Ray in Chicago writes in with some relevant, outside-the-poker-box thoughts about why it might be a losing battle to argue poker as a game of skill:

Hi Dan,

I wanted to comment on the bust and on the updates that you linked to.

The underlying theme that is always put forth is that poker is a game of skill, and therefore not gambling. As long as the poker bloc keeps saying that, it will always be more difficult to get it legalized. A large percentage of Americans will never agree with that stance, and many people who could be convinced to support poker as legal gambling will not support it as an occupation of skill.

Think about it this way. Horse race handicapping is a skillful endeavor. Some people are good enough at it to make a living playing the horses (just like poker). Their bets are against other players (just like poker). The house takes a rake (just like poker). But the moment you make a bet and risk your money or the money of a sponsor, meaning that you could walk away a loser, it’s gambling!!

If the poker experts consider horse racing gambling, then for exactly the same reasons poker should be considered gambling.

Instead of trying to convert the people with the say-so your time and money is better spent convincing them that poker is a form of gambling that should be legal. Since poker rooms abound in every legal casino, where gambling takes place, the solution is to allow poker rooms to exist like the casinos and the race tracks and the off track betting parlors.

Good Luck with all the legislation,

Uncle Ray

Thanks for writing in Uncle Ray. And to think, these readers don’t even know that I am currently ranked 24th out of 84,000 nationally in our family football pick’em game. I hate to say you might be right on this issue … but.

What does seem clear is that anyone who has played “gets it,” and any who haven’t don’t. I suspect the people at NORML might contend the same thing.

As expected, the non-poker, non-local media has caught wind of the poker raid in Raleigh — the one in which WPT champion and accomplished pro Michael Gracz was nabbed. [Forbes.]

This sort of coverage always reminds us how unfamiliar the non-poker-playing public is with our issues. Like really, the “game of skill” concept is foreign to them:

“Although skills such as knowledge of human psychology, bluffing, and the ability to calculate and analyze odds make it more likely for skilled players to defeat novices, novices may yet prevail with a simple run of luck,” the appeals opinion said. “No amount of skill can change a deuce into an ace.”

You can’t change a deuce into an ace? The North Carolina Appeals Court clearly doesn’t understand the power of The Hammer.

You know, if he fought his ticket, we could count on some more stories like this one as the misdemeanor case went to court. Just saying’ … Worst case scenario would be that he loses, pays the fine all the same, and still gets “the poker cause” some valuable ink. But odds say he’s very unlikely to be found guilty anyhow. Sounds like a win-win, no? Definitely a negative EV play if Gracz were to fold.

A telephone interview with John Pappas, new Executive Director of the PPA. OK, so he’s moved into a new office in Washington DC … as poker-minded political efforts move from infancy to toddlerhood, now what?

After much legal sparring and delay, a curious, first-of-its-kind poker room just opened up in Little Rock that publicly challenges the laws — or at least the standing interpretation of them — by running free tournaments that award money prizes. OK, sounds like any legal amateur tourney we’ve got going here … but there’s a catch.

The difference: if you so choose, you can pay $100 a month to be tracked and ranked. Cool! Hmm, is that a legitimate premium service or a cover for a buy-in? Hard to say … I suspect it will be up to the courts to decide. I’m not familiar with the details and nuance of Arkansas gambling laws … but listening to the Little Rock city attorney, I’m not so sure he’s making a strong case, which is probably why the dudes behind Arkansas’ “first ever dedicated poker lounge” came over the top.

More…

Good stuff from J Todd and friends, as is generally the case, to those of us interested in the socio-political-economic waves (and butterfly effects) of the poker biz.

• New British gambling laws go into effect. The moralists fear “normalisation.”
• APCW takes on NPR for their gambling-law coverage.
• New American tax on poker winnings chaps some hides.
• Brokeback Harbor.

Yeow. The tax thing is pretty big, I think. (It’s gotta be enough to make Eskimo Clark’s heart skip a beat, yo.) From what I can tell, it doesn’t seem to take into account losses. And the 25 percent … perhaps a tax-minded Pokeratizen can clarify for us … is this in addition to standard income tax that all poker players dutifully report on their W-2Gs?

I mean it’s hard enough for low-stakes players to beat the rake. Now high-stakes players face a juice that seems almost impossible to successfully swallow.

UPDATE: Found a little more good information via Lou Krieger. His take makes it seem just that all casinos have to be like Harrah’s now, and automatically withhold the taxes, that’s all. Sucks, sure, but understandable? Unacceptable? Undesirable?

A few click-worthy items populating browsers throughout the poker world this week:

The WSOP-Europe is kicking off right about now — with a £2,500 HORSE event. Click here to follow that action. Then comes £5,000 PLO and £10,000 No-Limit Hold’em. Remember, that’s $20,000 to US Americans.

And click here to see Gavin Smith topless pictures from the LAUNCH PARTY for the WSOP-E, held at PURE in Caesar’s the day after the end of WSOP-LV.

PAULY will clearly be having a terrible time covering the three bracelet events in LONDON:

Ahh, London …

PARTYGAMING’S stock has been sinking. And upon reporting half-year earnings last week, the company that was minting more money than they knew what to do with a year ago is operating in the red.

