# Bricker's betting gambit **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [September 4, 2013, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992 "2013-09-04T13:41:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2013, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992/241 "2013-09-06T15:43:06Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Like I said before, if **Bricker** wants to count coup it’s no skin off my nose-it was the hijacking of conversations to work out the details about the bet that irked me. Yep, that sums up my take as well. I have no problem with the “betting gambit” (done it myself a number of times), but please take any discussions about the value of betting elsewhere. ---
**Author:** ![brazil84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8491ac/32.png) [@brazil84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brazil84)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2013, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992/242 "2013-09-06T15:52:55Z")
There’s a noticeable problem with people saying stuff for purposes of moral and intellectual preening, or to save face, even if deep down they don’t seriously believe (or don’t even understand) the position they are taking. Bet challenges do shine a light on this conduct. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2013, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992/243 "2013-09-06T15:56:45Z")
> [@brazil84](#): > > There’s a noticeable problem with people saying stuff for purposes of moral and intellectual preening, or to save face, even if deep down they don’t seriously believe (or don’t even understand) the position they are taking. > > Bet challenges do shine a light on this conduct. Do you do this in real life conversations very often-introduce betting to make people back up their statements? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2013, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992/244 "2013-09-06T16:09:24Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > As someone with some training in statistical analysis, I point out the error in this. “Any given discussion” means any random discussion, while the discussions you engage in are by definition self-selected. For your statement to have meaning, we should tally the results of you being dropped into a random sample of discussions, not only in GD, but in the Cafe, IMHO, GQ, etc. We’d have to rely on your honesty in venturing your opinion on the topic (i.e. not reading the thread and posting something deliberately contrary to the consensus just to provoke a “ten to one” reaction), but I guess it could be worked out. > > Or by "any given discussion: did you mean “any given discussion in which I have engaged” ? Considering _this_ discussion is about making people face (“forcing” them, as it were) the inaccuracies in their claims, I daresay this calls for clarification. How dare you? I talk about my feelings, and you introduce facts, and statistics, and stuff? That’s a deliberate attempt to minimize my feelings and unvalidate my worth as a person, and it’s probably classist too – not everyone can afford your fancy “training” in “statistical” “analysis.” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2013, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992/245 "2013-09-06T16:10:54Z")
Mercy-killing this thread. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brickers-betting-gambit/667992.md?page=12)