The thieves in DC have pulled off a great con! All along, they (Republicans) want to tax the (disappearing) middle class to extinction. There is a very large number of us who have fallen to the depths of begging to be taxed… for the “privilege” of playing Poker online!
Forget about the fact the MILLIONS play online around the world without the albatross hanging around their necks. They don’t have our elected thieves! Forget about the fact that what we do with OUR time and OUR money should be OUR choices. Here! PLEASE Tax us! Please take a chunk of our money! The Gov’t hook is in our mouths… it’s set, and we’re being reeled in!
I don’t know about you, but I’m so tired of the same old song coming out of Washington… Do anything to defeat Obama! Do anything to divide the classes! Do anything to protect the wealthy! Do anything to oppress the poor!
You fell into a great deal when you befriended Bill Gates, but it seems that’s the last good decision you’ve made. Your businesses have been far less than stellar and very weird (UFOs, Old Rock ‘n Roll, Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame etc). I won’t discuss high tech disasters like Layered Inc, Skypix, Charter, Egghead, and Interval Research (you can’t even successfully sue over patents – even Harry Potter beat you). Even Microsoft is better off since (because of) your departure. But I want to concentrate on something closer and dearer to the hearts of my readers… your other love; Sports.
As the owner of the Seattle Seahawks, some unknown team in an unknown sport (soccer) and of course, the Portland Trailblazers you have reached the pinnacle of mediocrity. Even the Trailblazers franchise has a very checkered past under your leadership. You bought it lock, stock and barrel from a good owner and management team at a time when it was hitting on all cylinders. But what has it done lately????
Nothing! I can’t say it any clearer nor eloquently. The team has done nothing! You might have taken a page from the past and not made the horrendous mistake of passing up Kevin Durant for some guy …. what’s his name? Oh Yeah – Greg Oden! But no! You repeated the monumental screwup of passing on Michael Jordan for … what’s his name? Oh Yeah – Sam Bowie.
It seems to me that we’ve been handed the best tool available for getting Online Gambling legalized in the US.
Poker is a great pastime, and we’ve proven that by skirting the law, avoiding the funding restrictions, and ignoring the UIGEA.
… and what did we get? Screwed! Screwed out of our money by unscrupulous, greedy operators of such sites as: Full Tilt Poker, Ultimate Bet, and Absolute Poker. Doesn’t that alone SCREAM for US Regulation? It’s the US Department of Justice that brought those cheating executives down for the good of the whole World… and the good of Poker, Online Gambling, and players everywhere.
I have to say “I told you so”. I’m still against the UIGEA… more so than ever! Can anyone now say that US intervention is wrong? Can anyone now say to the US Gov’t – “Hands Off Internet Gambling”?
DOJ says Full Tilt was a global Ponzi scheme
20 September 2011
By Dan Igo
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Tuesday that Full Tilt Poker operated as a “global Ponzi scheme” and that its primary owners, including poker professionals Howard Lederer and Chris “Jesus” Ferguson, defrauded the site’s players out of hundreds of millions of dollars.
The DOJ filed a motion to amend an earlier civil complaint against Full Tilt Poker to include “additional allegations, claims, and defendants concerning a fraudulent scheme by Full Tilt Poker and its Board of Directors concerning the misuse of players’ funds,” according to a memorandum sent out by Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney from the Southern District of New York.
“Full Tilt was not a legitimate poker company, but a global Ponzi scheme,” Bharara said in a statement. “Full Tilt insiders lined their own pockets with funds picked from the pockets of their most loyal customers while blithely lying to both players and the public alike about the safety and security of the money deposited.”
I must admit, I missed the Kentucky Derby completely! I never even considered Animal Kingdom. Shame on me!
So, that behind me, I’ll take a look at today’s Preakness Stakes (about an hour away as I write this).
Animal Kingdom is indeed the favorite right now at 5/2 (very betable). AK has a great final kick which showed in the Kentucky Derby and is helpful in this shorter trek. The trainer: Graham Motion has a perfect record in that he’s never been even charged with violations (so he set up lots of security around AK because someone would love to inject him with performance enhancing drugs to show that he and the spokesman (Barry Irwin) for the owner 20-man group: Team Valor are dirty). Motion is unconventional (only 4 races before the KD, and never on dirt and none in 6 weeks prior to that race). John Velasquez on board again thanks to a freak accident that sidelined his regular rider on Kentucky Derby day.
My Squidoo lenses were “locked” today. That means taken down, unpublished, hidden away, destroyed, obliterated, bombed, and killed. Know why? Because they were about the Horse races; Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and one about Las Vegas (and how to save money on your next visit).
Those lenses were labeled by the Squidoo Brainiacs as Gambling.
These were simple lenses of information – that’s all – information. But the Squidoo Fools called the lenses: “Gambling”
Yes, Surprise was the word of the day yesterday as the Titanic of horse racing, the 1-9 favorite Uncle Mo lost to two (not just one, but two – Toby’s Corner and Arthur’s Tale) rivals in the Wood Memorial.
