I think you're missing one of the author's implicit underlying messages.
Wealth is awesome; no doubt about it. But, as you are accumulating wealth, are you simultaneously creating value? Personal wealth and value creation don't always go hand-in-hand.
Also, as the author (and commenters) pointed out, this isn't a reflection of all of Finance. Stocks, bonds, future, options and other derivatives are essential for growth. We will always need ways to finance investment and tools to manage the accompanying risk. The author was saying that he was getting rich by trading credit default swaps (and probably synthetic CDOs), which -ultimately- played the largest role in destroying massive amounts of value post-2008 because of the sheer volume at which they were being traded (and because the securities that the CDSs were insuring were backed by subprime loans).
Honestly though, you don't have to know much about the 2008 crash to recognize the weakness of your argument. Elon Musk, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates may be (or may have been) addicted to wealth and success. But they accumulated wealth by creating innovative products.
The same could not be said of the typical fixed-income trader circa 2007.
Wealth is awesome; no doubt about it. But, as you are accumulating wealth, are you simultaneously creating value? Personal wealth and value creation don't always go hand-in-hand.
Also, as the author (and commenters) pointed out, this isn't a reflection of all of Finance. Stocks, bonds, future, options and other derivatives are essential for growth. We will always need ways to finance investment and tools to manage the accompanying risk. The author was saying that he was getting rich by trading credit default swaps (and probably synthetic CDOs), which -ultimately- played the largest role in destroying massive amounts of value post-2008 because of the sheer volume at which they were being traded (and because the securities that the CDSs were insuring were backed by subprime loans).
Honestly though, you don't have to know much about the 2008 crash to recognize the weakness of your argument. Elon Musk, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates may be (or may have been) addicted to wealth and success. But they accumulated wealth by creating innovative products.
The same could not be said of the typical fixed-income trader circa 2007.