Meme stocks are here to stay

When the Gamestop and meme stock saga was unfolding in 2021, I had thought that was a moment in time occurrence due to the ZIRP and COVID. People were bored and learned how to buy individual stocks for the first time through apps like Robinhood. They had extra cash to spend after being inside for almost a year and people were ready to gamble.

I was completely wrong that it was a one-time thing. Sitting here today in 2025, I’m reading about how Opendoor stock which was once a penny stock has surged over the last couple of days due to WallStreetBets. Meme coins are also still alive and well with people pumping these tokens still.

I personally don’t participate in any of this, but I have friends who do. The allure and appeal of getting rich quick is outweighing the obvious odds that this won’t work out in their favor. I don’t blame them. Perhaps if it was 10 years ago and I was a bored 25 year old with a lot of time on my hands, I too may be participating in the degenerate behavior.

Afterall, it can be a lot of fun despite perhaps likely being a losing proposition. For now, I’ll save my degen behavior for my maybe once a year trip to the casino with friends.