SIQ - spent a long time searching this out:
There is nothing wrong with betting aggainst the national interest:
Look at this guy :
http://albert-kahn.hauts-de-seine.net/archives-de-la-planete/dossier/maisons-closes/
as a Froggie (I think) he bet against France winning the Franco Prussian War in erm 1870 and made an absolute bomb - I think he was in Prussia then. and went back to France with his winnings.... and photographed the world.
He survived unitl 1940 when his German frenz came back to Paree - and he just avoided being interned [ by dying ]
the site has amazing autochromes from 1900-1914
I mean ..... whadda guy !
[ theres a certain amount of irony in this entry ]