PartyGaming also made a pretax loss of $32 million on revenue of $212.5 million, down from revenue of $662 million before the U.S. clampdown a year ago.

Maybe we just miss the good-ole-days with some good-ole-friends (half of whom no longer work for Party), but Pokerati says Party is still a BUY! (The Motley Fool agrees.) We first thought that, of course, shortly after the stock plummeted to 26. We acted on it at 36, then thought it again at 56. Currently trading at about 28.5.

Meanwhile, PartyGaming continues to seek retroactive amnesty from the US DOJ for its execs.

The BRITS are having to come up with corporate policies these days to deal with online gambling in the workplace. Uncertain waters … but depending on how the cards fall, its theoretically possible that multitabling while on the clock could get you some paid leave.

Gah, you just gotta love the LIMEYS. Their government is also funding a program to teach tight play and bankroll management — “responsible gambling” they call it.

All this coincides with some new gambling laws that went into effect September 1 across the UK.

With companies from GIBRALTAR now allowed to advertise in England, PARTYPOKER (and PARTYBETS) will be turning 70 official UK soccer clubs’ websites into affilliates. But footballers better not be punters … an unusually bad game could land players who bet on their own action in jail for two years.

The latest from J TODD and the Affilliate Wolverines at APCW:

In and outside of TORONTO, police seem to be in the midst of a POKER CRACKDOWN that seems all too familiar ’round these parts. NEW JERSEY police doing the same thing.

Only difference was in DALLAS it made for good TV. (Old article, but one I just stumbled across, and found interesting in light of the Dallas SWAT poker raids.)

In MISSOURI, where what appears to be a $20 (w/ rebuys) barbershop tourney has the barber headed to an actual trial, facing felony jail time.

USA TODAY has an article about how fraudsters are using bots at online poker sites not to beat the game, but to launder money by programming them to PLAY badly. A little confusing, but read the comments for how poker players respond to any anti-poker propaganda written by someone who may or may not understand how internet poker works.

An editorial in NEW YORK NEWSDAY about how it’s time to regulate online poker. This viewpoint has little to do with your rights to play, but the legitimacy of the WTO if the United States doesn’t either re-legitimize online poker or ban all forms of online gambling, including what’s currently allowed under the UIGEA.

The claims against the US from the European Union and Antigua and Barbuda exceed $22 billion. Japan, Canada, Macau, Costa Rica and India will each be asking for a few billion as well. So far the US hasn’t put up much a defense beyond “not paying.”

In other legal issues, Bodog lost a PATENT INFRINGEMENT lawsuit … and their domain! Try it yourself … Bodog.com no longer exists. Now you gotta go to newbodog.com.

Apparently the HOLLYWOOD Set is still learning to love poker — as actress JESSICA BIEL found herself pulled into a game — reportedly with pros, but whom I don’t know — at the opening of the Ivy Hotel in SAN DIEGO. The girlfriend of JUSTN TIMBERLAKE is new to poker, and started out doing really well before she lost all her chips.

Did you know Jennifer Tilly is 48-years-old? Never woulda guessed it. She’s about to turn 49.

Oh, speaking of Hollywood … almost forgot to drop a name. Robert Wilonsky — the only Batface home gamer with his own Wikipedia entry — has started a new gig on national TV, filling in for Roger Ebert on Ebert & Roeper for the rest of 2007. Very cool! Congrats, Big Bob. With all his exposure to C B A-list actors, I wonder why he hasn’t learned how to pretend he doesn’t have a really big hand sometimes when he does. Click the pic for a funny-ish Robert Wilonsky highlight reel.

One year after the poker laws in this country changed … TODD BRUNSON gets on the anti-UIGEA soapbox. From his efforts to be an ambassador:

By the way, if you work for the Treasury or Justice Department, or any gaming control commission, please disregard that comment about “anyone with a brain.” I realize that it’s the politicians who are passing the laws, and you guys are just doing your jobs (and doing them well) by enforcing them. I also realize that you guys are much more powerful than a poker player, and could crush me like a bug. Please don’t hurt me.

It has been a while since I posted, but the Texas Poker PAC is still working towards our legislative goals. The next Texas Legislative Session begins in 2009, so we are working behind the scenes to get ready for our next push.

In the meantime, I have been appointed as the Texas State Director for the Poker Players Alliance (PPA). The PPA is beginning to work individual states and I believe that what we are doing in Texas will serve as a model for other states.

Currently we are working on individual U.S. congressional districts. So, today I ask if any Pokerati readers live in Texas Congressional District 32. You can see the district boundaries by looking here — it’s mostly parts of Dallas, Richardson, Irving, Addison, and the Park Cities. If so, please send an email here.

More news to come I’m sure. As always, thanks for all of your help.

Just as the anti-poker side is encouraging their “pro family” members to write their representatives about the plagues that will fall if the UIGEA is undone, pro-poker ambassadors are also hard at work rallying the troops. Click below to see the letter Greg Raymer sent out seeking similar political activity from presumably lazy poker types.

