evancds

The thing about futures is the cost to enter is high for someone just starting out. Intraday/Overnight margin requirements, min account size, min position size. Limited demo time on data feeds unless you have a funded account. I suggest you get a forex demo (which last indefinitely) and learn auction market theory/market profile, price action, supply and demand, etc. Then (6months to 3yrs depending on how much time you have) open a futures account and sim trade until you are profitable for 2 or 3 months. Start trading live with 1 or 2 contracts and gradually increase your size. Yea, it's a lot of work, but the journey is the reward.

While the Fed is certainly very powerful and can exert a lot of force on the US and global economy, they are only one central bank. Every country has their own agenda. This link isn't related to Bernanke, but you might find it Interesting. China Issues Cautious Response to S&P Move - WSJ.com

I'm in a similar situation, and decided to trade futures. Why not trade a transparent market if you can?