I have been blogging for four years now, and yet I still did not really appreciate the fact that it is possible to bet on the next US Presidential Election.
Democrats 1.80You can even bet on the next Democrat candidate (GOP alternatives not yet available, for obvious reasons):
Republicans 1.90
Hillary Clinton 2.10How obscene is that? I admit, I knew such betting existed, but the fact is that it has only just now "hit" me. THIS IS WRONG! Why don't the bloggers cover this? Are they all busy placing their own bets?
Barack Obama 4.20
Any Other Candidate 5.00
John Edwards 6.50
John Kerry 11.00
Here's the latest betting on the Australian Federal election due later this year:
Labor 1.80And here is specific betting on the Australian Prime Minister's seat, which has been discussed by Crikey this week:
Liberal / National Coalition 1.95
Australian Labor Party 3.5026 to 1? At those odds, I am tempted to put the house on my own Independent bid for Bennelong! Hey, I used to live there once myself!
Liberal Party of Australia 1.35
Any other Political Party/Independant Candidate 26.00
But seriously, this is a very wrong and dangerous thing. It should not legally be possible to gamble on elections. It's just fundamentally wrong. We have enough corruption in politics already. Let's stop this now.
