Las Vegas Sun

"May he forgive us for our bitterness."

I'd be bitter too if my party had had a quarter of a century to prove itself, six years of controlling both houses and the executive, and eight years of Bush, and had absolutely nothing to show but a bankrupted country, culture and idealogy.

How sad for you.

CJ

Excellent story, Lisa, and well written.

We have to keep saying this...

Playing poker online is NOT illegal!

There is no law against playing online. The UIGEA attempted to make it unlawful for credit card companies and banks to fund accounts, but the regulations have not been put in place. They haven't because the law is vague and poorly written. The financial organizations along with the Dept of Treasury and the Fed can't come up with anything they can regulate. It makes banks cops!

Poker players are just ordinary citizens who enjoy playing a game, period. For those of us who work hard at it, it's a game that requires a high degree of skill. The proof of that is we are consistent winners. If it were all luck, dependent on cards, this could not be the case.

We are skillful players, and now we are proving we are powerful political players. The politicians are paying attention. We are saying that we have a right to do what we want in our own homes with our own money, and nobody has the right to take away our decisions.

Thanks, LV Sun, for reporting on our cause.

CJ

FWIW, Eastside Cannery has a new poker room with a $3 rake, which hopefully will bring in a lot of players.

I live equidistant from Sunset and Cannery, so either one will win my play. Does that mean they are competitors? For me, I guess so. I also play more at GVR than anywhere else, but that's only because they spread a game I want to play which the rooms on this side don't--$4/$8 limit with $2/$4 blinds.

Honestly, there isn't a big difference between Sunset and GVR, imho. Sure, a little better decor at GVR, but it's not the reason people would go there specifically. As for Red Rock, when I lived on that side of town...OVERKILL.

I understand Red Rock is losing a million dollars a month. Not surprised. When you invest megabucks in a locals joint, even in an upscale part of town where gas prices are five to ten cents a gallon higher for no other reason than location, you might not get that investment back. I can see RR struggling for years and years, where the Cannery may do quite well.

Nice reporting, Liz, as always.

CJ

The GOP debated removing the anti-online gaming plank from their platform. Sadly, but not surprising, they put it back in. The debate was classic. The misinformation, the uninformed and the criminally stupid and irrational was straight out of the Bachus playbook.

What's left out of the discussion is the right of the individual to make his or her decisions for themselves. It appears the Republican Party is against the basic American right to privacy. What I do in my home with my money on my computer is not the business of the government. It is MY business. I can make my own decisions. I am an adult, over 21, in my right mind. I do not need the Republican Party and its Radical Religous Right telling me what to do. I have a mother. I don't need any more.

How those who supported Reagan can look at their party and be proud is beyond me. Are you blind? More likely, you are so afraid of losing whatever you think you've won that you will continue to allow the religious right to bully the rest of the party into taking up their causes, however irrational, in order to keep their votes.

I hope this insanity finally goes away. I want to believe that as an American I have rights which are respected by the rest of my neighbors. I suppose I must be a liberal, because I still respect their right to disagree, no matter how ridiculous their arguments are.

CJ

ps--Thanks, LV Sun, for publicizing the issue.

You just have to spin everything into an anti-Democrat position, right?

I MOVED to LV to play poker and I play online almost every day, too. Online gaming SUPPORTS the growth of Las Vegas casinos! Many people's first exposure is on the Internet, then they want to come out to the real casinos to play.

I play poker and I vote! I would not vote for any Republican on the face of the Earth. They want to take away my rights and have done a fine job of it.

“Well, we certainly don’t need to spend any more money on (education).”

No, obviously that was already money well spent on him. The level of intelligence shown in this article are appalling but not surprising. The key was "voting NO on everything." How did we ever get out of the caves?

Nothing at all about how the industry has gone upscale and shut out many middle-class and blue-collar visitors. The investment went into the high-roller type properties, one supposes with the idea that this market segment is the most "recession proof." One supposes that's been proven wrong, too.

While this story is interesting, it reveals almost nothing. Too much is missing, from either the wrong questions, the wrong experts, or an unwillingness to be truthful.

Just how bad is it?

Are real estate developers lower than lawyers and used car salesmen?

I play poker, and am deeply involved in the industry, both online and live. I don't bet sports, play pit games (don't even know how), and have never played slots except once before a show, penny slots for free cokes because two were seven bucks at the bar. Poker is not a game for gambling addicts. It's too slow. Not enough action. It is a game of skill, at the least the way winners play. ;)

Online gambling could, if legal and regulated by something like the Nevada Gaming Commission, have actually more safeguards against underage gambling and problem gamblers. There are many more ways for an online casino to spot both and provide services to the latter. Unfortunately, the online casinos as they are now, have no oversight. This needs to be addressed and hopefully will be with a change in Administrations.