school kids for a part-time summer or after school job? You can bet your ass it does. Bump a part-timer into a full time role with benefits? Nope. Eliminate a position here and there? Yep. And we're just in the first stages. It will get much worse over the next few years.