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Betfair responds to critics over its delay in settling Wh2020 bets – politicalbetting.com

SystemSystem Posts: 11,017
edited November 2020 in General
Betfair responds to critics over its delay in settling Wh2020 bets – politicalbetting.com

An update on the US Next President Exchange market.https://t.co/6M0EYzs9if

Read the full story here

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    Those US lawyers are Lionel Hutz and Rudi right?
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    I have no idea what BF are thinking with this. It changes the rules imho. No longer "projected".
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    I have no idea what BF are thinking with this. It changes the rules imho. No longer "projected".

    I suspect they meant, though worded it stupidly, the expected number of electoral college votes based on the states' nominations of electors. They did not intend to convey, though most people understood, projected based on media calls. The former is, at the boundary, justiciable. The latter is not.
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    QuincelQuincel Posts: 3,949
    Betfair simply need to explain what the phrase 'projected EC votes' means, and how it can mean something other than 'Winner under state certified results'.
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    Those arent the whole rules though. Is there ambiguity as to who has won when a majority of Republicans say its Trump? Probably, then at that point the following becomes an option to Betfair.

    "If there is any material change to the established role or any ambiguity as to who occupies the position, then Betfair may determine, using its reasonable discretion, how to settle the market based on all the information available to it at the relevant time. Betfair reserves the right to wait for further official announcements before the market is settled."

    I agree they made a mistake by not settling earlier but they are not breaking the whole market information box read as a whole.
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    QuincelQuincel Posts: 3,949

    Those US lawyers are Lionel Hutz and Rudi right?

    "If there's one thing the world needs, it's more lawyers."
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?
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    Anyone know a good, knowledgable place to follow the current state of the legal manoeuvres by Trump etc? Some of the judgements have been very entertaining to read.
    PB might be the correct answer I suppose...
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    I'm no Rudy Giuliani but does this new Betfair statement mean they might settle on Kamala Harris in the extremely unlikely event Biden withdraws in the next 17 days?
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    28 off the over.
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    I think it is fair to say that wasn’t South Africa’s best over,
  • Options
    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
  • Options
    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186

    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
    I thought they elected under FPTP?
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    I'm no Rudy Giuliani but does this new Betfair statement mean they might settle on Kamala Harris in the extremely unlikely event Biden withdraws in the next 17 days?

    No, not even death will allow that happen, and their rules/terms cover deaths.
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    QuincelQuincel Posts: 3,949

    Those arent the whole rules though. Is there ambiguity as to who has won when a majority of Republicans say its Trump? Probably, then at that point the following becomes an option to Betfair.

    "If there is any material change to the established role or any ambiguity as to who occupies the position, then Betfair may determine, using its reasonable discretion, how to settle the market based on all the information available to it at the relevant time. Betfair reserves the right to wait for further official announcements before the market is settled."

    I agree they made a mistake by not settling earlier but they are not breaking the whole market information box read as a whole.

    I think you are taking a very broad interpretation of the phrase 'any ambiguity' which is unfair to users of the site. The fact that someone says a result in unclear doesn't make it unclear. The winner of an election is a legal question based on certified results etc, not (ironically) a popularity contest.
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    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
    I thought they elected under FPTP?
    Perhaps I am missing the quip, but its public relations...
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    Oops, Mr Morgan. That was not smart.

    South Africa go favourites again.
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    ydoethur said:

    I think it is fair to say that wasn’t South Africa’s best over,

    Probably South Africa's worst over since the final over of their semi final in 1992 (ok maybe 1999.)
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    SandyRentoolSandyRentool Posts: 20,603
    Doesn't the data from Wales confirm that answer?

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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186

    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
    I thought they elected under FPTP?
    Perhaps I am missing the quip, but its public relations...
    PR can also stand for proportional representation.
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    DavidLDavidL Posts: 51,234
    ydoethur said:

    Oops, Mr Morgan. That was not smart.

    South Africa go favourites again.

