> We must prevent our readers from accepting the common jargon which applies the term "investor" to anybody and everybody in the stock market.
> Outright speculation is neither illegal, immoral, nor (for most people) fattening to the pocketbook. More than that, some speculation is necessary and unavoidable, for in many common-stock situations there are substantial possibilities for profit and loss, and the risks therein must be assumed by someone. There is intelligent speculation as there is intelligent investing. But there are many ways in which speculation may be unintelligent. Of these the foremost are: (1) speculating when you think you are investing; (2) speculating seriously instead of as a pastime, when you lack proper knowledge and skill for it; and (3) risking more money in speculation than you can afford to lose.
> In our conservative view every nonprofessional who operates on margin should recognise that he is ipso facto speculating, and it is his broker's duty to advise him as such.
> The true investor scarcely ever _is forced to sell_ his shares, and at all other times he is free to disregard the current price quotation. He need pay attention to it and act upon it only to the extent that it suits his book, and no more. Thus the investor who permits himself to be stampeded or unduly worried by unjustified market declines in his holdings is perversely transforming his basic advantage into a basic disadvantage. That man would be better off if his stocks had no market quotation at all, for he would then be spared the mental anguish caused him by _other persons'_ mistakes of judgment.
- Benjamin Graham, "The Intelligent Investor"
Note that Graham is largely talking about common stocks - interests in potentially profitable businesses with real world assets than have a value independent of the current market price.
Betting any amount of capital on exchange rate changes of currencies? On cryptocurrencies? ...on margin that forces you to sell if the market price fluctuates? ...when the market price itself is largely/entirely based on speculation? This is not classifiable as investment activity, and arguably not classifiable as intelligent speculation either.
