Politics

If you are either a U.S. poker player or a non-U.S. poker player who would like to play against the rich and fishy U.S. players again, then you need to take a minute to read this blog. I will keep it short and precise because there is something you need to do.

There is a lot of angry noise about the outgoing Bush administration passing a lot of regulations in their final days in office, including finally coming out with the rules for the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act.

Well, first the facts, this happens every time a U.S. President leaves office. This is not unusual and there will literally be hundreds of new regulations put in place in the next two months. Just another dirty side of American politics.

However, the UIGEA is already law, what has been offered up, as of yesterday, are the first "proposed" implementation guidelines. But here is the important thing to know: These are proposed rules and are now open to public comment by anyone. All you have to do is take a minute or five and write that you are opposed.

To be sure the American financial industry is opposed and they will say so loudly and publicly. But you are against these rules too and you have the right to be heard and you don't need to be a U.S. citizen. Below are the means to forward your comments and an additional link to the Obama Transition Team to let them know of your concern.

Probably the easiest way to communicate your thoughts is via email to regs.comments@federalreserve.gov, be sure to include the docket number in the subject of your email, it is R-1298.

There are also two websites for offering your comments either the Federal Reserve or the Federal RuleMaking Portal. Just follow the instructions to "comment".

To copy the Obama people, use this link.

And finally, if you would actually like to read the proposed rules, here is the site.

I guess its close enough to All Hallows Eve to offer up some of the stranger happenings and non-happenings in the wide world of poker. Out there is the hinderlands, in the casinos and card rooms; tournaments and cash games; all kinds of happenings strange and stranger take place. Here are just a few:

Clonie Gowen won a poker tournament and I don't mean a six handed game in someone's garage; though she is invited to my garage any night of the week. I just need a one hour notice to take my cobalt medicine.

Clonie took down the $5,000 World Poker Open at the Gold Strike Casino in Tunica, Mississippi. One hundred and seven entrants took on the WPO, which used to be a big tournament on the circuit but has fallen by the regular tour wayside with so many other events vying for players this fall. But Clonie has always considered Tunica her home poker grounds. I even took her out a few years back with Kings over Queens; you know she can hold a grudge. Anyway, the wonderous Ms. Gowen took it all down after entering the final table with the chip lead. She takes home a $183,224 championship payday and gives me a reason to use her photo, which is why this item made it onto my fringe list in the first place.

Lots of casinos offer beginner's poker classes. Well actually many rooms have a sign up that says they offer instruction but new players are usually too embarrassed to actually take them up on the offer. But the Commerce Casino has created Poker University. Well maybe not quite a university but a weekly two hour class for beginner's that will actually give them the necessary skills to sit down at a low limit table. The 'University" runs every Tuesday, is limited to 25 students and is run in an isolated area of the casino, so they participants might actually be able to learn a trick or two.

From the Commerce press release: The University will feature poker comedian Roger Rodd - to provide a little levity to the proceedings - but will also be an intensive training course for newcomers to the world of poker as well as those intermediate players who need a little brushing up on their skills. Rodd is no stranger to the poker world; known as Hollywood’s “Instructor to the Stars,” Rodd has taught the game of poker to Hollywood’s brightest personalities and also served as poker coach for the movie “Lucky You,”

OK, so the mention of Lucky You is what set off my fridge-o-meter here. Those folks in Hollywood just never know when to leave a truly enormous flop off of their resume.

Finally, this really fridgy item. It seems the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, a political entity recognized only by Turkey, has begun to host poker tournaments and has "applied to the World Poker Tour" to organize a WPT event. OK, so we have the mere mention of region? province? country?, which might insight civil war. The violation of several national gaming laws on gambling and in particular a ban on tournament poker and an invitation to all of folks, the WPT, which is floundering on its own in the U.S. We all know how much thoughtful planning leads to a good, solid bankruptcy filing. Rube Goldberg would be proud of this and so would the International Monetary Fund. Hey, speaking of that, how about a huge charity poker tournament to bail out the world economy.

Frequent readers know that I am always on the lookout for poker references in unusual places. I particularly like it when politics and poker mix. Here is a great example combining the Scottish parliament with a perfect poker metaphor. This comes from Comment is Free a very good blog on politics and culture.

Most US voters will find this mild stuff indeed, as here in Scotland they actually give the election to whomever gets the most votes.... well almost. It seems the one party (SNP) won the majority of the seats in the recent parlimentary elections. However, being that this is a parliamentary system, there is the need for a coalition government, which again for you US voters, means the politicians actually have to cooperate.

First problem, someone has to appoint a speaker or presiding officer of the parliament to swear in all the new ministers but well they can't agree on who should hold that position. Bit of a problem there don't you think, they seem to have a new game and a new deck but no dealer.

Next, toss in the small issue of Scottish Independence and it seems several of the minority parties not only will not talk to the new majority party; they don't talk to each other either. So it appears all of the players in this governemental poker game are at the table but one wants to play Stud, two are for Hold'em (one limit, one no-limit) and it appears there are two votes for Crazy Pineapple, which come to think of it should really be called Crazy Politics.

May 30th is the date when all of this, in theory, comes together and there is a new government and a new session of parliament. But as the good folks at Comment Is Free summed it all up:

"This is a fascinating political poker game, and the stakes are getting higher every day. There are now 22 days left before we finally see the cards."

Wouldn't it make more sense and be a lot more truthful if every session of every Parliament, Congress, Legislature, Knesset or Council of every country, state, town or village began its session not with a prayer or a salute to a flag but with some more universally appropriate phrase, like:

"Shuffle Up and Deal!"

And for something completely different, how about dealing off the top of the deck this time.

[Image from MindStuff.com]

Remember to tell your congressperson in Washington D.C. that you voted for them because of their oppostition to the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act and that you expect them to do something to reverse its implementation.

This Congressional contact database if being updated today.

Need more motivation to stay involved, read this commentary from the Dark Side.