    I would say evens. One disastrous over has got England back in this.
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    Fancy finding out how much of a fascist you are? Then take this test.

    https://www.idrlabs.com/fascist-elements/test.php

    I wonder what Eric Clapton would get?
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    Andrew Bridgen: "We've basically been chained to the fate of Leicester even though my seat doesn't even border Leicester,"

    "There's no hope for my constituents – even if we get our rate down to nothing, we'll still be tied to Leicester. Let those who have tiers shed them."

    Telegraph.
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    kle4kle4 Posts: 91,721
    Quincel said:

    Betfair simply need to explain what the phrase 'projected EC votes' means, and how it can mean something other than 'Winner under state certified results'.

    I'm sure they can be suitably creative. I'm sure I recall US government lawyers redefining 'imminent threat' to not mean a threat must be imminent, so Betfair can probably find a way.
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    A lot of prices have shortened since this morning. Note the anomaly that Dems > Biden. Current Betfair prices:-

    Biden 1.04
    Democrats 1.05
    Biden PV 1.03
    Biden PV 49-51.9% 1.05
    Trump PV 46-48.9% 1.05
    Trump ECV 210-239 1.08
    Biden ECV 300-329 1.08
    Biden ECV Hcap -48.5 1.04
    Biden ECV Hcap -63.5 1.05
    Trump ECV Hcap +81.5 1.02

    AZ Dem 1.05
    GA Dem 1.05
    MI Dem 1.05
    NV Dem 1.03
    PA Dem 1.05
    WI Dem 1.05

    Trump to leave before end of term NO 1.09
    Trump exit date 2021 1.07
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    Quincel said:

    Those arent the whole rules though. Is there ambiguity as to who has won when a majority of Republicans say its Trump? Probably, then at that point the following becomes an option to Betfair.

    "If there is any material change to the established role or any ambiguity as to who occupies the position, then Betfair may determine, using its reasonable discretion, how to settle the market based on all the information available to it at the relevant time. Betfair reserves the right to wait for further official announcements before the market is settled."

    I agree they made a mistake by not settling earlier but they are not breaking the whole market information box read as a whole.

    I think you are taking a very broad interpretation of the phrase 'any ambiguity' which is unfair to users of the site. The fact that someone says a result in unclear doesn't make it unclear. The winner of an election is a legal question based on certified results etc, not (ironically) a popularity contest.
    If it was down to me I would probably have settled either when the networks all declared Biden president elect or when enough Biden states were certified.

    Do Betfair have a right to take a very broad interpretation? Yes they do, the rule is their reasonable discretion, they are not bound by the most literal or common interpretation of wording given that clause.
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    edited November 2020

    ydoethur said:

    I think it is fair to say that wasn’t South Africa’s best over,

    Probably South Africa's worst over since the final over of their semi final in 1992 (ok maybe 1999.)
    Why did you mention that? We nearly saw a re-enactment of Donald’s famous achievement of running himself out at both ends when the scores were tied.
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    I'm no Rudy Giuliani but does this new Betfair statement mean they might settle on Kamala Harris in the extremely unlikely event Biden withdraws in the next 17 days?

    No, not even death will allow that happen, and their rules/terms cover deaths.
    Thanks. That is what I thought/hoped. Though at the moment, the generic Democrat is a tick bigger than Biden anyway.
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    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
    I thought they elected under FPTP?
    Perhaps I am missing the quip, but its public relations...
    PR can also stand for proportional representation.
    I am aware, just getting really confused as to why you think Betfair hired Cummings to do their proportional representation rather than public relations....
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    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    I think it is fair to say that wasn’t South Africa’s best over,

    Probably South Africa's worst over since the final over of their semi final in 1992 (ok maybe 1999.)
    Why did you mention that? We nearly saw a re-enactment of Donald’s famous achievement of running himself out at both ends when the scores were tied.
    I like reminding South Africans that their cricket team is a team of chokers.
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    StockyStocky Posts: 9,718
    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186

    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    ydoethur said:

    Have they hired Dominic Cummings to do their PR?

