Just one week after a historic election the Poker Players Alliance is pitted in a fight to keep anti-Internet poker regulations from being enacted and we NEED YOUR HELP!
The current Administration is hastily finalizing a number of “midnight rules” before they leave office and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) is on the list. See the 11/06 story in Dow Jones. Just like UIGEA was snuck into legislation in the dark of night in 2006, our opponents are again trying an 11th hour sneak job. We need you to help us expose and stop this reckless rulemaking.
Please call the U.S. Federal Reserve and tell them not to approve the UIGEA regulations -- Consumer Complaints, 888-851-1920 or Public Affairs, 202-452-2955. And, please write at www.federalreserve.gov/feedback.cfm.
Tell them:
- The federal agencies responsible for our nation’s economy should not be focused on Internet poker regulations.
- Finalization of the UIGEA rules will add additional burdens on our already crippled financial systems.
- Internet poker is a game of skill and form of recreation for millions of Americans; it should be exempted from the UIGEA.
- Please do not finalize the UIGEA regulations until their impact on our banking systems and average Americans has been fully studied.
Your call will make a huge difference and will add the public’s voice to these last minute policy decisions our government is poised to make. We can’t stand idly by while they make decisions that will impact our right to play America’s card game. PLEASE CALL TODAY!
23 comments:
LOL, They should make ALL gambling illegal. Casinos (both real and online) prey on the WEAK and ruin lives. Shut them ALL down!
jess
www.Privacy-Center.net
Poker has about as much gambling associated with it as the stock market. The skilled players will win in the long run. Doesn't the government have more important things to do? Maybe fix the economy!
Harold,
This is not about gambling. This is about poker, which is a game of skill that is played by millions for enjoyment. Not sure who you think is preying on anyone, but no one is forced to play. Besides, this legislation provides protection for the rare individual with an excessive gaming habit while allowing the vast majority of those who play responsibly with the right to do just that.
In these difficult economic time we definitely NEED TO TAX gambling! We can't afford to gamble with our economic future. Gambling is not entertainment; it's a addiction!
@Harold:
Alcohol ruins lives. Women (by way of hostile divorces) ruin lives. Cars (by way of accidents) ruin lives.
By your logic, shouldn't we ban alcohol (Prohibition didn't work too well), women and cars?
Banning gambling is just as absurd. It's an activity which, if done irresponsibly, has negative consequences, but lacks those negative consequences for millions of otherwise law-abiding Americans.
"Gambling is not entertainment; it's a addiction!"
Only for a VERY small percentage of participants. The 99.5% of people without problems shouldn't have to give up their freedoms to protect the 0.5% who'll find a game somewhere else anyway.
It's funny how many who preach about limited government can't get enough big government when it comes to legislating behaviors.
own most of these banks now, so we're the ones footing the bill. Ridiculous.
Harold Fowler, I assume you want all state lotteries and racing shut down as well? At least poker is a skill game, the lottery is a completely regressive tax on the poor and ignorant, but the state gets their cut so its OK. Complete bs.
Tax it and regulate it, that seems fair. Spending government resources on this is ridiculous, we own most of these banks now, so we're the ones footing the bill. Ridiculous.
Harold Fowler, I assume you want all state lotteries and racing shut down as well? At least poker is a skill game, the lottery is a completely regressive tax on the poor and ignorant, but the state gets their cut so its OK. Complete bs.
(sorry, first comment cut off)
Please quit trying to legislate my private hobby while at the same time bailing out the huge greedy gamblers on wall street. When was the last time the poker players of America demanded 700 billion dollars of the taxpayers money to cover their loses.
I would bet $ that Sheldon Adelson is behind this move. Worried about his bricks and mortar empire on the Las Vegas strip.
Adelson is a neocon who has helped Bush/Cheney political funding. Look him up.
He's been whining loudly about possibly going bankrupt. Now we know why.
Poker is not gambling. Gambling is playing games of chance for money. Poker is a game of skill. The person with the worst hand can win in poker, but no such thing can be said for a lottery, keno, blackjack or betting on a coin flip.
When you play a game of blackjack in a casino everyone is a loser because of odds and the house take built into the game. In poker, there are no odds that favor the house because the house is not playing. You pay for poker per hand out of the pot the same way you pay a waitress to bring drinks to your table. All stakes are shared between players.
Jess you can make all gambling illegal, but then you could still play poker because playing poker is not gambling the same way playing baseball is not gambling.
Take it from an ex-gambling addict... Gambling is enjoyable for most people and an addiction for a small fraction. Poker is a game of skill. Those with skill have the right to profit off of it just as any other skill is legally profitable.
A gambling addiction and any trouble that comes from it is the players fault. To ban a country from playing because several irresponsible players can't take responsibility nor control themselves is not the way to handle the situation.
Honestly.. they should just tax whatever winnings are discovered, the economy needs the money anyway.
The Federal Reserve is a private group of banks and is not part of the US government. Please call them and ask them directly as I did.
Gambling is evil, it ought to be banned everywhere.
Harold,
Bring your friend luck and I'd love to take your money sometime.
Regards,
Skill
OMG!! Is someone, somewhere having a good time? We MUST put a stop to it!! This is our MORAL IMPERATIVE!!!
The government should clearly control and regulate every aspect of our lives according to arbitrary "community standards" with dubious origins. Unfortunately, these things are never what they seem to be; I'd be more worried about the precedents.
Please note that the direct link to comment on these regulations is here:
http://tinyurl.com/uigea
The other link goes to the Fed's general comment page
Cheeseburgers are evil, they ought to be banned everywhere.
They want to ban poker and sports gambling? Meanwhile, one can gamble fortunes away in the stock and commodities markets and that's no problem , I guess. The hypocracy makes me sick. The stock market is far more rigged and fraudulant than poker or sports gambling. Look at what has happened to people's 401k's. What to tell me that isn't gambling too? Get lost with this shite.
"All stakes are shared between players."
Not true the house takes a rake on cash games and a percentage on tournament buy-ins or they wouldn't offer the game.
That being said I don't think online poker should be banned however, I do think it should be regulated a lot more. I don't necessarily think the government should be the one to do this but it does need more regulation. Anytime you have a lot of money to be gained you are going to attract shady people and the online poker world is full of them. From collusion to bots to unethical employees it all needs more regualtion and checks and balances.
http://amoffat.com/sl-analog.pdf
Article IV (Justification)
All governments shall release and maintain official, detailed justifications for all laws to be made available to the people.
Article VII (Responsibility)
No law shall regulate matters of personal responsibility, except in cases where the individual has been relieved of unregulated personal responsibility by a jury of his peers in a court of law, or in cases where neglect of said responsibility would harm the well-being of another.
Article VIII (Transaction)
The people have the right to the sale and use of any good or service that does not violate the rights of another.
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