When the stock market has become capable of 'buying' and 'selling' large blocks of stocks in the span of a few microseconds, supported by huge arrays of computers in nondescript warehouse-like buildings not even located in the same state, it has ceased to become the way for the little guy to make any money by 'investing'...................
On the contrary, this kind of trading makes it easy for the little guy. The market is much more irrational and swings wildly on the smallest news, making it relatively easy to buy low. If an ETF selling off is causing a sector to crash, you can pick the good stocks in that sector and buy them at bargain prices.