    They are more concerned with their PR with politicians in state legislatures in the US than all this forum put together.
    I thought they elected under FPTP?
    Perhaps I am missing the quip, but its public relations...
    PR can also stand for proportional representation.
    I am aware, just getting really confused as to why you think Betfair hired Cummings to do their proportional representation rather than public relations....
    You referred to PR with politicians in state legislatures. I was pointing out that’s not how state legislatures are elected.

    It was an attempt at an awesome pun that has clearly worked about as well as Ben Stokes’ lofted drive.
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    DavidLDavidL Posts: 51,234
    Shot
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    Stocky said:

    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?

    I thought betting on politics was illegal in US?
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    DavidLDavidL Posts: 51,234
    If it wasn’t for that Tom Curran over this would be over. It nearly is now.
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    FrankBoothFrankBooth Posts: 9,046
    Good interview from Andrew Neil with Ivan Rogers. If what he is saying is anything like true it's no wonder he quit as the government's man in Brussels.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKkAI_e2LiI

    Ministers in 2016 really believed that a deal could be negotiated in weeks (days!) because of how closely aligned we were. Rather missing the point that since we were leaving we weren't likely to remain aligned for very much longer - indeed you might have thought that's why we were leaving in the first place.

    He also states that he assumed we would be leaving the single market and customs union - wasn't that the logic of wanting to end free movement/budgetary contributions and strike our own trade deals? They aren't the words of someone who was committed to BINO.
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    DavidL said:

    Shot

    I think it’s called ‘making a fucking point.’

    What an innings.

    Put him back to open.
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    PA Court of Appeals:

    “Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here.”
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    Jonny Bairstow gets treated badly by England but he usually delivers.
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    Just put on cricket after reading earlier it was all over for England to see Bairstow hit a 6 to win it
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    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKkAI_e2LiI
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186

    Just put on cricket after reading earlier it was all over for England to see Bairstow hit a 6 to win it

    Thank you for winning that one for us Big G, you are a legend.
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    DavidLDavidL Posts: 51,234
    ydoethur said:

    DavidL said:

    Shot

    I think it’s called ‘making a fucking point.’

    What an innings.

    Put him back to open.
    Agree. Roy maybe has one more chance at best.
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    turbotubbsturbotubbs Posts: 15,172
    ydoethur said:

    DavidL said:

    Shot

    I think it’s called ‘making a fucking point.’

    What an innings.

    Put him back to open.
    After scoring 85 at four? Leave him there, and hope no one notices Roy can’t play spin...
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    StockyStocky Posts: 9,718

    Stocky said:

    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?

    I thought betting on politics was illegal in US?
    It is - though I understand that they can sort of bet on a site called PredictIt.

    I`m not sure what BF are doing speaking to US lawyers. Their holding company has interests in the states, but nothing to do with BF as far as I know. In any case, the legal position between UK punters and BF has nothing to do with US legal opinion. WTF.
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    ydoethur said:

    DavidL said:

    Shot

    I think it’s called ‘making a fucking point.’

    What an innings.

    Put him back to open.
    After scoring 85 at four? Leave him there, and hope no one notices Roy can’t play spin...
    With a world t20 in India next year?
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    Quincel said:

    Those arent the whole rules though. Is there ambiguity as to who has won when a majority of Republicans say its Trump? Probably, then at that point the following becomes an option to Betfair.

    "If there is any material change to the established role or any ambiguity as to who occupies the position, then Betfair may determine, using its reasonable discretion, how to settle the market based on all the information available to it at the relevant time. Betfair reserves the right to wait for further official announcements before the market is settled."

    I agree they made a mistake by not settling earlier but they are not breaking the whole market information box read as a whole.

    I think you are taking a very broad interpretation of the phrase 'any ambiguity' which is unfair to users of the site. The fact that someone says a result in unclear doesn't make it unclear. The winner of an election is a legal question based on certified results etc, not (ironically) a popularity contest.
    For as long as legal challenges are before the courts it is technically unclear.

