5 Thoughts for November 3, 2015

1. Before the GOP public admission that the investigations into Benghazi were politically motivated, NBC/WSJ had shown a 7-point gap between Clinton and Sanders. In NBC's two most recent polls (one with WSJ and another with SurveyMonkey), Clinton has been ahead by 20 points. If you look at HuffPo's aggregate chart, the gap was at its closest in the days just prior to that GOP admission. When Joe Biden exited the race, his supporters split between Clinton and Sanders, nearly evenly. Hillary is going to win the nomination and probably the general election -- so says the betting markets.
2. Blackberry revealed that the Android-based Priv slider phone, will be $700. Now, I'm not a fan of slider phones considering how much faster swiping can be with a single hand, but I'm willing to concede that there are fans out there of a physical keyboard. But $700 feels awfully steep for any phone. Their proposition is that a smart phone laden with Blackberry's software and a physical keyboard is worth more than any other phone out there, with Blackberry apps loaded and locked down. If the target price were $500, I'd say the Priv would be a sure winner and Blackberry had a strong future, but at $700, I just can't see people flocking to it, regardless of the operating system. And if that wasn't enough of an issue, the phone's initial offering is only compatible with AT&T and T-Mobile in the US. By the way, that $700 price is for a 32GB device. Trick out a Nexus 6P with 128GB and it's still cheaper ($650) than the Priv. The biggest market for this phone, I suspect, will be governments, but their market is relatively tiny compared to the consumer market.
3. Belatedly, rest in peace, those who perished aboard Metrojet flight 7K-9268, and sympathies to those who lost loved ones in this airline tragedy.
4. Ohio rejected the legalization of marijuana; no worries though, because Oregon did the same, the first time around. It wasn't until Oregonians could see for themselves that right across the Columbia River, Washingtonians fared exceptionally well following pot legalization, and dispelling the anti-pot agenda, that voters were willing to legalize it in Oregon. Ohioans are, by nature, cautious of progressive policy, so you'll have to wait a few more years before states around Ohio have legalized pot, essentially sucking tax dollars away from Ohio coffers. In the mean time, you should visit the New American Amsterdam: Portland Oregon.