IT IS not often that poker players get involved in the squalid world of politics. But when politics gets involved in poker, we have no choice but to stand up for ourselves and fight. I make no apologies for doing so here after the US Congress passed a bill this week that will have far-reaching consequences for the online poker community. The country that boasts of being the "Land of the Free" is now just a Presidential-signature away from making it very difficult for those living in the States to play online. How can the US government stop them? By restricting individuals from depositing cash in their online poker accounts - and possibly by introducing Big Brother-style bans on internet service providers that allow customers to visit various poker sites. So how might this affect us here in the UK? Firstly, let me make it clear Mr Blair and his pals in Downing Street will not introduce similar draconian legislation here. But there will be an impact. Some of the poker sites that rely largely on the US market may go out of business because the "casual" US poker players will no longer find a way to deposit and play. You may play on one of those sites and have to look elsewhere.
All of us will notice a reduction in the playing pool as a result. And that is bad news, because although many of the American players are top quality, the country does provide a healthy diet of "fish" (easy players to beat) for us to tuck into.
Of course, some of the sites us Brits play on do not accept US players anyway (and others have only a few US players), so the Online Poker and Gaming Bill will have no dire consequences for many.
And with the poker explosion showing no signs of slowing down in Europe - and with new markets to explore in the middle and far east, the reduced player pool is likely to be compensated somewhat.
But it really is a matter of principal. I just don't understand the logic of the US authorities. Is it a moral thing? Do they think everyone who plays poker is a degenerate gambler and therefore presents some sort of danger to society?
Or is it simply about money? Probably. They can't rake in taxes from poker players' winnings and hate not having control over who is making what.
It reminds me of the Prohibition of booze in the States in the 1920s. At least that failed, and maybe Mr Bush will see sense and refuse to ratify this bill.
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