    We may believe there is no chance the courts will overturn the count and make Trump the projected winner but if they do then Trump would have won.
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186

    ydoethur said:

    DavidL said:

    Shot

    I think it’s called ‘making a fucking point.’

    What an innings.

    Put him back to open.
    After scoring 85 at four? Leave him there, and hope no one notices Roy can’t play spin...
    FTFY :smile:

    OK, that’s a bit harsh. But Roy has been woefully out of sorts for ages, and given there are plenty of options available it’s daft to keep playing him when Buttler and Bairstow together should every bowler in world petitioning for their kit to include brown trousers.
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    Stocky said:

    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?

    Who is we? Are you betfair? They are not beholden but are entitled to seek from anyone they like, just as you are. Their corporate group, Flutter, is very active in the US and looking for new licenses and favourable legislation to be implemented in different states so will be a heavy user of US lawyers.
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    ThomasNasheThomasNashe Posts: 4,970
    edited November 2020
    Meanwhile, I’ve just watched Argentina 2 England 1 on the BBC. My main takeaway was that Jimmy Hill was a rather better pundit than I recall.

    Barry Davies as bad as I thought he was, though.
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    MrEdMrEd Posts: 5,578
    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
  • Options
    FoxyFoxy Posts: 44,592

    Andrew Bridgen: "We've basically been chained to the fate of Leicester even though my seat doesn't even border Leicester,"

    "There's no hope for my constituents – even if we get our rate down to nothing, we'll still be tied to Leicester. Let those who have tiers shed them."

    Telegraph.

    NW Leics does have a rate above the English average:
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    MrEdMrEd Posts: 5,578
    Away from the US, how long before we get the "avoid breathing in case you get Covid" advice?

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55107473
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    GaussianGaussian Posts: 793
    Foxy said:

    Andrew Bridgen: "We've basically been chained to the fate of Leicester even though my seat doesn't even border Leicester,"

    "There's no hope for my constituents – even if we get our rate down to nothing, we'll still be tied to Leicester. Let those who have tiers shed them."

    Telegraph.

    NW Leics does have a rate above the English average:
    Yikes, 300. What the hell is he complaining about?
  • Options
    williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 48,055
    edited November 2020

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
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    I've been saying Betfair won't pay out until the 14th December for weeks.

    *buffs shoes*
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    FoxyFoxy Posts: 44,592
    Gaussian said:

    Foxy said:

    Andrew Bridgen: "We've basically been chained to the fate of Leicester even though my seat doesn't even border Leicester,"

    "There's no hope for my constituents – even if we get our rate down to nothing, we'll still be tied to Leicester. Let those who have tiers shed them."

    Telegraph.

    NW Leics does have a rate above the English average:
    Yikes, 300. What the hell is he complaining about?
    NWLeics does have quite a bit of mortality too. Bridgen is just a twat.



  • Options
    williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 48,055

    I've been saying Betfair won't pay out until the 14th December for weeks.

    *buffs shoes*

    Is there a market on when they will pay out?
  • Options
    Gaussian said:

    Foxy said:

    Andrew Bridgen: "We've basically been chained to the fate of Leicester even though my seat doesn't even border Leicester,"

    "There's no hope for my constituents – even if we get our rate down to nothing, we'll still be tied to Leicester. Let those who have tiers shed them."

    Telegraph.

    NW Leics does have a rate above the English average:
    Yikes, 300. What the hell is he complaining about?
    Trouble is that a lot of MPs now understand their only role as "standing up for Yourtown in Westminster". Which is part of an MP's job, but not the only part. Sometimes the bigger picture matters. What would the MP for Eyam be saying?

    We vote for populist ninnies (OK, Romford votes for a populist ninny), so people who want to become MPs become more populist and ninny-like to get elected. It's a viscous circle.
  • Options
    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
  • Options
    Quincel said:

    Betfair simply need to explain what the phrase 'projected EC votes' means, and how it can mean something other than 'Winner under state certified results'.

    It doesn't and it can't but they're switching it from projected to actual because of Trump's shenanigans.

