Could the AGA Be Changing Its Stance?

Sometimes you hit a nerve, I guess.

Last month, after finally noticing AGA President Frank Fahrenkopf's right wing affiliations, I climbed up on my high horse and fired off a rather scathing - even for me - post about how Fahrenkopf's political affiliations might be affecting his business judgement. Or vice versa.

Anyway, it seems that either Mr. Fahrenkopf read my post, or somebody else read it and explained it to him.

And apparently he didn't like the image he was portraying to the world, because he immediately set to work disproving everything I wrote about him. And as a person in his position is wont to do, he has managed to have the media record his every move.

Look at the media output Fahrenkopf has generated since my offensive:
US Casino Giants Mull Online Gaming Moves (gambling911.com)Legalised U.S. Internet Gambling Back On The Agenda (Online-Casinos.com)... [More]

This is not a joke

A few months ago, I got myself signed up on the mailing list of the American Family Association.

As they are one of the more ardent opponents to online gambling, I thought it would be a good idea to keep tabs on what they were up to. You know, keep your enemies close, yada yada yada.

However, after several months of receiving weekly emails urging me to boycott [insert company name here] due to the fact that they give same sex benefits, I finally managed to get unsubscribed. It was a waste of time.

But all things considered, I have to admit that they managed to truly offend my sensibilities only a couple of times, which was a lot less than I suspected.

Until now.

Take a look at this, and ask yourself if this is not the most culturally offensive thing you have seen in a while.

I am at a loss for words. They are actually serious about selling burning crosses.

Bush Administration Finalizes UIGEA... but is it too late?

I'm starting to think that president Bush (I am hereby no longer capitalizing the word "president" in reference to Bush) is actually Barack Obama's biggest fan.

Why else would he spend the last weeks of his presidency in a constant quest to reach new lows, if not for the assumption that he hopes for Obama to be viewed as "The Best President Ever" in comparison?

Especially since so many of his last-minute partisan policy maneuvers will probably be immediately reversed as soon as Obama assumes control of the presidency.

What am I talking about?

Well, first, let's talk about the bad news...

Yesterday, the Department of the Treasury finalized the rules to implement the UIGEA, in a move that flew in the face of the American banking industry, the newly-elected Democratic majorities in the House and Senate, the international legal gaming community, and the American economy in general. Not to mention simple common sense.

As I mentioned the other day, there is a rule on the books which states that laws finalized more than 60 days before a change in administration can not be canceled by the incoming administration. This explains why the Bushies did everything they could to ... [More]

Bush Administration Takes a Last Kick at the UIGEA

The Bush administration seems to be adopting a new strategy: If you can't go out on top, at least you can go out on the bottom.

As I mentioned a week or so ago, the deadline is looming quickly for partisan bills and policies to be reviewed, ratified and implemented before the new Obama administration comes to power.

The process takes 60 days, so in order to ensure the new administration can not cancel your plans, you need to start the process before November 17th.

And so it was obviously with this in mind that the Bush administration began its latest push to implement the UIGEA, despite the fact that it is opposed by the international community, the American banking industry, the Federal Reserve, the House Committee on Financial Services, and if the recent election is any indication, at least 52.5% of the American people.

According to the Politico, "[William} Wichterman and others backers of the bill, ... [More]

Spitzer won't be charged

Yeah, I know this is a few days old, but I've been out of the country and blogging is not possible on my Blackberry.

In case you haven't seen it, here's the story.

My thoughts:

1) I guess I'm going to have to change my avatar.

2) It's good to see that his Daddy was able to give him a job. It wouldn't surprise me if this fact probably helps explain Spitzer's easy smugness and hypocrisy. The guy probably never had a minute in his life where he was actually worried about his financial future.

3) Frankly, if he wasn't mis-using public funds, then I don't think he should be charged either. Prostitution should be legalized and regulated (for health issues) anyway.

Armey has seen the light

CNET posted an interesting article today by former Republican House Majority Leader, Dick Armey, who is now heading the FreedomWorks organization.

