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To: Ken Holbert, Jr. who wrote (28751)	12/2/1998 5:56:00 PM
From: OtherChap	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 164684

Why most stocks are just pyramid schemes.. Listen closely folks- if you never learn anything else about the market remember this. Any company that doesnt distribute dividends to their shareholders is effectively a "greater fool" situation. If the shareholder doesnt get paid a percentage of profits, the only hope for eventual profit is if the company is purchased or if some "greater fool" buys the stock from them at a later date. For instance, Microsoft is by definition a pyramid scheme, since they do not pay dividends and since they are the largest market cap stock in the world they CANNOT be bought out by anyone. So if the company cannot possibly be purchased by any other company, and they don't pay a dividend- there is absolutely no connection to the stock price and the company itself. I know a lot of people don't want to accept this fact, but that's the way things are. And to think that 45 percent of personal wealth in the united states is invested in the stock market. It is all just a giant game of "greater fool". There is one exception, if a stock is priced low enough in its particular market there is always the chance of a buyout by another company, in which case the shareholders will be rewarded by having their shares tendered for cash or stock in the aquiring company. But like I said, a company like Microsoft simply cannot be aquired. Wonder why they don't give dividends? The second largest, General Electric, does pay dividends. Therefore GE is not a pyramid scheme.