This is outrageous. The idea of betting on the lives of our brave service members is a new low.
Key Takeaways:
- “Prediction Markets” let people bet on future events.
- Some markets allowed betting on an airman’s rescue.
- Congress is looking into regulation to stop insider trading.
Death Pools for Profit: A New Kind of Disgusting
It’s now come to light that while America was focused on saving a downed airman in Iran, soulless profiteers were busy placing bets on his life. The fact that sites like Polymarket exist is a slap in the face to every veteran who has sacrificed for this nation. This isn’t just gambling; it’s ghoulish speculation on human lives.
This is the kind of moral rot that festers when profit is put above all else. When a sitting Congressman like Seth Moulton (D-Mass), a former Marine himself, has to publicly shame these vultures into stopping their “death markets,” you know something is deeply wrong. He rightly called it “war profiteering” and demanded Congressional action.
Insider Trading: Swamp Creatures Strike Again
It gets worse. Anonymous users on these platforms made suspiciously accurate bets on events like the timing of a ceasefire with Iran and the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. How did they know? Were they tipped off by someone with access to classified information?
Todd Young, an Indiana Republican and fellow Marine, along with Democrat Elissa Slotkin, are pushing legislation to stop federal employees from using inside information to place bets. Rahm Emanuel even wants a cut of this action to fund “science and health research.” California’s Gavin Newsom also made an executive order to curb this behavior. The White House has even warned staff against insider trading. It’s clear these “prediction markets” are fertile ground for corruption, and the swamp is already knee-deep in it.
CFTC: Toothless Watchdog or Willing Accomplice?
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) is supposed to regulate these markets, but critics like Dennis Kelleher from Better Markets, say they are ill-equipped. With only one member currently on the board, how can they possibly police this mess? Some people claim that Michael Selig‘s lack of leadership experience and past representation of crypto clients make him unfit to lead this oversight. The CFTC is even suing states trying to regulate prediction markets, trying to assert itself as the sole regulator!
The Biden Administration deserves blame for creating a regulatory environment that pushes companies overseas to avoid scrutiny, according to Selig. Is this just incompetence, or is something more sinister at play?
Where do we draw the line? When do we say enough is enough? Are we really going to let these vultures gamble with the lives of our heroes and the security of our nation?