Interestingly enough, I have a PokerStars account and am a paying member of the PPA … but didn’t get this email. (It was forwarded to me by Don the Las Vegas Real Estate Guy.) With the other side well-practiced in their methods of swinging votes, I gotta think the poker side may need some extra coordination to keep up with the competition. Perhaps the three federal bills in play would benefit from something similar to what we used in Texas to electronically connect the legislators and citizenry en masse. Seriously, this relatively small programming effort went a long way toward ensuring our beloved little HB 3186 was a good chunk of the hallway/bathroom buzz around the state capitol at a semi-critical time.

Again, Greg Raymer’s request below …

More…

LAS VEGAS–Just like old times … I’ve got so many super-fascinating browser tabs open I can’t keep up with them all. So please, allow me to unload:

The major tournament action underway is the LEGENDS of POKER at the BIKE in CALIFORNIA. Perhaps we’ll swing by …

MIKE MATUSOW, with his second-place finish in the main event of the BELLAGIO CUP III, is no longer broke. Apparently his $670k payday left him with 50 grand all to himself. In the real world this means he now qualifies for a loan. In the poker world it means he no longer does, unless he goes broke again.

DANIEL NEGREANU’s got a pretty good skill column this week, talking about manipulating table image to better reap the rewards of shifting gears. Hmm, something to think about?

From the Dept. of: Awesome … PHIL HELLMUTH will appear on The Surreal Life. Might an ass-kicking be inevitable, as he moves into a house with RANDY “Macho Man” SAVAGE, MISS CLEO, NANCY MCKIBBEN (who?), DABNEY COLEMAN, and the uber-pumped CARROT TOP.

BILL RINI, whom I consider an expert in matters of online cheating, has up a video that I thought was informational warning about a new form of MARKED CARDS circulating. But upon closer look, turns out to be just an ad hawking the illicit poker gear (compliments of GOOGLE).

Interesting (biased?) article here on what Google supposedly does to keep online poker seekers away from the bad poker sites.

Speaking of cheating … has anyone heard word of who might have been the high-stakes players allegedly swindled in major cheating scam at the BORGATA? Famed cheating consultant STEVE FORTE, of course, was one of the guys busted, even though he uses the journalist’s beloved excuse of “I was just working on a story!” Suddenly scary: the notion of tapping into hole-card cams.

Suddenly needed: a big-time poker security accreditation system?

Check it out … DUGGLEBOGEY is back to his old tricks sticks:

Glad to see the return of some more friendly faces.

Here’s a great article on the rise and fall of an ONLINE PRO — how you can go from $10k to $1.5 million and back down again. It coincides with a semi-related story about KaiBuxxe / RealAndyBeal — a 22-year-old Austrian and former MAGIC player who is tearing up the world of POT-LIMIT OMAHA.

And BRIAN TOWNSEND (aka “sbrugby”) — an online superstar turning to live games — is in the midst of a $3 million downswing. This according to his own blog. [via PokerKingBlog]

Dude, tell me about it … I’ve been running similarly bad:

POKER IS HARD!

Looks kinda like a PARTYGAMING stock chart, no?

SHANNON ELIZABETH was unable to play in the Victoria Poker Championships in AUSTRALIA … because she got carded at the door and didn’t have her ID. The male contingent of Pokerati has always wondered why ladies go anywhere without their license/passport/prescription.

Speaking of Australia, it may have slipped under your radar that the AUSSIES, along with CANADA and MACAU, have joined the WTO dispute against the UNITED STATES over the UIGEA. The beef started by ANTIGUA and BARBUDA seems to be growing some teeth, as others fighting against the chief enemy of AL QAEDA include COSTA RICA, INDIA, and … the EUROPEAN UNION. Think this fight isn’t about the future of international online economies as much as it is about poker?

A group called IMEGA continues to challenge the controversial internet law in court, and have their fingers crossed that a federal judge in New Jersey will issue a TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER in September.

Speaking of lawsuits and court actions in September, attorney and PPA representative LEE ROUSSO has a hearing set for his suit, which challenges the Constitutionality of WASHINGTON STATE’s law that makes playing online poker a felony on par with CHILD MOLESTATION.

A CARIBBEAN BUSINESS CONGLOMERATE will be entertaining a bunch of AMERICAN CONGRESSPEOPLE in November to explain Antigua’s WTO stance, among other things. In attendance will be CHARLIE RANGEL (D-NY-Taxes) and BENNIE THOMPSON (D-MS-Homeland Security),

AMERICA ONLINE wants in on online poker. Or at least online SPORTS BETTING, as AOL has entered into an internet bookmaking contract with a GERMAN company, FLUXX, which will target punters in the UK.

A good article from the BRITISH PRESS here — describing the UIGEA as a “TROJAN HORSE” given to the European gambling industry.

Meanwhile, British online gaming company WILLIAM HILL says they are having a hard time keeping poker players, because the EUROS really want to take on the AMERICANS (at Bodog, for example).

Over in the PHILLIPINES, they have (finally) opened up a bar-and-grille with amateur Texas Hold’em tourneys (scroll down near the bottom).