    And, quietly, because they're making a mint from it.
  • Options
    NigelbNigelb Posts: 62,541
    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    Sure.
    And there remains evidence for Russian interference.

    The Democrats nonetheless accepted they’d lost the election. Had the impeachment succeeded, Pence would still have been president.
  • Options

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
    Yes. I've got his book somewhere after it was recommended on this very pb. 9 Lessons to Brexit. The Kindle edition is down to 99p on Amazon.
  • Options
    Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 26,569
    edited November 2020
    O/T

    Madonna at number one on BBC4 / Top of the Pops with Vogue. It's 12th April 1990.
  • Options
    Just caught this. It's insane. They have changed the rules.

    More later. Gotta eat.
  • Options

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
    He didn't have the people skills.
  • Options
    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    We’ve got four weeks. Unless it’s’coming hours’ that’s a polite way of saying ‘it’s no deal and we’re both trying to find excuses to blame the other side for it.’
  • Options
    JACK_WJACK_W Posts: 651
    According to the government those in Tier 2 must leave the pub or restaurant immediately they finish their meal.

    No loitering for coffee or a postprandial brandy, unless you want the rozzers to feel your collar. The clink of your households synchronised cutlery on the fine porcelain plates must herald a dash for the door. :neutral:

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55109932
  • Options
    GaussianGaussian Posts: 793
    edited November 2020

    Quincel said:

    Betfair simply need to explain what the phrase 'projected EC votes' means, and how it can mean something other than 'Winner under state certified results'.

    It doesn't and it can't but they're switching it from projected to actual because of Trump's shenanigans.

    And, quietly, because they're making a mint from it.
    Yet they're still saying that "‘faithless elector’ will have no effect on the settlement of this market".
  • Options
    kle4kle4 Posts: 91,721
    ydoethur said:

    We’ve got four weeks. Unless it’s’coming hours’ that’s a polite way of saying ‘it’s no deal and we’re both trying to find excuses to blame the other side for it.’
    I don't see how that makes any sense. If that report is about blaming the other side they'd be like all the other statements saying the the other side needs to move more and it's holding up a deal, not saying things can be agreed.
  • Options
    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,917
    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880
  • Options
    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    ydoethur said:

    We’ve got four weeks. Unless it’s’coming hours’ that’s a polite way of saying ‘it’s no deal and we’re both trying to find excuses to blame the other side for it.’
    We have 4 weeks until we leave the single market and customs union, a trade deal could still be done any time after even with a no deal interlude
  • Options
    kinabalukinabalu Posts: 39,187

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
    There is one more key difference. There was Russian interference in the 16 election. There was not Dem fraud in the 20 election.
  • Options
    GaussianGaussian Posts: 793
    ydoethur said:

    We’ve got four weeks. Unless it’s’coming hours’ that’s a polite way of saying ‘it’s no deal and we’re both trying to find excuses to blame the other side for it.’
    It does sound rather like working out something for NI given No Deal.
  • Options
    kle4kle4 Posts: 91,721
    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    It's just plan madness
    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391265900523520

    It's 'breathtaking' corruption, yet they've been unable to prove a damn thing and most of the lawsuits haven't even alleged anything so strong.
  • Options
    Gaussian said:

    Quincel said:

    Betfair simply need to explain what the phrase 'projected EC votes' means, and how it can mean something other than 'Winner under state certified results'.

    It doesn't and it can't but they're switching it from projected to actual because of Trump's shenanigans.

    And, quietly, because they're making a mint from it.
    Yet they're still saying that "‘faithless elector’ will have no effect on the settlement of this market".
    Absolutely.

    Hypothetically if Trump were to win court cases striking out enough "illegal" Biden votes then Trump would become the certified winner of those states. Trump would become the projected winner. Under Betfair's rules Trump would become the winner, before the Electoral College votes and without faithless electors.
  • Options
    Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,412

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
    You are right to say there's no equivalence in the magnitude of them two claims - one is indeed grumbling and one is actively undermining the result.

