Doohickie Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 http://www.democrata...rtion/18470801/ The end of the article: Vanek bet on football, not hockey, Bartlett said. Sources close to the investigation have confirmed this. So the HHOF is still in the cards? (I mean, if he could play well enough?) "If everybody who bet on football was going to be in trouble, we'd have 90 percent of North America in jail," Bartlett said. "Now, what Thomas bet was in a different stratosphere than most people, but that's all he did, he bet." I dunno, I don't bet on sports. I think the last time I put money on a sport was a random draw pool in the 1974 World Series. Vanek has stopped wagering, Bartlett said. Riiiiiiiight... "Believe me, he's done. This was a painful lesson. He's a good guy that got wrapped up in it. He's embarrassed by it." That's what addicts always say.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 The end of the article: Vanek bet on football, not hockey, Bartlett said. Sources close to the investigation have confirmed this. So the HHOF is still in the cards? (I mean, if he could play well enough?) "If everybody who bet on football was going to be in trouble, we'd have 90 percent of North America in jail," Bartlett said. "Now, what Thomas bet was in a different stratosphere than most people, but that's all he did, he bet." I dunno, I don't bet on sports. I think the last time I put money on a sport was a random draw pool in the 1974 World Series. Vanek has stopped wagering, Bartlett said. Riiiiiiiight... "Believe me, he's done. This was a painful lesson. He's a good guy that got wrapped up in it. He's embarrassed by it." That's what addicts always say.... Meh. We have betting threads right in this forum. His money. His business. Who cares. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doohickie Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Oh I know people bet... but I don't know that it's 90%. I don't think 90% of people even follow sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 (edited) Oh I know people bet... but I don't know that it's 90%. I don't think 90% of people even follow sports. Superbowl squares. nuff said. 90% might be hyperbole but betting on sports is ubiquitous. Edited November 5, 2014 by weave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoss Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 I'd say betting on sports among adults is probably around 10%. Certainly not 90%. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Meh. We have betting threads right in this forum. His money. His business. Who cares. It's also his wife and kids that will get threatened by the bookies if he doesn't pay up. Lots of innocent people are affected by degenerate gamblers. It's not a victimless crime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 I'd say betting on sports among adults is probably around 10%. Certainly not 90%. Wait until you are in a corporate office setting at Superbowl time and the squares pools get passed around. Even folks that never watch sports get in on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Wait until you are in a corporate office setting at Superbowl time and the squares pools get passed around. Even folks that never watch sports get in on it. I agree the American public largely gambles to some degree. Whether it's $100 fantasy leagues or $1 Parlays at the office Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jsixspd Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Well, it's good to know that HE isn't the target of the investigation - in fact it seems likely he's a victim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Well, it's good to know that HE isn't the target of the investigation - in fact it seems likely he's a victim. He bet. He's a criminal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hoss Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 I agree the American public largely gambles to some degree. Whether it's $100 fantasy leagues or $1 Parlays at the office I'm talking heavy and consistent betting with my 10% number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 I'm talking heavy and consistent betting with my 10% number. That may be high but in the right neighborhood. It also depends on what segment of society you are dealing with. Factory workers, like my job, the number might be closer to 30-40%. Bankers like my parents, I'll bet that number is close to 2-3% Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 I'm talking heavy and consistent betting with my 10% number. I guess that depends on your definition of heavy. Does daily lottery tickets and/or weekly visits to Batavia Downs or the casino count? Seems like half of our retired counts then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Why he didn't use an Austrian bank account to wager online is beyond my comprehension. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastPommerFan Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 That may be high but in the right neighborhood. It also depends on what segment of society you are dealing with. Factory workers, like my job, the number might be closer to 30-40%. Bankers like my parents, I'll bet that number is close to 2-3% Something about bankers and gambling and other people's money etc etc etc.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of Dwight Drane Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Yeah....Vanek has a "Gambling" problem..... Let's look at the facts. Vanek makes $7 million a year The debt was $1 million How long do you think someone will float a debt of $1 million without collection? If....and this is a big if.....Vanek owed $1 mil from gambling.....and supposedly on football.....that would mean Thomas Vanek gambled $20 million on football over a short period of time. Either that, or he is the worst gambler in the history of gambling. The average take on a sports bet is 5%, be it in Vegas or wherever. Even if the group was stupid enough to float him the debt, that means that over the course of a season, he was betting $1 million a week, or at the very least $70,000 on EVERY SINGLE NFL GAME!!! Does that make sense? So......where are the other Big Fish? You are telling me a group is going to take action like that from only 1 guy? If this is really a gambling ring, there have to be dozens more. Athletes, Lawyers, Bankers, whoever. Do the math...