What makes this story interesting is the fact that Armey and his organization appear to be lining up against the UIGEA and in favor of Internet freedoms in general.

Sweet.

What isn't so great is the fact that he's supporting Barney Frank's Payments System Protection Act, which still holds the view that sports gambling is illegal.

Regardless, I still feel the Act is a step in the right direction. I have no idea how they plan to keep the different types of online gambling segregated anyway, so I suspect it's passing would be a good thing for sports bettors too.

Back to Dick Armey... I used to view this guy as something of a Republican sycophant, but recently I have had reason to re-evaluate my opinion of the guy.

If you are interested, you should read the recent book, Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency, which not only tears down the most evil VP in history, but also recounts a shocking story of how Dick Cheney deceived Dick ... [More]

Frank Fahrenkopf: CEO of the AGA / Loyal Republican

Here's a link to my blog post.

Short summary: Fahrenkopf is about as conservative and right-wing as it is possible to be, and has major ties to the Republican Party elite.

I don't really care about that.

But he's also in charge of the American Gaming Association and their policy of remaining "neutral" on the online gaming issue.

Makes you wonder who is pulling who's strings, doesn't it?

Meet Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr.: CEO of the American Gaming Association and Loyal Republican

I've been failing at my task.

As somebody who truly believes that the legalization of online gambling in America would bring a vast number of economic and social benefits, I have made it my goal to spread the word and help bring about that change. Along that line, I hope I have been providing useful information and comment to my readers.

However, one mistake I have made is that I simply haven't been taking the issue seriously enough. It has been a goal, but it hasn't really been a "quest" or a "crusade". And that lack of commitment has kept me from really being effective.

For instance, it has kept me from following the first rule of any basic competition: Know your opponent!

And that is why it was such a surprise to me last night when, while watching the Presidential Debate Pregame Show on CNN, an info bar popped up on the screen saying that the debates were organized by something called the Commission on Presidential Debates, and that the Commission is headed by Frank Fahrenkopf, a former head of the Republican National Committee, and Paul Kirk, a former head of the Democratic National Committee.

"Frank Fahrenkopf?", I said aloud to my wife. "Is that the same guy who is the CEO of the American Gaming Association? It can't be... [More]

Which Candidate Is Best For Me?

While a lot of my posts tend to factor in political themes as a matter of covering this industry, I usually try to generally avoid outright political commentary.

But as we enter the closing weeks of this election season, I can't deny the fact that I receive a lot of comments and questions asking: "I am a sports gambler, which candidate is best for me?"

So here I go...

Let me start by pointing out that in the larger scheme of issues facing America right now, sports gambling seems pretty insignificant right now.

Between the economic crisis and looming recession, the ever-concerning oil situation, the environment, and  - oh yeah - the war in Iraq, I think that basing your vote upon a candidate's position on online gambling would be a little short-sighted.

But we also can not forget that, in these scary economic times, online gambling offers a positive revenue opportunity for government coffers that simply does not exist anywhere else.

In fact, if you are concerned about the economy right now - and who isn't? - then you should be very interested that PriceWaterhouseCoopers has already completed an analysis stating that legalizing and regulating the online gambling industry would increase federal revenues by as much as $42.8 billion over the next few years.

Yes, that is billion, with a "b".

With those numbers in m... [More]

Kentucky Seizes Gambling Domains

This is one for the legal books.

I'm not sure exactly how a ruling like this can happen. Maybe it is completely legal, but it just sounds sooooo wrong.

Anyway, the state of Kentucky has taken a page out of the patent industry's handbook and has used the courts to seize the domain names of 141 gambling sites.

Holy crap! If this stands, it could mark the end of the online gambling industry - at least the end of a somewhat-organized industry.

Just as Bodog had it's domain name stripped last year after losing a patent lawsuit, the state of Kentucky has successfully persuaded a stupid judge that since the sites in question are taking US business in contradiction of American law, they should lose their domain names.