    However, there is also no equivalence in the substance of what is being claimed. Claim 1 is that social media influence was brought to bear by a foreign power, and this influenced votes unfairly. Firstly, it's extremely difficult to prove, and especially that someone's entire voting decision was due to this social media influence - when people are exposed to a huge panoply of information and argument during an election campaign. Secondly, the time to expose it was before the election - it's entirely impossible to seek to do so afterwards.

    Claim 2 is that votes were made fraudulently for one of the sides. That is totally different, that claim can be dismissed or verified by a number of means, and the time to expose it is necessarily after the election - as it was entirely impossible to do it before the votes had been cast.

    So I don't see that either side has done something more than the other would not have done in its place.
  • Options
    FoxyFoxy Posts: 44,592

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
    He didn't have the people skills.
    Thats right, he told people the truth about the complexity of Brexit negotiations and they flipped their wigs. They couldn't handle the truth.

  • Options
    dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,953
    Stocky said:

    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?

    With a billion dollars staked, one would have thought the time to consult lawyers might have been before the rules were drawn up not weeks after the vote...
  • Options
    Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,412
    I still don't see the outrage. The result is being actively contested with lawsuits pending. If they paid out on Biden and the result were to be overturned, would they then also have to pay out on Trump? They are doing the only thing that they possibly can do - hold out until the result is confirmed. I'm mystified as to what anyone thinks they should have done differently.
  • Options
    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,917
    kle4 said:

    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    It's just plan madness
    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391265900523520

    It's 'breathtaking' corruption, yet they've been unable to prove a damn thing and most of the lawsuits haven't even alleged anything so strong.
    Trump's plans to bring back firing squads isn't out of place. Never seen a more treasonous bunch than some of the goons in the GOP right now.
  • Options
    HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 116,983
    edited November 2020
    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    Pennsylvania would still not be enough though, Trump also needs two of Michigan and Wisconsin, Arizona and Georgia when the EC meets next month
  • Options

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
    I am a total Stan for Sir Ivan Rogers. Nobody knows more about Brexit and UK-EU relations than he does. The fact that the government couldn't handle him telling them the truth and forced him out was an early sign of the dog's breakfast ahead.
  • Options
    Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,412
    kinabalu said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
    There is one more key difference. There was Russian interference in the 16 election. There was not Dem fraud in the 20 election.
    But if there was no Dem fraud (a claim you can't really substantiate - there was probably a bit of marginal fraud on both sides I'd imagine - it's just whether it swung it), then the processes demanded by those on the Republican side (checking signatures etc.) can only be a good thing, and strengthen the legitimacy of the result and faith in US democracy.
  • Options
    FoxyFoxy Posts: 44,592
    JACK_W said:

    According to the government those in Tier 2 must leave the pub or restaurant immediately they finish their meal.

    No loitering for coffee or a postprandial brandy, unless you want the rozzers to feel your collar. The clink of your households synchronised cutlery on the fine porcelain plates must herald a dash for the door. :neutral:

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55109932

    Lucky bastards, in my village (Tier 3) we have eat and drink in the bus shelter outside the pub on bleak rainy winter nights.

    It takes me back to my youth...
  • Options
    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,917

    I still don't see the outrage. The result is being actively contested with lawsuits pending. If they paid out on Biden and the result were to be overturned, would they then also have to pay out on Trump? They are doing the only thing that they possibly can do - hold out until the result is confirmed. I'm mystified as to what anyone thinks they should have done differently.

    The result can only be overturned by clearly corrupt GOP legislatures (I don't actually think it's possible, but if it was this would be the only way).
    It'd be as if Man City won the FA Cup 3-0 against Chelsea but the trophy was presented to Chelsea heading up the steps. ANd then Chelsea was paid out on.
  • Options
    Andy_JSAndy_JS Posts: 26,569
    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    I'm not sure the civil war option is a good idea.
  • Options

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
    You are right to say there's no equivalence in the magnitude of them two claims - one is indeed grumbling and one is actively undermining the result.

