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Joe BidenCongratulations to our presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden!
 

DemocratSinceBirth

(100,294 posts)
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:30 AM Mar 2020

How can a seemingly very intelligent man have such a poor understanding of probability

“People are going to be asking themselves as they watch that debate who is going to be better able to take on Trump one-on-one,” Reich said. “The stampede toward Biden was remarkably fast. That shows that his support is not absolutely steadfast, so it’s at least possible that if his debate performance is very bad on Sunday, Bernie Sanders could have a renaissance.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/03/sanderss-primary-losses-michigan-and-mississippi/607795/

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
16 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
 

lapfog_1

(30,168 posts)
1. grasping at any straw they find...
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:32 AM
Mar 2020

but not many left

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

Turin_C3PO

(15,922 posts)
2. I guess
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:32 AM
Mar 2020

anything could happen but the chances for Sanders to catch fire enough to win the nomination is astronomical. I believe I read that he’d have to win every remaining state by 15-20%. I doubt that’s going to happen, even if Biden flubs the debate.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

Cicada

(4,533 posts)
3. Two weeks ago the odds of Biden winning were very low
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:35 AM
Mar 2020

If perceived probability was so wrong two weeks ago I’m not sure it is so great a guide now.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

DemocratSinceBirth

(100,294 posts)
4. Probability is probability.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:36 AM
Mar 2020

It's ranges from high to low to essentially zero.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

el_bryanto

(11,804 posts)
5. Well - let's be clear - Biden supporters want Sanders supporters demoralized and pushing him
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:39 AM
Mar 2020

to drop out. Convincing Sanders supporter that Biden is inevitable is good strategy. It might be accurate as well.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Undecided
 

DemocratSinceBirth

(100,294 posts)
9. I can shoot a basketball. LeBron James can shoot a basketball.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:45 AM
Mar 2020

Consequently I have a non-zero chance of beating LeBron James in a game of one on one. That's essentially Reich's logic distilled.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

TwilightZone

(28,833 posts)
10. He should drop out because the race is over and we don't need a repeat of 2016.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:48 AM
Mar 2020

It's not complicated. It has nothing to do with demoralizing Sanders supporters.

Not everything is about Sanders. This is about moving on, uniting the party, and defeating Trump in November.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

LanternWaste

(37,748 posts)
15. I used to pretend I knew what other people wanted as well.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 10:04 AM
Mar 2020

But then (around fifth grade or so), I grew out of that imaginary pretense and realized these 'prophecies' we allege speak more to our own biases than those we target.

Let's be clear, indeed.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

TwilightZone

(28,833 posts)
7. The projections were wrong in part because of faulty assumptions.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:41 AM
Mar 2020

538, for example, has noted that their models factored in the possibility that Biden would withdraw prior to SC, which was never going to happen. That caused the overall model and all future state models to be skewed.

"Ever since he finished fourth in Iowa, Biden has no longer been the favorite in South Carolina, according to our model. Sanders currently has a 1 in 2 (47 percent) chance of winning South Carolina, while Biden has a 2 in 5 (37 percent) shot. However, part of the reason our model has Sanders as the favorite is that it thinks Biden could drop out before South Carolina even votes. In the scenarios where Biden is still in the race come Feb. 29, though, he is probably still favored in the Palmetto State."

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/election-update-biden-hasnt-exactly-collapsed-since-new-hampshire/

We have a much clearly picture of the race now. Biden is projected to win nearly every remaining state, and there's little reason to believe that they're as wrong as the SC projections.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

dansolo

(5,385 posts)
12. Two weeks ago we hadn't gone through half of the primaries
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:55 AM
Mar 2020

This is an absolutely rediculous argument.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

Happy Hoosier

(8,405 posts)
13. The problem is that this is not a discrete event.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:56 AM
Mar 2020

Primaries happen over time. With SuperT done and 3/10 now in the books, there are delegates counts that cannot change, no matter how popular Sanders gets. That means that Sanders needs to not only win, but win with unrealistic margins. Look up "conditional probability." In short, the events that needed to occur early for Sanders to have a chance did not occur. The remaining paths require increasingly unlikely events for him to win.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

LanternWaste

(37,748 posts)
16. Two weeks ago the sampling size of cast votes were far too small to be indicative.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 10:06 AM
Mar 2020

A greater sampling size of votes cast results in a more accurate indicator.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

MaryMagdaline

(7,885 posts)
6. The unacknowledged data shows that 70%
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:41 AM
Mar 2020

Voted against Bernie and in favor of more centrist candidates. Why anyone would expect that group to go over to Bernie is remarkable. What WAS to be expected is that we would have a Balkanized party giving Bernie the nomination. The miracle was that likeminded people got together to defeat Bernie when they knew, statistically, they could not win without coming together. It was a triumph of reason over ego.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

honest.abe

(9,238 posts)
8. Joe would have to start babbling in tongues at the next debate for Sanders to have a renaissance.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:43 AM
Mar 2020
If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

sop

(11,216 posts)
11. The one-on-one format with no studio audience will favor Biden.
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:49 AM
Mar 2020

Joe is at his best when given time to calmly and quietly explain his positions, not competing with multiple candidates for a few seconds of attention. Biden doesn't do one-liner, bumper-sticker, hand-waving bombast well, he's much more nuanced and reflective. A quality that most voters are yearning for after enduring three years of Trump's histrionics.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
 

True Blue American

(18,166 posts)
14. Robert Reich
Wed Mar 11, 2020, 09:56 AM
Mar 2020

Another out of date forecaster.

He left the Clinton Administration because he disagreed with the Clinton plan to balance the budget. We see who was right on that discussion.

If I were to vote in a presidential
primary today, I would vote for:
Joe Biden
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