[larrys]

"just because I'm not rich?"

Yes for your own protection.

Because if you don't have money then the rest of society often becomes the "clean up the mess" of last resort if you make a mistake using one of your last dimes to invest in a potentially risky venture.

"but I'm not allowed to benefit from those investments in certain ways"

The chance of "gambling" is much higher if someone perceives a payout. Not to say there aren't many ways that people throw out their money (QVC, Casinos etc.) but those are grandfathered and part of a different discussion. (And the fact that they are allowed whether the same or different doesn't mean something else should also be allowed).

[jeangenie]

> if you don't have money then the rest of society often becomes the "clean up the mess" of last resort

Case in point[1]. I guess it's fine when Wall Street does it.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_Economic_Stabilizatio...

[Zikes]

Who says I have to invest anything even close to my last dime? What if I just want to invest my first dime? Does the SEC also want to step in and tell me what I can or can't eat for lunch today, because I might overspend?

There are no guarantees of return on publicly traded stocks, either, and that same allure of high payout can still exist. The SEC did a bang-up job protecting everyone when they let Facebook IPO at a grossly overinflated value.