ONLINE POKER AND OUR FREEDOM TO PLAY IS UNDER ATTACK!
Corporate gaming interests in the US under the guise of religious right moral correctness have lobbied the federal government to spend our tax dollars to prosecute online poker sites. These same sites have asked for years for our government to legalize, regulate, and tax them so that they could more easily provide the freedom for US players to play OUR GAME.
Now the DOJ and the FBI are wasting valuable resources pursuing a case that no one cares about in the first place. And in the process are preventing an industry that could provide 35 billion or more in taxes in the near future from being legalized and regulated. Instead of using that money to provide health care or education for Americans we're going to allow it to leave the country in order to pave the way for big gaming (Harrahs, Caesars, Nevada Gaming Commission etc) to take over the industry. The United States has long stood for freedom and free market capitalism. But in this move the federal government is making it clear that those values only apply as long as big business supports them.
At the same time this case is leaving thousands of Americans without a source of entertainment and/or income. All of this is happening because Big Brother is here to tell us what is best while they take money under the table. Stop the hypocrisy, and fight for your right to play. Please go to the PPA website and contact your representatives, the president, and the DOJ to express your displeasure:
http://theppa.org/takeaction/
4 comments:
I understand your passion ,you need to not blame the right or the religious.Check your facts .
The blame goes to a government that knows only right and left , not right and wrong . I agree w/ the message but not the blame .
I think there has been 3 bills offered or drafted not counting the state bills that are trying to get thru to legalize online poker and the last 4 + yrs the house and senate has been controlled by the liberals and democrats .
Don't misunderstand the right AND left are to blame . My god how long does it take to get something passed in our government w/o the democrats blaming republicans for clubbing baby seals ,and the republicans blaming democrats for hating America.
We are free to do whatever we want as long as you pay a tax on it ? Really?
You do know that this is a big player in the legal issue?
I cant play online poker at home ,but I can get in my car drive ten minutes to the casino and play there ,or one of the hundreds of card rooms in my state .
I am not a tea party member , but I have to say the tea party is right about the government being to big and intrusive
BTW love the blog , added your blog on my follow list.
stacks I appreciate your comment and while I understand your point and don't disagree entirely with it you have to understand the machinery that is going on behind the scenes. The Senators that added the UIGEA to the Port Security Bill in 2006 did it under the table in the 12th hour. There was no debate and many of their colleagues had no idea this was even part of the legislation. Those same Senators (Frist and Kyl) claimed they were doing it because they believed that online gambling didn't align with traditional american values. We can both agree that their voting base was the religious right. This was also important to Frist because at the time he was planning on attempting to run for president in 2008.
However if you look at the campaign contributions made to these individuals you'll see that they both accept large donations (as many other elected officials do) from Harrahs, Caesars, as well as other gaming lobbying like horse racing et al. If these guys really purport to be morally opposed to gaming why would they accept dirty money to fund their bid at public office? The reason is that they actually could care less about gaming and poker (online or live) but by fighting against online they can make a fake case to their constituents while pleasing the same industry that is backing them.
Big corporate gambling in the US has long opposed online poker and gambling. Current US laws do not allow them to operate such sites and they believe that they are losing billions of dollars in revenue. However instead of fighting to make online poker and gaming legal and regulated in the states with a fair and open marketplace, they've used their money and influence to attack the sites that have been the industry leaders. Essentially they have supported the opposition to online poker because if successful they would blast the playing field clear of all opposition.
Did you know that Harrahs and Caesars have already licensed software, purchased domain names, and made press releases explicitly stating their readiness to open online poker rooms once legal? And the Nevada Gaming Commission just recently made a press release saying they were ready to be the hub of online gambling for the entire country once the federal government took the steps to make it legal and regulated. Their support of the opposition to online gambling shows that they are only interested in legalizing the market once their competition is eliminated.
If you look at the bill that was proposed last Dec relating online poker (which I discussed extensively in my blog) you'll see that it was mainly backed by US based casinos and included a 15 month blackout period followed by a licensing period for all potential online poker rooms. Harrahs and Caesars want this period because they know that it will help remove Pokerstars and Full Tilts market share, and at the same time allow them to get their software on the same level. Then when the licensing time comes they know they will immediately get licenses due to their history in the states as well as the fact that they've lined the pockets of the people that will be defining the licensing requirements. While Full Tilt and Stars are left out in the cold trying to prove that they never violated any US laws.
That bill did not pass, and while the PPA and the sites were all very disappointed you'll notice that no US based gaming companies really cared. Simply because they knew that eventually the DOJ and FBI would do the same work that the 15 month blackout/licensing rules would have tried.
I'm not saying that no dems are in on this cash grab disguised as a moral crusade. But the main players have all been repubs. the idea that the government is now trying to legislate your right to play poker in your own home with your own money is appalling.
Again I appreciate you taking the time to comment on my blog. Your clearly and informed reader and the kind of person I hope is on our side to fight for the freedom to play poker.
sincerely
Jim
Love the response .
I hear what your typing.
Its Amazing to me the we have almost four wars going on (I'm counting the soon to be a war , but lets not call it a war, Mexico boarder).Yet they go after online poker . there is definitely money behind this play.
Post a Comment