Posted on 10/08/2006 8:13:02 AM PDT by baystaterebel
It seems the poker world has been under siege for the past week or so. With the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gaming Act a little over as week ago, and the media attention the passing of the bill has gotten, it is starting to feel like the poker world is like it used to be – a small gang of people fighting for the survival of this great game.
This coming week, the 'Ambassador of Poker', Mike Sexton is going to fight the good fight in a very public way. PokerNews.com has learned that Sexton is going to embark on a 'Media Blitz' campaign this coming week in New York City, and possibly Washington D.C. in an effort to call attention to the great injustice that has been done to people's right's everywhere with the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gaming Act.
(Excerpt) Read more at pokernews.com ...
Too little too late. If online poker wants back in, they're going to have to cough up some chips to the Big Dealers in Washington.
The legislation in question seems more like it is written to protect political donations from Las Vegas and Jersey than tp protect Americans. What a joke. The Republicans responsible for this should be ashamed. Just my opinion.
They'll ban online gambling, but they won't ban online pornograpny, which is a FAR greater danger.
No Poker - No Vote
Funny. I feel the same way, and yet I've never played a single hand online.
ML/NJ
This guy needs to learn from the horseracing industry-
"Frist was able to pick up key Senate support after including a carve-out for the politically powerful horse racing industry."
That's right, politically powerful.
That political clout didn't happen accidentally and isn't a result of one or a handful of people who have "connections" in Washington, D.C. The political power the horse racing industry now enjoys in our nation's capital is a result of a strategy planned and executed by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, and supported by knowledgeable individuals who understand that contributions to the NTRA's Legislative Action Campaign and Political Action Committee are an investment in their future.
Some background.
The Legislative Action Campaign supports lobbyists hired by the NTRA to represent them in discussions with members of Congress and, more importantly, their staff -- which does the real behind-the-scenes work in legislative matters. Funds also help provide an annual payment to the American Horse Council, which often works side-by-side with the NTRA.
Money for the Legislative Action Campaign comes from breeders, consignors, and buyers in the form of a 0.25% checkoff on transactions -- plus various funds from sale companies. "All the money focuses exclusively on Washington, D.C., and legislative activities that improve the economics of the business," said Peggy Hendershot, who as the NTRA's vice president of legislative and corporate planning oversees the program.
Individuals (including foreign nationals) and corporations are free to give to the Legislative Action Campaign, and there is no limit on the amount of the contribution, which may be deductible as an ordinary business expense."
http://opinions.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=35484
IT's not a total ban, they just banned the sites they can't bilk. This legislation was never about protecting people, it's about money.
I am an occasional Internet poker player and a smoker. In the past two weeks the Federal government has made my poker playing a criminal offense, and my local County government has made smoking in bars and restaurants a criminal offense. At the same time my State government, which runs a lucrative lottery business, has authorized the establishment of slot machine gambling houses where there will be an exception to the smoking ban. My only hope is that once we have thrown the Taliban out of Afghanistan we make an effort to throw them out of our Federal, State, and Local governments. And, I look forward with great interest to see how this unconstitutional Federal Internet gambling law is subverted. Government seems determined to turn every one of us into criminals by enacting laws from which they exempt themselves.
The hypocrisy and corruption of our elected officials is sickening. Even worse is the fact that only suckers play slot machines or lotteries since the odds are so bad. For most people, poker is a game of skill and a form of entertainment. It sickens me how corrupt our Republican leadership is. It seems like they were never for limited government even in the first place.
On a side note, both Nixon & Truman were avid poker players.
"They'll ban online gambling, but they won't ban online pornograpny, which is a FAR greater danger."
Right! This is exactly what I posted on a thread yesterday. With all the talk about this being a "pander to the Christian right wing" nobody has brought up the failure to ban porno. OK, I'll admit they tried at one point, and I'll even admit that they are striving to go after internet pedophiles, etc. But I still do not know the real reason why this was done.
Because they won't get their cut of the profits?
I hate politicians
It's really fun, and because they have certain limits as to how much you can deposit and table maximums it is less risky, although still so, than going to the local casino (that is if you have on in your area).
Indian Casinos too.
I don't care if they have to work more days, but it is crap how things like this are done. This was a Port Security bill. So, even if you are for poker, you can't vote no on the bill, because you screw our safety. It just isn't right.
I would like an amendment to the constitution seriesly. Congress can only appropriate in appropriation bills. If you want to ban online betting, do it on a straight up or down.
But, if anybody had the cojones to vote no on this bill because of the "poker aspect" of Port safety, their opponent would be running ads saying they were against protecting our ports. That is why this is such crap. It shouldn't be done this way.
Online Poker is not going away. This new legislation is designed to hinder it's progress by not allowing U.S. based online poker businesses. It is expressly supported by an already powerful lobby in D.C. Vegas Casinos, Indian Casinos, and Atlantic City Casinos.
I foresee more legislation coming down the pipe.
Yes, I agree. Just pointing out that racing got their exemption because of a pretty organized lobbying effort.
That's damn near impossible, because much of it is free. All this bill does is make it illegal to accept money off a credit card for gambling sites.
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