BTW: As you know, I had picked Uncle Mo to win that race (as did everyone else it seems – after all, he went off at 1-9) so that was a loss. What I didn’t have time to tell most of you was this. When Uncle Mo showed those odds (1-9) I jumped off him! At those odds, no horse is bettable because you risk your money for a very small return… it’s just not smart! So, the play in this case was to bet EVERY OTHER HORSE to win… and hope for an upset. Because, the closest odds to the favorite was an amazing 17-1 (late betting pushed him down to 8-1 – may have been his connections who always bet at the very last moment)… the other horses were well into the high 20′s, the 30′s, and beyond. So, place one unit on each of the other horses to win, and 2 units on the favorite-of-the-rest (8-1).
Playing $10 units, your bet would have been $90, and your return was nearly $200.
At the start of that race, Uncle Mo was also the favorite to win the Kentucky Derby. Less than two minutes later… dog meat! Well, that’s a little harsh, he’s still a good horse in a so-so crop of 3 year olds. That’s horse racing! As we know, anything can and does happen. Unless it’s discovered that Uncle Mo was injured (and Bob Baffert said he tore a quarter at the gate) Uncle Mo had no excuses as the times were very, very slow.
The race to enter The Kentucky Derby tightens up considerably today through two very important prep races; the Santa Anita Derby, and the Wood Memorial.
Here’s how I see them:
Santa Anita Derby – Today’s SADerby is going to be hottly contested based upon of all things: the horses! Duh! You say… but consider the facts that great careful breeding, high prices, famous connections, perfect training and deep pocket owners can all do their parts and still not make the grade… in this case: The Grade I, Million Dollar SAD!
Allow me to rant! I want to join those who are disappointed at the least, and furious at most that Pia Toscano was eliminated from American Idol last night.
For me, the show is dead. I won’t be watching it anymore. I will find out who won of course in a few more weeks, but I won’t be watching it anymore.
It’s very important to note that one can Google “Pia” and she’s first and foremost out of millions of pages. The US has fallen in love! Not only is she the most beautiful girl on the show (sorry Lauren and what’s her name [Hailey]), but IMO the most talented too!
Sure, Dialed In, the 5-2 second favorite in the eight horse field ridden by Julien Leparoux and trained by Nick Zito, won the Florida Derby. But I have to ask “So What”? It was his trademarked long-strided stretch run that got him the win… but… Read the rest…
We USA players sit by and watch the rest of the World have all the fun… and the time to make a change has never been better! There’s a new bill; HR 1174 sponsored by Congressmen Barney Frank (D-MA) and John Campbell (R-CA) which is similar to Barney Frank’s bill HR 2267 that will repeal the stupid UIGEA that we laughingly observe today.
Yes, it’s that time of year when we are getting serious about the upcoming Kentucky Derby. I get caught up in this like many of you, and more than most. I love the triple crown events, and especially the Kentucky Derby!
March always bring much speculation about this horse, that horse, the connections and the race itself, so I’m going to do my part to keep the interest sparked!
I will be writing about the horses, their breeding, their connections, and their expectations, and their chances of winning “The Big One”. I already have my horse picked out… you’ll learn that later (in today’s post).
It was announced today that two Las Vegas Casino companies have forged agreements with overseas companies that offer Online Gambling to various countries – but, not to the USA… YET! We are still stuck with Bush’s sneaky addition to the Port Safety Act (see my previous posts) that included the UIGEA. I will never forgive him for that!
But NOW – the path ahead is getting less muddied and much clearer! There are legislators that want that UIGEA crap overturned, and there are gambling companies that feel the same. And why not? It would bring companies back to the USA, thousands of jobs back to the USA, and millions of legal players to the Internet… all of which means a huge shot-in-the-arm for our lagging economy!
I hope you will contact your Senators, Congressmen and Congresswomen and urge them to get onboard – this WILL be done… so let’s stop the debate, and get on with it!!!!
Just a few months after an online poker bill failed to make much progress in the United States Congress, a new piece of legislation was introduced today.
The bill is apparently identical to H.R. 2267, an online gambling bill that passed the House Financial Services Committee last summer but did not reach the House floor. An effort in December by Sen. Harry Reid to make progress on a poker-only bill failed, as well. Read the rest…
Chuck Blount: Pursuit of gaming legislation often ends with bad news
Updated 08:33 p.m., Wednesday, March 16, 2011
When it comes to online and land-based gaming legislation, I liken big government to the Harlem Globetrotters and the pro-gaming advocates as the Washington Generals.
The game usually ends with the Generals staring at the scoreboard in humiliating defeat.
Last week, one of the brightest flames to online gaming legislation was extinguished when New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie vetoed Senate Bill 490 days before it was set to become law. Read the rest…
On one hand, I feel sorry for Cam Newton (QB – Auburn). Not for what he’s done, but because he’s doing just what his low-life father has taught him to do. Read the rest…
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