    However, there is also no equivalence in the substance of what is being claimed. Claim 1 is that social media influence was brought to bear by a foreign power, and this influenced votes unfairly. Firstly, it's extremely difficult to prove, and especially that someone's entire voting decision was due to this social media influence - when people are exposed to a huge panoply of information and argument during an election campaign. Secondly, the time to expose it was before the election - it's entirely impossible to seek to do so afterwards.

    Claim 2 is that votes were made fraudulently for one of the sides. That is totally different, that claim can be dismissed or verified by a number of means, and the time to expose it is necessarily after the election - as it was entirely impossible to do it before the votes had been cast.

    So I don't see that either side has done something more than the other would not have done in its place.

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    MrEd said:

    rcs1000 said:

    Scott_xP said:
    Nothing barking about it, manipulative and deceitful absolutely but he is not mad, just bad.
    The damage to US democracy being done by one man - Donald J Trump - is extraordinary and scary.

    I fervently hope - although I'm not optimistic - that the incoming administration is able to find a bipartisan way to increase trust in elections and the democratic process. Because right now, Republicans see working with Democrats as electoral suicide. And therefore would rather cry foul from the sidelines.
    I'm sorry @rcs1000 but US democracy has been damaged from 2016 when we had the whole "the election was stolen" narrative then but from the other side. Two impeachment trials later, the constant claims that Trump was Putin's man in the White House, the claims his Presidency was illegitimate etc etc. Just because many of those making the claims had degrees from the Ivy League and spoke in quiet and methodical tones doesn't mean they weren't dangerous and eroded democratic trust.

    Hillary Clinton conceded that she had lost the US Presidential election.

    While there was whingeing about whether Russia had attempted to sow division in the US (which, by the way, they also do by amplifyng BLM stuff too, so this is hardly one way), there was no attempt to claim by the candidate that the votes cast were invalid.

    There is no equivalence here, and your attempt to claim it is staggering.
    Just because you claim something is staggering doesn't mean it is.

    Right from the get go, it was suggested Russia got Trump elected and that was a line of enquiry pursued throughout the years, even when the evidence was increasingly questioned. There are plenty more where these came from:

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/01/how-russia-helped-to-swing-the-election-for-trump
    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/09/20/us/politics/russia-interference-election-trump-clinton.html
    https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/wisconsin-michigan-pennsylvania-election-hillary-clinton-hacked-manipulated-donald-trump-swing-states-scientists-lawyers-a7433091.html
    https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/this-election-is-being-rigged-but-not-by-hillary-clinton-110025/

    You seem to have the view that just because Hillary Clinton conceded meant she accepted the result and didn't claim the election was stolen. That is rot. She clearly was saying her victory was "stolen" in 2019.

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2019/05/06/hillary-clinton-warns-2020-democratic-candidates-stolen-election/1116477001/

    Just accept it - the Democrats were banging on about a stolen election for 4 years.
    As with most Trumpism there is just enough truth to make it dangerous.

    Did Clinton moan and call it stolen? Yes
    Did she refuse to concede or the Democrats refuse to handover power in normal timescales? No
    Did they make a concerted attempt to overturn the electoral vote and leave the Presidency to party hacks? No

    There is no equivalence, if Trump was just saying he won and left it at that, it would be a minor grumble, it is the attack on voting as the final decider of the presidency that is the difference. You were telling us this was Trump's plan on election night!
    You are right to say there's no equivalence in the magnitude of them two claims - one is indeed grumbling and one is actively undermining the result.

    However, there is also no equivalence in the substance of what is being claimed. Claim 1 is that social media influence was brought to bear by a foreign power, and this influenced votes unfairly. Firstly, it's extremely difficult to prove, and especially that someone's entire voting decision was due to this social media influence - when people are exposed to a huge panoply of information and argument during an election campaign. Secondly, the time to expose it was before the election - it's entirely impossible to seek to do so afterwards.