The nightly non-wager Hold ‘Em tournaments at the Player’s Den hope to further sharpen the skills of the Pinoys in this ultimate mind game where we can eventually excel worldwide.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

You may notice a lot of linkage today from this PokerKing guy. He has a lot of good stuff to read, including this article on why JERRY YANG is bad for ONLINE poker. Maybe maybe not, but I tend to agree with the wisdom of LOU KRIEGER, who recognizes that poker is a long-term game, and Yang couldn’t have come at a better time.

Here’s one of the more balanced takes on the JERRY YANG FOR PRESIDENT campaign.

“The misinformation campaign is in full swing, and Congress is the target.”
- letter in support of UIGEA

As efforts to circumvent, overturn, repeal and/or just generally undo the UIGEA are gaining momentum, the anti-poker forces are acting as if the UIGEA has saved hundreds of thousands of babies and is an essential part of protecting us from terrorism. And as crazy as what they say may sound — seriously, their arguments couldn’t hold up in a high school debate class — politics has nothing to do with what’s right and/or makes sense … it’s simply a matter of how each side plays its chips.

Click below to read the letter the other side is sending to members of U.S. Congress with hopes of making any anti-UIGEA legislation better off untouched:

(Then feel free to pick it apart at will.)

More…

Mark Cuban has long contended that YouTube is going to run into all sorts of copyright problems, akin to Napster. I hope not, because I love being able to embed YouTube vids and watch them on whatever site I happen to be visiting at the time. But I recently ran across this new-ish site — PokerTube.com — and based on the bulk of their content that provides no benefit to ESPN … I have a hard time seeing how this sorta thing is legal:

NOTE: There seems to be some trouble embedding from Pokertube. Not sure if this is a technical guffaw or related to what we are talking about here.

Don’t get me wrong … I philosophically think it should be legal, or at least appreciate the viewing ease embeddable players provide. But beyond brand recognition, I’m not sure ESPN will see enough value in this form of distribution to stand idly by. I mean heck, what’s to stop a site like, say, Pokerati, from becoming the unofficial home of 12-minute clips of the WSOP, and then profit off the fruits of ESPN’s labor? But PokerTube is based out of Sweden, so how ESPN would be able to enforce their copyright remains to be seen. Interesting international internet economics issues for the 21st century, to be sure.

One short-term solution, of course, would be for ESPN (and any others who have copyrighted video content they are looking to protect) to embrace the embedding — the always cheaper “if you can’t beat’em, join’em” concept — and offer up virtually the same stuff on their own site. They could get the benefit of brand exposure if they made their own RawVegas-style player … and figure out the best way to include their own commercials, which may or may not be different from what airs on TV. So long as they made it easiest for other sites to find (and embed), then there would be no need for internet traffic middlemen to go elsewhere for that content … and they would therefore maintain control of a hypermajority of all the viewings out there.

UPDATE:Click here to watch the episode of the WSOP I was trying to embed, on which Tom makes his first appearance.

And click here to see a really cool interview of Phil Hellmuth auditioning for a role on European TV as a caped Superhero/villain … which would look cooler and get more viewings if folks could watch it right here, instead of one page away.

Today’s a big day for poker in Dallas County. Sorta. Some cases from JB’s/Goodfellows are at the Dallas County Courthouse right now. I don’t have many details — perhaps some of the defendants can fill us in as their cases get postponed/settled/dismissed (or otherwise adjudicated, of course).

Perspective forthcoming …

UPDATE: All cases against players dismissed. Charges against dealers and room operators put on deferred adjudication … meaning if they can stay clear of running a poker room for 90 days, all problems will go away.

Wow, that was a surprise … looks like Neteller funds have been freed up for US customers. Check it out:

We’ll see if it actually arrives. But no reason to believe it won’t. Quicker than I expected. Nice!

UPDATE: Money did arrive. Woo-hoo, pizza with extra toppings it is!

LAS VEGAS–It should be noted that today is the day the 270-day enforcement grace period for the UIGEA expires. But the Treasury Department has been unable to come up with a plan to force American banks to enforce the legally questionable act. While some of us — including yours truly — expected this July 13 marker to prove very dramatic and telling for the future of online poker, it’s actually been rather anti-climactic. Hardly a peep about it at the WSOP … neither Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, nor Otis has been arrested.

A court case that could lead to the overturning of the act is scheduled now for September 4.

More on iMega vs. the UIGEA here.

And here.

LAS VEGAS–EF Hutton one of my MySpace friends whom I didn’t even know I knew reportedly had $32,000 stolen from his room at the Rio. It wasn’t like it was just lying around the nightstand … it was locked away in a safe:

The way this clearly appears to be a targeted break-in makes you gotta wonder if other high-stakes poker players haven’t been followed back to their rooms. Fortunately, you can always rely on the Rio (and Harrah’s) to make things right. They’ve offered Hutton a $750 settlement. Sounds fair, no?

Click below for the details straight from the victim’s MySpace blog.

More…

Just received a text from a concerned Pokeratizen informing us of some relatively quick dismissals of criminal poker charges in Dallas County:

Fyi. Dallas poker. Approx. 22 from the audie murphy vfw bust all hired the same atty for fifty a piece. This wk allcases were dismissed for misc reasons.

