Is poker gambling?

[Skallagrim]

Splawndarts wrote "I rather suspect you've whipped out the postmodern business because you don't like the answer to this question with respect to the real definition of the word, and you're now stuck because it's hard to argue with the dictionary. That's an annoyingly common move these days, and one that makes you intellectually insufferable. Whether that was your intent, I don't know. "

Sorry there Splawndarts, what is intellectually insufferable is the idea that words have one fixed meaning and thats the end of the story. This will be my last reply to you a) because you have no sense of humor, and b) because you seem incapable of comprehending that words have NO independant meaning other than that which we humans agree to give to them. The meaning of a word is not fixed, it changes over time, changes depending on context, and changes depending on the user and listener involved (contemplate slang words for example). Take the course in linguistic philosphy if you wish to learn more.

My point in this thread is that the word "gambling" USUALLY connotates risking money SOLELY on chance events, and most people consider that an unwise or dangerous thing to do. Most people do not apply the word gambling to the stockmarket, for example, because those events are percieved as predictable to a fair degree, nor to their own individual contests because the participant/bettor is deciding his own fate (influencing the outcome). Both of these concepts are applicable to poker. By making them part of the definition of gambling we exclude poker from the negative/risky/dangerous connotation and help inusre that people see it in a better light than slots, craps, roulette etc.... That will help in keeping or making poker legal.

Nuff said.

Skallagrim