[worik]

And another thing... What is the harm of malfunctioning insider dominated prediction markets, other than those hedging possibilities evaporating?

I am not taking a position, I am wondering.

When they started they were an academic curiosity and experiment. Now they are becoming a social phenomenon are they more harmful than, say, stamp collecting?

"Fools and their money" is OK so long as the fools are truly volunteering, surely?

[vkou]

They create another financial incentive for insiders to make decisions focused solely on personal profit, rather than good stewardship of whatever they are in charge of.

I don't give a shit about the addicts losing their money on those markets, I don't want bad decisions to be made that affect me, when the main incentive for making them is fleecing the addicts of their money.

They are just bribery with extra steps.