After six weeks, it’s time to call this what it is: An international war against poker, with the U.S. leading the opposition.
As gaming affiliates, we can’t defend or condone any violation whatsoever of U.S. financial laws. But we also can’t just sit back and let our leaders shut down every major Internet poker site without giving us any other options in their place.
This war is political, and that’s how affiliates should fight it. Contact your local lawmakers — hell, contact your state and federal lawmakers, too. The more voices tell our leaders we want regulated online poker, the faster they’ll take action.
In any war, knowledge is essential to victory. On this U.S. Memorial Day, then, let’s take a moment to review the latest Black Friday headlines.
Angry crowd demands more taxes
Tuesday’s online poker rally on D.C., organized by the Poker Players Alliance (PPA), raked in some pretty big media coverage. The Washington Times called the crowd “angry”, while USA Today described it as “a rare rally asking for taxation” …
New federal online poker bill on the way
During that rally, it was announced that Texas Republican Rep. Joe Barton would introduce a new online gambling bill in the U.S. Congress. Barton’s a firm believer that poker is a game of skill.
Iowa gov signs online poker bill
Branching off this movement, Iowa has joined Nevada in the likely-to-grow list of states with legislation allowing for the study of online poker, with the goal of regulation and taxation. The state’s Republican governor signed the bill Thursday.
QuickTender halts withdrawals: What’s it mean?
Following the sudden shutdown of payment solution provider QuickTender, the CAP blog explores where the payment situation is likely to go from here, and what affiliates should be doing about it.
What the U.S. public thinks of the online poker ban
We’ve heard a lot from the poker marketers and professionals, but what do average U.S. citizens think of the online poker shutdown? Is it even on their radar? We explore that question here.
U.S. seizes 10 more gaming domains
The .com domains for Bookmaker, Funtimebingo, Goldenarchcasino, Truepoker, Betmaker, Doylesroom, Beted and a few others were shut down this week, too. Get that story here.