Mining is not off-the-bat profitable, in my opinion, unless you put in a load of cash when a new ASIC can be pre-ordered. Are you willing to invest a few thousand on a possible scam?
Saying that, mining is fun and it can be seen as an investment. BTC and alt-coins values might rise so maybe you will mine your $1 Microsoft/Apple share which will become millions.
![Smiley](https://bitcointalk.org/Smileys/default/smiley.gif)
Mining has another benefit and that is an anonymous source for your money, if you solomine or use an anonymous email when in a pool. You wouldn't want the police to link your email with a crack deal on the silk roads would you
![Cheesy](https://bitcointalk.org/Smileys/default/cheesy.gif)
Investing in a GPU is better than an ASIC if you like gaming since you can game and mine in off hours.
GPU's probably make more noise when pushed to the max.
I still use my GPU for mining new alt coins and hoping one will skyrocket
![Wink](https://bitcointalk.org/Smileys/default/wink.gif)
Have fun and good luck!