Related

Another Big Dallas Poker Bust - 4/15/07
RE: Another Big Poker Bust (2) - 4/15/07

LAS VEGAS–Word spreading to the Pacific time zone is that a big batch of misdemeanor cases from the made-for-TV paramilitary poker raid on Aces have been dismissed. Can anyone verify the truth to this?

AUSTIN–Sorry it took so long to get this Legislative Wrap-Up out, but I needed a little break.

The poker bill (HB 3186) indeed died this session. We most likely will not have legal poker in Texas before 2009. That’s the bad news.

There is much more good news though. Before this session, legal poker was little more than an intangible wish. It is a lot closer to a reality now. Our bill explicitly outlined a workable system for legal poker. Because of this, we gained a lot of legislative support as the session wore on and legislators could study our proposal. This gives us a huge leg up next session. Rather than explaining how the bill works, we will be able to be considered alongside a number of other revenue generating proposals.

We got a lot farther than most predicted. We did win a vote in committee and in the Calendars committee. We were even set on the house calendar. This is great considering the fact that the state didn’t need the extra revenue this year. Unfortunately the clock ran out on us despite having enough votes lined up in the State House to pass it. We even had a Senate sponsor ready to pick it up.

We had a great media day on the day of our committee hearing. The story was picked up by press all over the state and even CNN and some foreign outlets.

Because of all the work we did this session, we have something that the idea of legal poker never had in Texas: Credibility. With this new asset, we can continue the fight.

More…

Julian in Dallas writes in with a trip report from his most recent poker activity:

On Friday night, June 1, 2007, the Dallas Vice Unit and Northwest Division Patrol officers executed a Search Warrant at:

“Live Straddle”
7141 Envoy Ct.

28 citations for gambling

5 arrests gambling promotion M/A

seized:
4 poker tables,
poker chips,
playing cards, computer equipment, assorted paperwork, $4,599.00 cash

Deputy Chief J Bernal
Narcotics Division
Dallas Police Department

Umm, I guess $4,600 is a nice score … but really Deputy Chief, if you keep on being such a table bully, it won’t be long before you have no one to play with. I mean you probably feel like you’re winning … but really, check your bankroll … are you?

From what I hear, you and your players are not allowed in Oklahoma … and I have a feeling that’s where most of the Dallas action is headed, because, frankly, people are troubled by the way you guys play. Not trying to be judgmental or anything, I just suspect that once you have no more poker to contend with … c’mon, we both know your past … you’re gonna get back into drugs, aren’t you.

A little too little a little too late, perhaps … but the Houston Chronicle has a great piece by columnist sports-blogger and ESPN/The Ticket radio talk-show host Jerome Solomon about why poker in Texas shoulda been legalized. Lavigne in Austin certainly has the message down … and others are starting to hear it. Encouraging, actually, to know that next time around what the poker people have to say might actually make sense to those who don’t play, and even those who might be generally against gambling.

Makes me think that maybe some of us have been using the wrong term — “legalized.” As this column points out … poker already is legal in Texas (like golf, and fishing, and bridge) and all we are looking to do is allow people (and the state) to profit off letting certain good folks offer a slightly souped-up version of the game … just updating the current laws that already allow the game to be played. Can you imagine if it were legal to golf, but illegal to run a pro shop? Maybe our use of the term “legalize” makes it sound like drugs.

(Wonder if youwannapoker.com will even read this before they gank it.)

I had pretty much forgotten about the abundance of poker content thieves out there — was just gonna keep doing my thing and not let them bring me down. But then I read Gary Carson’s blog … and he reminded me that really, while maybe we can’t stop this practice outright, that doesn’t mean we should stand idly by as our “good friends” at Full Tilt continue to profit off the “work” of known internet thieves.

I’m being kinda serious: I think it might be time for a good-ole-fashioned lawsuit! Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson, Clonie Gowen, Ray Bitar, Michael Craig … so many others — just dropping a few names who might take note and have a concerned interest in this matter — are you listening?

(Ultimate Bet, we’re looking at you, too.)

More…

I’m about to quit thinking about the Legislature and Politics for a few days over the long weekend. In the meantime, those of you who are in Central Texas should consider attending this.

The Poker Players Alliance is helping with this fundraiser for US Congressman Charlie Gonzalez (D-San Antonio). The PPA has been a reliable ally in our fight to bring poker back to Texas, so lets help them bring online poker back to our country:

You are invited to celebrate Congressman Charlie Gonzalez’ 62nd Birthday at…

CASINO POLITICO
A Vegas Style Political Fundraising Event with Congressman Charlie Gonzalez

Thursday, May 31, 2007
5:30pm – 9:00pm
The Spire at Sunset Station
St. Paul Square - 230 Center Street - San Antonio

Casino Politico Sponsorship Levels
$ 62 - Jr Secret Agent - Admission for 1 person (purchase playing chips at the door)
$ 250 - Agent Q - Admission for 2 persons and $ 50 worth of playing chips
$ 500 - Agent M - Admission for 4 persons and $100 worth of playing chips
$1,000 - 00’ Agent - Admission for 6 persons and $ 200 worth of playing chips
$2,300 - Goldfinger - Admission for 8 persons and $ 500 worth of playing chips

To RSVP or for more information, call
210-886-9229 in San Antonio

Paid for by the Charles A. Gonzalez Congressional Committee.

