PPA POLITICAL DRIVE COMPLETED (Update)

26 October 2007

Over 100 top players canvassed Washington politicians


The three day Poker Players' Alliance drive to persuade Washington politicians to legalise online poker ended this week, achieving good publicity coverage and leaving legislators with plenty of food for thought....and a few ruffled feathers among the horseracing fraternity, which enjoys legislative carve-outs on Internet wagering.

Some 100 poker players, most of whom were hand-picked by the Alliance, arrived on Capital Hill to meet with Congressmen and women (see previous InfoPowa report).

Arguing his case in an interview with USA Today, John Pappas, the executive director of the PPA spoke about skill levels in poker, comparing the pastime with horserace betting. "The individual skill of the player determines the outcome, unlike betting on the horses or betting on the lottery," he said. "It's not an individual competing against the house, and that's an important distinction."

Horseracing fans didn't take kindly to the comment, with Michael Dempsey, who runs a handicapper website reacting aggressively in commenting that Pappas needed a lesson in gambling. "You are not 'competing against the house' in horse racing. It's called PARI-MUTUEL wagering," he said. "If this ****** does not know the difference between the lottery and pari-mutuel wagering, the PPA is in big trouble. And he pisses off horseplayers during Breeders' Cup week? Nice move!"

Elsewhere the influence of the PPA's 800 000 members created a more courteous reception, with some 45 politicians prepared to listen to arguments from the visitors. The players' goal for the fly-in was to boost support for a legislation that seeks to either license and regulate online gambling in the USA, or create exceptions for poker similar to those granted to state lotteries, horceracing, fantasy sports and "games of skill" like backgammon, mahjong and bridge.

Delegates attended a panel discussion titled "Poker, Public Policy, Politics, Skill and the Future of an American Tradition," featuring Harvard Law professor Charles Nesson, antitrust litigator Kenneth Adams, poker expert Howard Lederer, and Harvard law student Andrew Woods, founder of the Global Poker Strategic Thinking Society.

Talking about last year's Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, Lederer, a two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner, said that the law had certainly had an impact, inconveniencing online poker players by disrupting financial transactions with online poker companies to some extent.

That's unfortunate, Lederer argued, because "yes, it can be used as a vice, but for most of us it's a wonderful form of entertainment that actually massages your mind, gets you thinking." He emphasised that the UIGEA does not specifically outlaw online poker games nationwide, but requires banks and payment processors to take certain steps to block transactions stemming from "unlawful" forms of gambling and, in some cases, would force Internet service providers to block access to offshore gambling sites.

"You know, seventy, 80 million people in America like to play poker, and they should have the right to do it on the internet, if they want," said Lederer.

But it's not always clear what forms of Internet gambling are "unlawful" from state to state--and how poker fits in, he opined. And payment processors seem to be playing it safe, opting to stop accepting transactions from online poker and bridge sites even when it's not clear laws are being broken.

"Poker players are simply being inconvenienced, and poker players who are in states where there is clearly no prohibition on poker are being inconvenienced," Lederer said. "And that inconvenience is going to get much worse."

Exacerbating the confusion, the U.S. Department of Treasury, still in the early stages of drafting the regulations that power UIGEA, had made no attempt to define what is considered "unlawful" gambling in its proposed regulations issued earlier this month. But it acknowledged that "overblocking" by banks may occur and the agency is soliciting comments on how to handle that.

Respected professional poker player Vanessa Russo said that a regulated online poker regime would be far preferable because it's easier to detect cheating and addictive behaviours that way. "The fact that all the websites are logged means you can program software to detect problem gamblers much more efficiently than you ever could in a live way," she said.

Poker champion Annie Duke opined: "You know, the last time I checked, the Constitution is supposed to protect your right to do what you want in the privacy of your own home when you're not hurting anybody.";

Aides to Congressmen Frank and Wexler, who have bills in progress seeking to regulate or exempt online poker said that momentum was still building and the bills needed more support before being put to the vote.

Harvard Professor Charles Nesson said: "I think poker has tremendous educational utility for kids, I think it's a great family game,"

PPA leader John Pappas revealed that the pressure group plans to launch a voter registration drive next year with the hopes of signing up "single issue voters" who would be willing to vote against reelecting members of Congress who reject attempts to turn back the anti-online gambling law. The group is also encouraging members to post video testimonials about the "influence of online poker on our lives" on YouTube. Pappas urged understanding of the "true nature of poker and why this unique game of skill can have a positive influence on human behaviour and society."

There is no reason, Pappas insisted, why this "great American tradition, played around the kitchen table," should now be suspect because it is played in cyberspace..

Not everyone agrees. Dr. Guy Clark of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling is vehemently opposed to regulation, saying: "If you legalize it, it just means more people will gamble, more become addicted. That's been the case with every kind of gambling in every community, in every state."

Early indications are that at least one politician was influenced by the project. One PPA delegate posted on the 2+2 portal that Representative Jim Moran of Virginia had agreed to co-sponsor the Frank and Wexler bills after listening to Annie Duke and Chris Ferguson.

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa