How Kalshi Infects the News • Hacker News Board

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#31

Post by xg15 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:41 PM UTC

baggachipz wrote: post #3

The unprecedented era of gambling on literally everything everywhere is an absolute cancer on society, made completely legal by absolute greed and degeneracy at the highest levels of government. I don't know how we put this genie back in the bottle (amongst many detrimental genies).

What I find almost as depressing is evidently the concerted push to normalize this practice.

We were all shocked by Polymarket, but meanwhile others just saw it as yet another emerging market - and now CNN is including it in news segments as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#32

Post by jorts » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:42 PM UTC

spike021 wrote: post #19

baggachipz wrote: post #3

The unprecedented era of gambling on literally everything everywhere is an absolute cancer on society, made completely legal by absolute greed and degeneracy at the highest levels of government. I don't know how we put this genie back in the bottle (amongst many detrimental genies).

Even something that should be as fun as collecting and trading cards (baseball, pokemon, etc.) revolves around "pull odds" for rare cards. There are people spending thousands of dollars monthly just to rip a desirable card they could flip for money that in most cases would never make up for how much they spent just buying packs and boxes of the product.

I was taking an Uber from Sonoma back to the Bay, and the driver was one of those people. He wouldn't stop talking about how he was spending thousands a month on rare cards, then reselling them, all the while losing money, his wife, etc.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#33

Post by rustystump » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:43 PM UTC

Pxtl wrote: post #6

It's amazing how naked it is that laws just don't apply to certain people. Kalshi et al are obviously gambling, and yet somehow all the laws about gambling have been politely forgotten by law enforcement.

Not defending Kalshi but stock market has been gambling lite for a while now. It is pretty wild how blatant it is now though.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#34

Post by chucksmash » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:44 PM UTC

Pxtl wrote: post #6

It's amazing how naked it is that laws just don't apply to certain people. Kalshi et al are obviously gambling, and yet somehow all the laws about gambling have been politely forgotten by law enforcement.

Here at least I believe the gambling laws have changed.

Most gas stations I go into now have "gaming" machines and there's always some soul sitting at them at any time of day.

I'm mostly on team let-people-do-what-they-want-even-if-it's-bad-for-them but it's disheartening to watch a dad sitting there totally sucked into it and just ignoring their kid in a stroller behind them.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#35

Post by xg15 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:45 PM UTC

rescripting wrote: post #29

hebleb wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may take awhile, but it ends by voting in political candidates that actually care about combatting greed and corruption again

There is a market for the gamblification of everything because there is no other widely accessible path for young people to build a future. A college degree is no longer a guaranteed path to a stable, well paying job. Building wealth through real estate is no longer viable. With no clear options the only visible path to building a modicum of wealth is timing the next big crypto rugpull, hitting a 5 leg parlay, rippin…

The irony being that gambling is about as far from "guaranteed" or "stable" as you can get.

But it does fit the ultralibertarian mindset best, I guess. The right to the pursuit of happiness, not to actually getting it.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#36

Post by Legend2440 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:46 PM UTC

btbuildem wrote: post #11

The "best" part of this is all the trading algos that scrape the news act on it. They 1) can't vet sources all that well and 2) absolutely cannot discern lies (eg, anything coming out of the official admin channels) from facts. You can see this for example in the absurd discrepancy between paper and physical crude prices.

>You can see this for example in the absurd discrepancy between paper and physical crude prices.

This was a temporary discrepancy that has gone away now that physical prices have fallen.

This means the future traders were right; the $150+ prices for a physical barrel of oil were a short-term situation that would resolve in a few months. It was correct for futures to be priced substantially lower.

What's absurd is internet commentators thinking the market is broken because they see something they don't immediately understand.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#37

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:46 PM UTC

xg15 wrote: post #31

baggachipz wrote: post #3

The unprecedented era of gambling on literally everything everywhere is an absolute cancer on society, made completely legal by absolute greed and degeneracy at the highest levels of government. I don't know how we put this genie back in the bottle (amongst many detrimental genies).

What I find almost as depressing is evidently the concerted push to normalize this practice. We were all shocked by Polymarket, but meanwhile others just saw it as yet another emerging market - and now CNN is including it in news segments as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

[deleted]

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#38

Post by aqme28 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:47 PM UTC

hebleb wrote: post #7

baggachipz wrote: post #3

The unprecedented era of gambling on literally everything everywhere is an absolute cancer on society, made completely legal by absolute greed and degeneracy at the highest levels of government. I don't know how we put this genie back in the bottle (amongst many detrimental genies).

It may take awhile, but it ends by voting in political candidates that actually care about combatting greed and corruption again

Unfortunately, the gambling industry is going to have a much wealthier and more powerful lobby than any effort to displace it.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#39

Post by kevinob11 » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:50 PM UTC

aqme28 wrote: post #38

hebleb wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It may take awhile, but it ends by voting in political candidates that actually care about combatting greed and corruption again

Unfortunately, the gambling industry is going to have a much wealthier and more powerful lobby than any effort to displace it.

How in the world do we get money out of politics? I want to so so so badly, but I have no idea how to successfully do it. I can't even figure it out as a thought exercise.

Re: How Kalshi Infects the News

#40

Post by nradov » Mon, Jul 06, 2026, 3:52 PM UTC

xg15 wrote: post #31

baggachipz wrote: post #3

The unprecedented era of gambling on literally everything everywhere is an absolute cancer on society, made completely legal by absolute greed and degeneracy at the highest levels of government. I don't know how we put this genie back in the bottle (amongst many detrimental genies).

What I find almost as depressing is evidently the concerted push to normalize this practice. We were all shocked by Polymarket, but meanwhile others just saw it as yet another emerging market - and now CNN is including it in news segments as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

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