AP thread 872.6 - Statement ITT

[zen_rounder]

[ QUOTE ]
I'd just like to chime in here on the belief expressed by some that this investigation is somehow losing steam, or that AP has "won" (whatever that means) because there hasn't been a dramabomb since Sunday around noon (36 excruciating hours ago -- tongue in cheek).

Stop it.

A few points for your consideration. First of all, 36 hours is *only* 36 freakin' hours. The investigation and the KGC and Gaming Associates audits will take time, and they're not going to release every piece of information as it's uncovered. Let them do their work -- I am just as concerned as everyone about the auditing parties' objectivity, but as those of you who have had experience in the post-college "real world" should know, these things take time. Just a fact. It may be another week before we get the next AP statement, but don't immediately assume it's b/c their primary objective is laying low and hoping this whole thing blows over (even while they might hope it will.) I posted before about a 45-min conversation I had with the chairman of the KGC, and about how I was actually pleasantly surprised that he was taking all of this very seriously, and asking the right questions.

I love dramabombs and bloodlust as much as the next guy, but now that some wheels are in motion at high levels, we need to be realistic with our timeframe. It doesn't mean our outrage should be toned down, or that AP has somehow triumphed. But let's put this all in perspective: in the last 7 days, we have gotten AP to admit to a historically-unprecedented security breach in their systems, promised to pay back all aggrieved parties, and made statements that, at least on their face, appear to be steps toward holding the parties responsible accounted for. I found the Hilt wedding articles, which led to us acquiring pictures of the suspects which we didn't have before (although I must give more credit to whoever dug up the wedding photo album.) The point is that the progress we've made on this thing has been *frighteningly* quick, at least in terms of typical corporate/business-realm investigations. We have the collective braintrust of thousands of internet poker nerds on our side, and we can't expect the dozen people on the Absolute side of things to match our efficiency.

I'm furious with the chorus of people suggesting that this is somehow a triumph for Absolute, and in my opinion, that's a HUGE slap in the face to Nat, Adanthar, Druff, and Josem, who I thank for essentially championing our cause free of charge (and I know there are individuals over at P5s and elsewhere who have been equally instrumental). After this thing is over, I'll volunteer to start some sort of "Thank You" collection plate that perhaps can be donated to a charity of their choice...it's not much, but it seems like a noble way to express just how much I personally appreciate what they've done. Many of you don't really know how good we have it to have 4 smart, articulate, and accessible people like them fighting for us. So my bottom line is that the pessimism expressed over the last 24 hours isn't good for anyone, and it's a thorn to the morale of those who are working so hard to shed light on the biggest scandal to hit the online poker scene most of us have ever been party to. The way we keep up the pressure on Absolute is to *stay diligent*. There have been several lulls in the investigation since mid-September when it first came to light...and we didn't let them derail us, and look where we are now. Let's keep it up.

[/ QUOTE ]well said sir [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]