    Claim 2 is that votes were made fraudulently for one of the sides. That is totally different, that claim can be dismissed or verified by a number of means, and the time to expose it is necessarily after the election - as it was entirely impossible to do it before the votes had been cast.

    So I don't see that either side has done something more than the other would not have done in its place.
    If there was a serious claim to be made, it could be resolved in court and that would be fine (aside from the SC having had an appointment rushed through specifically for the election with no recusal). That is not what is egregious, it is the proposed replacement of the voters intentions by party hacks. That is just cheating pure and simple. Threats and attempts of cheating should be viewed as seriously as successful cheating.
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    Luckyguy1983Luckyguy1983 Posts: 25,412
    Pulpstar said:

    I still don't see the outrage. The result is being actively contested with lawsuits pending. If they paid out on Biden and the result were to be overturned, would they then also have to pay out on Trump? They are doing the only thing that they possibly can do - hold out until the result is confirmed. I'm mystified as to what anyone thinks they should have done differently.

    The result can only be overturned by clearly corrupt GOP legislatures (I don't actually think it's possible, but if it was this would be the only way).
    It'd be as if Man City won the FA Cup 3-0 against Chelsea but the trophy was presented to Chelsea heading up the steps. ANd then Chelsea was paid out on.
    I don't know where you're getting that idea from. Do you disagree with verifying the signatures on the ballots, and getting rid of those without them? Do you disagree with finding those voters who have voted in two States (one they left and one they moved to), or filed absentee ballots and then voted on the day as well, and eliminating them from the totals? All these seem to me entirely fair and above board, as long as the process is observed by both sides.
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    I've been saying Betfair won't pay out until the 14th December for weeks.

    *buffs shoes*

    Is there a market on when they will pay out?
    That's bragging rights on here, I think.
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    ydoethurydoethur Posts: 67,186
    dixiedean said:

    Stocky said:

    "we have sought advice from leading U.S. lawyers to determine the appropriate time to settle the markets"

    Since when are we beholden to U.S. lawyers?

    With a billion dollars staked, one would have thought the time to consult lawyers might have been before the rules were drawn up not weeks after the vote...
    Are you referring to Betfair or the encumbrance of the White House?
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    FenmanFenman Posts: 1,047
    Andy_JS said:

    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    I'm not sure the civil war option is a good idea.
    Sounds like a very quick way to lose control at the next election.
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    williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 48,055
    Andy_JS said:

    Pulpstar said:

    The Pennsylvania statehouse is asking to be blown to smithereens if they go try and go through with this nonsense.

    https://twitter.com/adamseconomics/status/1332391264289914880

    I'm not sure the civil war option is a good idea.
    It's a virtual civil war. They are looking to take control of the CAPITAL.
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    Foxy said:

    Brexit -- Andrew Neil's interview with Sir Ivan Rogers yesterday has been uploaded as a separate video. 14 mins.

    Sir Ivan Rogers, the UK's permanent representative to the EU from 2013 to 2017, tells Andrew Neil that any Brexit deal will be shallow. He also says that their relationship could be characterised as '200 years of misreadings', and that David Cameron was forced to call a referendum after France and Germany tried to block a British veto.

    They didn't try to block a British veto; they succeeding in rendering the threat of a veto irrelevant by negotiating an intergovernmental Eurozone treaty instead of doing it across the whole EU.

    Incidentally, Ivan Rogers is not at all the arch-Remainer of legend. He just happened to have been talking sense about Brexit.
    He didn't have the people skills.
    Thats right, he told people the truth about the complexity of Brexit negotiations and they flipped their wigs. They couldn't handle the truth.

    No, he wasn't able to form close personal relationships with those that mattered and influence them accordingly.

    It's no good just saying you "tell truth to power". It's how you do it and when you do it, and to what degree, that matters.
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    dixiedeandixiedean Posts: 27,953

    Fancy finding out how much of a fascist you are? Then take this test.

    https://www.idrlabs.com/fascist-elements/test.php

    I wonder what Eric Clapton would get?

    A disappointing 18% Fascist here.

This discussion has been closed.