More…

One poker-related legislative measure that did make it out of the House and seems likely to be passed by the Senate is HCR 109 — a “concurrent resolution” officially recognizing Robstown, Texas (near Corpus Christi) as the birthplace of Texas Hold’em.

Not sure what the role of these resolutions really are — but I think any that get this far pretty much pass with zero debate since they don’t grant any sorta additional rule-making authority nor relegate funds in any way. So assuming this feel-good-for-Robstown declaration passes — along with resolutions to designate the bolo as the official state tie, and the boot as the official state shoe (scroll down to the bottom) — well … nothing changes.

At least not right now.

But I gotta think any future efforts to legalize poker in Texas stand to benefit from Abel Herrero’s political warm-fuzzy to get some gung-ho Texas poker pride written into the books.

a successful hold’em player relies on reason, intuition, and bravado, and these same qualities have served many notable Texans well throughout the proud history of the Lone Star State

Click below to read the whole resolution. It paints quite the interesting story — and could have a hypermajority of representatives from both parties technically saying “Yay!” to charity poker, online play, and $10,000 events while also acknowledging the “game of skill” concept.

(Has to be, right? If not, why are so many Texans so good yeee-haw!)

More…

Poker bust last night at the Slick Billiards at 2344 Oates Dr.

I don’t know the details of this game — it was clearly more drunken low-stakes “home game” than sophisticated poker operation. Police arrested one person for Gambling Promotion (class A misdemeanor) and issued tickets to 11 others for Gambling (class C misdemeanor).

They also arrested three people for Public Intoxication. Cops confiscated one table, assorted “gambling paraphernalia,” and $1,437 in cash. It took an undercover operation (in response to a citizen complaint, police say) to take this game down.

Pokerati would also like to take this opportunity to remind all our pokery attorney friends that we happily accept advertising from law firms interested in representing players. It’s a great deal — should cost you less than a few billable hours — and it seems there may be a growing need for your services.

From a British gambling-info website:

Seven individuals and four companies are the latest to have been charged by the US Department of Justice for conspiring to violate the US’s ban on internet gambling in a $150 million credit card scam.

[...]

CurrenC Ltd, a payment processing firm based in the British Virgin Islands, BetUS, a Canadian-registered sports betting site, Gateway Technologies and Hill Financial Services, both from Utah, are the companies accused on charges of racketeering conspiracy, bank fraud, violations of the wire-wager act and money laundering.

[...]

If found guilty, those accused could face up to 30 years in jail.

Meanwhile, I have found it easier than ever to deposit money on Full Tilt, with my Chase-Visa debit card … and am really torn on whether or not I should be pimping the various online sites I may or may not still play on with a Pokerati affiliate code. Either I am totally missing the boat of getting a little sumpin’-sumpin’ from Pokerati readers’ rakes, or I am making sure we’ll still be afloat when the online poker shakedown fully shakes out.

ALT HED: Coin-flip Situation?

I’m sure this won’t piss anyone off … but check out the letter Rep. Brian McCall (R-Plano) sent to a concerned poker citizen who requested his support on HB 3186:

click to enlarge

Wow. Way to encourage participation in the political process, sir. I think a lot of elected officials — perhaps the majority even — forget that regular people like Mr. Rogers are their bosses, not their bitches. I may be a little jealous because he has way better hair than me tilty based on the way he belittles a citizen who simply did what he was supposed to do to let his representative know where he stands on an issue. You’ll notice McCall doesn’t actually take a stance … he pretty much just calls Jason stupid for doing so.

Click below for more insight into what a simple-minded congressman Rep. McCall may or may not be …

ALT HED: Why We Lost, Exhibit A

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Just because our little poker bill in Texas didn’t make it over its biggest hump doesn’t mean the fun of fighting for legal poker is over. We got all sorts of federal fisticuffs on hand, and here we are talking about putting people in jail for life and the battle for control of an online economy! Woot!

From our good/Myspace friends at APCW:

Lavigne in Austin just called me with something close to a concession speech. He won’t say it’s definitely not gonna get through, but he would be surprised. They’ve made it about halfway through the calendar in about eight hours. We have until midnight by house rule to get this done.

Lavigne says he has seen them disable the clock before so they could go past the deadline, but that seems unlikely … because what we have been seeing go on right now is something called “chubbing” — where people on the same side of an issue ask each other questions simply as a delay tactic. Apparently there is some very contentious bill on page 19 or 20 … and many of the members would rather not get to that. If they do, then it will have a long debate.

“We’re getting blinded out,” Lavigne says.

This reminds me of watching the UIGEA go down … with the clock ticking it looked like they might not get to that. But there, the man with the gavel (Sen. Bill Frist) had every reason to make sure they did. Not the case here with Speaker Craddick.

Meanwhile, in the Florida Legislature, they flew through the gambling and poker bills — correcting some betting limit problems passed in the last session — even though it upsets some of the conservative bedrocks of that state.

