And if you're one of the lucky few who make money on them, don't expect me to admire your investing wisdom, any more than I'd admire the number-picking brilliance of a lottery winner.
I disagree. Being able to correctly read the general emotion of the investing "herd" is a far, far more valuable skill than being able to do fundamental and qualitative analysis of an investment. I am an engineer by training, and it took me way too long to discover this.