As the Guardian notes: "In a statement welcoming the order, Governor Beshear said: "The owners and operators of these illegal sites prey on Kentucky citizens, including our youth, and deprive the Commonwealth of millions of dollars in revenue. It's an underworld wrought with scams and schemes." He described them as "leeches on our communities"."

You can actually see the hypocrisy dripping off this quote as it is widely known that Kentucky really is only interested in protecting its horseracing industry, as well as its proposed new casinos.

The story mentions that PokerStars will be sending a legal team to ... [More]

Biden's Son Lobbied on Behalf of Online Gambling

The Wall Street Journal reported the other day that Joe Biden's son, Hunter, has quit his job as a lobbyist in order to maintain a level of distance between his father and the lobbying industry.

What makes this story interesting to me is the fact that the younger Biden's company, Oldaker, Biden and Belair, lobbies on behalf of online gambling.

As the story says, "Hunter Biden was charged with lobbying House lawmakers on behalf of a law firm that represents online gambling magnate Russ DeLeon."

DeLeon and his wife, Ruth Parasol-DeLeon, were the founders of PartyGaming.

Biden's son did the smart political move of removing himself from the lobbying industry.

Regardless, I like the fact that he'll be able to educate his father on the pros of online gambling regulation.

EU Sends Delegation to Discuss Internet Gambling Stalemate

The UK-based Remote Gambling Association yesterday pushed out a press release announcing how excited they are about the EU sending a delegation to America to discuss America's unlawful stance regarding online gambling.

If you are not aware of the background of this issue, the article gives a half-way decent history of the dispute. I would urge you to browse my past blog posts for more in-depth information.

Now, I am usually somewhat optimistic about meetings like this. After all, discussion is good.

However, this time I'm not so sure.

Maybe it's the looming end of summer that is depressing me. Or the fact that my golf game has actually gotten worse this year. Or maybe I'm just a pessimistic person in general.

Either way, I just don't see what can possibly be achieved in this discussion.

Let's look at the facts:

- This is the second attempt at simply arranging a meeting. Back in June, the USTR re-scheduled by requested more preparation time. Yeah, right. Like they don't have a filing cabinet FULL of information on this topic. Simply put, America is not interested in discussing this.

- The WTO is a fading organization, and it really doesn't have the teeth necessary to enforce agreements. If you don't believe me, why not bro... [More]

Sports to be left out of Frank's Bill

Barney Frank's latest attempt to stymie the UIGEA, H.R. 6870, is due to be debated today.

During this initial "marking up" phase, bills are debated and discussed in order to possibly re-write any language to be voted on at a later date.

One topic which apparently won't be discussed is whether "sports gambling" should be included in this bill.

Here is the initial text for the bill...

The Secretary of the Treasury and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, whether acting jointly or separately, may not propose, prescribe, or implement any regulation under subchapter IV of chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, or otherwise give effect to such subchapter or any such regulation, including the proposed regulations published in the Federal Register on October 4, 2007, except to the extent as any such regulation pertains to wagering of the type that is prohibited (as of the date of the enactment of this Act) under chapter 178 of title 28, United States Code (relating to professional and amateur sports protection) or except as provided in section 3.

The key part is where it says, "except to the extent as any such regulation pertains to wagering of the type that is prohibited (as of the date of the enactment of this Act) under chapter 178 of title 28, United S... [More]

How McCain and Obama will affect YOUR taxes

I can't believe the mainstream news sites don't do this more often... that is, reporting actual facts that people can use.

This is the first I've seen it, but apparently a few months ago, CNN Money did an analysis of McCain and Obama's tax plans, and how they would affect people in different income brackets.

The bottom line isn't that surprising... Obama is grabbing more from the rich and giving more back to the lower brackets, while McCain is giving something back to everybody, but the rich get the most. In my opinion, neither plan looks sustainable in the longterm, but I'm not an economist either.

I'm not American, and since this doesn't affect me, I won't bother to comment, other than to say that this is information every voter should have.