Dale Hansen comes out of the closet to admit that yes, he has played and will continue to play illegal poker. You know, he is pretty good on the radio. He should so think about getting into podcasting.

Hour of Hansen
ESPN 103.3 FM - 5/8/07
[display_podcast]

Part 1: Dale Hansen speaks with Rep. Jose Menendez about HB 3186 and why legalizing poker in Texas is an uphill political battle / scared Republicans (and problems caused by redistricting) / luck vs. skill / Lottery hypocrites / the Governor will sign if it gets to him.

Part 2: Hansen speaks with Pokerati about underground poker in Dallas and the hypocrisy of the state not taking a rake on poker / what about fishing tournaments? / Oklahoma and Louisiana advertising on the highways / the impact of raids.

Part 3: Hansen takes calls / a sweet old lady busted in the VFW game / would Dale legalize drugs?

My only regret is that I forgot to push the charity angle … and talk more with Dale about how his attempt at a major benefit (Cards for Kids with DallasCAN!) was stymied, and would not have been under the purview of a new law.

Yes, we women think from time to time — or at least the men allow us. Especially down here in Texas where all men are rednecks and women are stupid, no? Offended? See fine print below. Anyway, I was thinking about HB 3186 and the paradox of why we are unable to play raked poker in Texas. Here is just one example:

Considering the process of Natural Selection, poker tournaments are a great example of Darwinism. When the first poker hand is dealt, Herbert Spencer’s phrase “Survival of the fittest” becomes most poker player’s motto. We are forced to learn this scientific theory in our public schools while forbidding Creationism. Let’s get something clear right now…Creationism over Evolution is not the point of this post. Darwinism vs. Creation or Intelligent Design is not the point of this post, either.

My point is … why do we force children to learn the scientific theory of evolution over the 5,000-year-old historical book of Genesis only to tell postgraduates they’re unable to practice the forced theory and make decisions on their own in life. Isn’t it confusing the government will choose what you learn in school such as capitalism, free trade and freedom (which we pay for) only to forbid these things later in life? Is it me or does it seem the government takes religion away from children and then uses it against adults?

*Sew - Pun on women being stupid and knowing how to sew. Also read the comments on this post.
*Fine Print
The statement pertaining to Texas men being rednecks and Texas women being stupid is not true. State names have been changed to protect the ignorant innocent.

As we move along in the process to regulate poker in Texas, I’ve tried really hard not to overdo the poker metaphors, but this time it really is the best way to say it.

Our bill, HB 3186, is on the House General Calendar. The deadline for hearing this bill on the floor of the House is Thursday night. However, The House of Representatives is backed up pretty bad and the legislative carnage is evident already.

We feel good about our chances if we can get a vote, but at this point there is no guarantee that will happen.

The next few nights in the Texas House will be very late as they try to work through their calendar, but every time a contentious bill comes up for debate and one side begins to stall (or “chub” as it is referred to at the Capitol) bills at the end of the calendar become less likely to pass.

We are still in this thing, and frankly we’ve gotten farther than anyone thought we would.

In the meantime, continue to email your legislators. A good citizen recently posted this site and I encourage you to take advantage of it to contact your legislators: http://www.legalizepokerintexas.com/

Stay tuned, Thursday will be a very late night!

There was a pretty interesting article in Thursday’s Wall Street Journal about a recent gathering at Harvard University, which set out to bring together some of the brightest minds in academia to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that poker is a game of skill. (Uh duh.) Howard Lederer was the main poker dude on hand, along with famed Harvard Law Professor Charles Nesson, Annie Duke, Andy Bloch, PPA honcho Michael Bolcerek, and a number cruncher who wants to run the math on billions of hands.

The WSJ’s unscientific poll is currently running 77-23 in favor of skill. Read the article and you’ll see this isn’t about rehashing old theories and debates … because really, what do you think the poll results would be if we asked: “Is life primarily a matter of skill or luck.” I am guessing 77-23 might be pretty close to the results here, too.

In the article, Lederer espouses a new talking-point argument that I hadn’t yet heard/thought of:

The “vast majority” of high-betting poker hands, he says, are decided after all players except the winner have folded. So if no one shows his cards, Mr. Lederer says, “can you legally argue that the outcome was determined by luck?”

Cool stuff — and good to see, in the ivory towers at least, a growing recognition of how some of what is currently shaking down in the poker world reaches into important future matters of internet law, international law, international business, and economics.

After his strategy session wrapped up, Prof. Nesson led the group to a bar for drinks. He was delighted, he said, at how the group “pushed game theory to the level of metaphor.” Sipping a scotch on the rocks, he tossed out the idea of creating a poker university, with himself as one of its teachers. Then, “we could infuse all levels of education with the skills that come from poker,” he said.

