If by trading you mean taking short term positions in stocks:
1) To be successfull at poker or trading you need to find a monied group of people who are less capable than you. It might turn out that you are the monied person who is less capable than others
2) My feeling is that in the current market going short may me necessary for successfull trading.
3) You might consider commodities instead of stocks.
4) Cash might be the best bet for now.
I think this is the single best book on the stock market:
A Random Walk Down Wall Street: Completely Revised
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...s&n=507846