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LastPommerFan Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Great post ghost. It doesn't add up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Something about bankers and gambling and other people's money etc etc etc.... They weren't teller or working with cash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That Aud Smell Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Did you want him to walk around with a coffin nail hanging out of his mouth, wearing a Caesars Palace t - shirt with a flask of JD in his back pocket? Ha! Well-put and well-played. I was not being very articulate, nor precise. I also probably erred in trying to make a more general point about people who present outwardly one way and are shown to have weird/bad/surprising sh!t going on behind closed doors. There's something about Vanek specifically -- in the wake of what's emerged -- that just gives me a bit of the willies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubkev Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Ha! Well-put and well-played. I was not being very articulate, nor precise. I also probably erred in trying to make a more general point about people who present outwardly one way and are shown to have weird/bad/surprising sh!t going on behind closed doors. There's something about Vanek specifically -- in the wake of what's emerged -- that just gives me a bit of the willies. Come hang out with me at work sometime. All of my cynicism comes from going into work everyday and knowing that 50% of the people who I'm going to deal with are either cheats, cry babies, scammers, degenerates or all of the above. The sad part is they are elementary school teachers, nurses, doctors, dentists, grandparents. None of whom are the dregs of society, but for the time that they are with me they are all undesirables. Disclaimer: 3% of the population are problem gamblers. That's over 350,000 people in PA. These are not the majority of people that I deal with, but they are the majority of people that I see repeatedly throughout the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of Dwight Drane Posted November 5, 2014 Report Share Posted November 5, 2014 Great post ghost. It doesn't add up. Seriously....if a group was letting 1 guy run $1 million in credit, this would be a much bigger story with tons of names. Now I guess you can call it gambling on football if you are the one financing the house....right? Lawyer-speak? That would make a lot more sense. A couple hundred clients maybe getting floated a grand, 10 grand.....the house gets beat up.....the backer gets cold feet and tries to pull out....the actual grunts say, "WTF do you think you are?"...guy runs to the feds and tells all to save his cash and now his bacon. Until I see at least a dozen more names pushing 7 figures, this is more plausible. On a worse note, you can also start to wonder if now we know how the Austruan team was able to party until 8 AM every morning in the olympic village...that snowy...olympic village. That would be bad. My guess is scenario 1. Whatever the story, how dull do you have to be to sign over a 6 figure check from a pro sports team in the middle of all this? I think this was amateur hour all around. Vanek just sold his teammates out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
That Aud Smell Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 (edited) Come hang out with me at work sometime. I get that compulsive, criminal, and addictive behaviors occur across all parts of society in about even distributions. And I regret that it makes you cynical in confronting that. My point (not really a point at all) about Vanek is a little more elusive. It's like I have some sinking suspicion that he's got some soundproofed torture chamber like that monster who got caught up in Youngstown, NY. Edited November 6, 2014 by That Aud Smell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubkev Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 I get that compulsive, criminal, and addictive behaviors occur across all parts of society in about even distributions. And I regret that it makes you cynical in confronting that. My point (not really a point at all) about Vanek is a little more elusive. It's like I have some sinking suspicion that he's got some soundproofed torture chamber like that monster who got caught up in Youngstown, NY. Ah, gotcha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Amerk Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 If playing the lottery is legal, then so should be betting on sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X. Benedict Posted November 6, 2014 Report Share Posted November 6, 2014 (edited) Meh. We have betting threads right in this forum. His money. His business. Who cares. The problem with athletes betting on sports at illegal books is this, it doesn't matter what sport you are in debt for, you have a debt to an illegal interest. "I see you're down 1 Million on your football ledger, Tommy, I need that entire amount settled by Tuesday at 12 PM, and I understand that has become impossible for you given the circumstances, but we are reasonable guys, so maybe we can forgive some of that if you do one little thing for us. Your PP unit doesn't score this week and 3 or 4 little tacky stick minors should do it, and we suspend payment. Whaddya say?" Oh and serious gamblers are a bit like alcoholics that buy their booze everyday from a different liquor store, they have multiple bookies to maximize odds. If someone is into him, you can bet (no pun intended) that someone else is too. Edited November 6, 2014 by X. Benedict Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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