{"id":8480,"date":"2026-03-24T09:44:29","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T13:44:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/?p=8480"},"modified":"2026-03-24T09:44:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T13:44:31","slug":"bet-on-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dahlman.online\/index.php\/2026\/03\/24\/bet-on-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Bet on It"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Keeping Up<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m sixty-nine years old .\u00a0\u00a0But I\u2019m doing my best to keep up with our \u201cmodern world\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m pretty fluent on my computer, and even on the IPhone.\u00a0\u00a0I can set up secure linked networks in our home, and even find programs on the streaming channels.\u00a0\u00a0And, while texting isn\u2019t my favorite form of communication (I\u2019m still a one-fingered typer), I can handle it for short conversations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I don\u2019t like to FaceTime on a regular basis.\u00a0\u00a0Part of that is I don\u2019t won\u2019t to worry how I look for a phone call. But, \u201cto get real\u201d,\u00a0\u00a0when I\u2019m talking on the phone I\u2019m often doing something else as well.\u00a0\u00a0I want to be hands-free, to do housework, or drive, or pick up dog poop in the backyard.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I don\u2019t have a \u201csmart watch\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0I wore a regular watch for my entire professional life, but one of the \u201cdeals\u201d I made myself on retirement was that I didn\u2019t need one anymore.\u00a0\u00a0I find smart watches intrusive, at dinner and during conversation.\u00a0\u00a0It feels like whatever is happening on your wrist is absolutely more important than the face-to-face conversation with me.\u00a0\u00a0Besides, even with large font type, I need my reading glasses to read texts.\u00a0\u00a0Messages on a watch would doom me to permanent visual assistance.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Casino in Your Pocket<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

And there are a couple of areas of the 21st<\/sup>\u00a0Century that I have intentionally avoided.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m not a video gamer.\u00a0\u00a0Pong<\/em>, the first video game, came out when I was eighteen years old.\u00a0\u00a0I never got hooked on Mario<\/em> or Halo<\/em>, or Grand Theft Auto<\/em>.\u00a0\u00a0First, I never developed the thumb muscle memory of\u00a0\u00a0controller to screen.\u00a0\u00a0But second, I saw those games as great \u201ctime suckers\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0I had (still often have) a busy life.\u00a0\u00a0A couple of hours of video games daily would crimp my schedule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And another area of \u201cmodern life\u201d that I\u2019ve avoided is on-line gambling.\u00a0\u00a0I\u2019m a man who grew up\u00a0\u00a0in the era of private poker games and \u201cbookies\u201d on the phone.\u00a0\u00a0The openness and availability of gambling\u00a0\u00a0today is intense (to say the least).\u00a0\u00a0I enjoy going to the Casino (a slots guy) and I\u2019ve bet on the \u201cponies\u201d and even the \u201cdogs\u201d (don\u2019t tell my Rescue friends).\u00a0\u00a0But the fact that the poker game, the Casino, the ponies or the dogs, and any sports bets; in fact, all the betting you can stand is right there, in your pocket, is concerning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Proposition Betting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You don\u2019t just bet the game, winner or loser.\u00a0\u00a0You bet whether Joe Burrow will throw more touchdowns than interceptions.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Money\u2019s down on Chase gaining more than 100 yards on receptions, or whether the Bengals defense actually get a sack in the game.\u00a0\u00a0Every aspect of athletic performance is subject to a wager.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s called a \u201cplayer prop bet\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0Of course that\u2019s a lot of temptation, sitting in the recliner, watching the game.\u00a0\u00a0Online gambling, the \u201csports betting\u201d establishment in your pocket, should be a big concern.\u00a0\u00a0After all, it\u2019s not just old men, it\u2019s teenagers and even pre-teens.\u00a0\u00a0They all have access to this designer addiction behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One concern is that so much money can ride on a single action.\u00a0\u00a0Burrow throws a touchdown pass, millions win.\u00a0\u00a0Burrow get sacked, millions more win.\u00a0\u00a0Even though professional football, basketball, and baseball athletes make a lot of money, there still must be the temptation to bet on a \u201csure thing\u201d, your own performance.\u00a0\u00a0It used to be a \u201cteam event\u201d to alter a game for gambling purposes (see the\u00a0Chicago Black Sox\u00a0<\/a>of 1919).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Now, one player can gamble on his or her individual performance.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s something they have personal control over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prediction Gambling<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There also was a line between betting \u201cthe ponies\u201d or betting on life.\u00a0\u00a0But that line is now, to use a recent popular term, \u201cobliterated\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0There\u2019s a newer form of gambling, just\u00a0\u00a0now catching on.\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s called \u201cprediction gambling\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Now, I can pick up my phone (not to talk, to type), and place a bet on whether the US will bomb energy infrastructure in Iran, or not; or whether the Marine Expeditionary Force from Okinawa will end up controlling Kharg Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So here\u2019s the politics.\u00a0\u00a0President Trump is notorious for trying to influence the Stock Market.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t like the closing numbers last week, so he announced over the weekend that there were negotiations open with the Iranians.\u00a0\u00a0True, False, we don\u2019t know.\u00a0\u00a0What we do know is that the Stock Market went up because of Trump\u2019s announcement come Monday. (Dow Jones closed at 45,500 on Friday, opened a thousand points higher on Monday \u2013\u00a0CNBC<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IYKYK  (if you know, you know)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

And you can bet on it.\u00a0\u00a0Or any other actions of the government.\u00a0\u00a0Did Trump throw a touchdown, or Hakeem Jeffries get a sack?\u00a0\u00a0It\u2019s all on your phone.\u00a0\u00a0The biggest \u201cplayer\u201d in the Prediction Betting field is a company called\u00a0Kalshi.<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0Here\u2019s what on the menu today:<\/p>\n\n\n\n