Ken in Arlington writes in with a reminder that the fight for good poker laws and righteous regulation is being fought on multiple fronts. While Lavigne and others are doing their political masterwork in Austin, Reps. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.) are actively involved in undoing the UIGEA on the Federal and International level:

Hey Dan — Maybe this is already old news to you, but if not I certainly think this is a worthwhile blog item and link for you to post. The only congressman who spoke up strongly against the Internet bill last year hasn’t stopped fighting (though it says this happened last Thursday???):
http://tech.msn.com/news/articlecnet.aspx?cp-documentid=4797708&GT1=10036

A copy of Barney Frank’s Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act is here:

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/financialsvcs_dem/21frank_004_xml_(2).pdf

Love the site and all you put into it.

Ken Daley
NY Times and MLB.com free-lancer, former baseball columnist at Dallas Morning News
Arlington

It’s always good to see the non-pokery people paying attention to the poker issues of the day.

HB 3186 was voted out of the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee. We will be seeing our first Texas House vote on Poker as early as Friday. More to come, but for now please contact your State Representative and ask them to support HB 3186, The Texas Poker Act.

It has been a little while since I last updated y’all on the progress of our Texas Poker Bill (HB 3186). When we last left our little bill it had had a great hearing in the Texas House Committee on Licensing and Administrative Procedures. At the end of that hearing it was left pending and the real work began behind the scenes.

Your team has been busy…and successful. We anticipate it being voted out of committee very soon, but we need every poker player in Texas to do something between now and Monday afternoon. Call the legislators on the committee and let them know you support the regulation of poker, specifically HB 3186.

When you call, please remember a few things:

1) Be nice
2) Tell them specifically you support HB 3186
3) Ask them to support HB 3186 too

It will only take about 30 seconds a call and there are 9 members of the committee.

We are very close to getting this bill to the floor of the House, where we believe we may have enough votes to pass this thing.

Hopefullly, I’ll be updating you with some very good news on Monday night!

Over at The Agitator, they’ve got a firsthand account from someone mis-arrested during the June Aces raid. (Thanks, Jason, for the link.) If you recall, that was the poker room busted in cahoots with the A&E network … only to have the tapes from that episode of Dallas SWAT mysteriously disappear.

Bear in mind that, prior to police entering, the place was virtually quiet. There was the sound of poker chips in the air, but not much else. The players were essentially professionals and working stiffs having fun…there were doctors, lawyers, accountants, and other professionals. There was hardly anything “dangerous” about the place at all. In fact, the cops found no weapons in the facility or on anyone there. The show of force and weaponry brought by the cops was simply outrageous and unjustified, given the circumstances, but, then again, are they enforcing the law or making a TV show?

[...]

Despite the abject mistruths in the police report, I was still confident the tapes would help me. We finally got our subpoena response. Guess what? According to Granada Entertainment, there wasn’t any videotape of the event. All of the tapes had been recorded over, and there simply wasn’t any tape available. Two camera crews and helmet cams on the SWAT guys and not one single inch of tape existed.

It’s a lengthy report, but definitely worth the read (especially if you happen to have a poker case pending) — particularly because this guy had nothing to do with poker … he was simply helping out in the kitchen because the main food lady had an injured hand. Even as a non-poker player, this guy was able to call down the Assistant District Attorney on his bluff (literally!) when he said during the plea bargain that they had video of the defendant at the tables.

All charges ended up being dropped (even the ones for possession of marijuana and a pipe, which were actually found on him) — as has been the case for all poker cases where defendants have insisted on a jury trial.

No word on whether or not any charges will be filed against the the city of Dallas or agents of Granada Entertainment (the forces behind Dallas SWAT) for destruction of evidence, or perhaps more aptly, lying about destruction of evidence.

Go Poker!

ALT HED: Why We Play (Legally Questionable) Poker, Part 2

Julian in Dallas writes in with some official information about this past weekend’s poker busts, and … perhaps like a player intentionally showing his hole cards? … informs Dallas pokerers about what the police plan to do next.

(Austin poker people may also want to take note.)

In a nutshell, I think what he’s saying is stop playing poker giving citizens reason to complain about illegal gambling … or their gonna getcha, and might possibly sick the Feds on yo ass! As things stand now, 79 players were ticketed this weekend, 18 of whom are soon to be arrested … with some TABC violations to boot.

Hey, I’m just passing on info — and perhaps contemplating hosting a charity tournament freeroll for the Assist the Officers Foundation — so don’t shoot the messenger:

Dan …

Just FYI, we did not take the persons charged with M/A Keeping a Gambling Place to jail on Saturday night. Those charges have now been filed and those persons will now be picked up and placed in jail. In the future, all persons charged with M/A Keeping a Gambling Place will be placed in jail. Persons charged with M/C gambling are also subject to arrest and could be placed in jail depending on the circumstances. All persons recently charged with Gambling M/C were issued citations and released.

For the purposes of your website, I think you all should know that the Vice Unit would much rather have voluntary compliance from the businesses and citizens of the City of Dallas. Gambling investigations are in fact time consuming operations and we have other priorities that we could be working on. Let me repeat, we would rather have voluntary compliance from a group of normally law abiding citizens. If we cannot get that compliance then we will have to conduct operations that will ultimately discourage those normally law abiding citizens from engaging in such behavior.

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Or not … our beloved little HB 3186 still has a ways to go. But we are “this much closer” to legal-better poker in Texas … at a minimum, people in the law business are becoming more and more familiar with our “is