Short Odds for Ignorance - New York Times Op/Ed

Written by Robert Hahn and Paul Tetlock, my only complaint is that they don't go far enough.

The bigger economic story is how this act, by effectively prohibiting Internet betting, could unintentionally slow the emergence of new tools that have the potential to improve the productivity of the private sector and the government. Sadly, this is an aspect of the measure that both its supporters and its opponents seem to have overlooked.
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These markets work for several reasons: first, almost anyone can participate; second, people think hard when they have to back up their predictions with money — buy the right presidential contract and you win, buy the wrong one and you lose; third, the profit motive encourages people to look for better information.