But that's the thing: We're not talking about losing potential gains. We're talking about money lost in actual transactions.Stop. I understand more than you claim. You and all the people complaining about lost money in the market. I understand about being upset at losing the actual money invest. However there is no reason to be mad about losing money you never made (interest). That is my point.
With stocks, they have an actual PRICE that must be paid (or close to it) in order to get the stock. When that price drops, it is because people are actually selling, and selling at a discount.
If a stock price drops, it's because it is being sold for less than it's "price".
Imagine a gas station that sells their whole supply every week, consistently. 30,000 gallons of fuel.
Competitor moves in across the street, selling for .02 less per gallon. In response, OG lowers their price by .02/gallon. They continue to sell their 30,000 gallons each week. Did they lose money due to the price change? Absolutely.
You coul claim it was only "potential" money lost, but if they were already doing 100% turnover in a week, and continued to do so, then they lost actual money. No different than if an employer reduces the hourly wage. We don't say the employee lost "potential money" since they have to work to get the money, we say they "lost money due to budget cuts".
