Warning! The Armageddon Date: 3/1/07. Prepare Yourself.

[gaboonviper]

Through my current analysis of the legislative/political poker environment I have come up with a date, 3/1/07, when I think things in the poker world will get really, really, REALLY crazy. I call this date The Armageddon Date and here is what I think will happen by then: 1.) The money most players have in their online accounts will be depleted by then with little or no way to replenish this money; 2.) Even those who are still bringing in money now will have run out of cash by then or be extremely low, with no viable way to replenish it; 3.) ePassporte, the only remaining "safe" wallet, will have pulled out of the US market. Even now their service is poor. I give them no more than 2 weeks; 4.) No longterm viable solution will be found by the sites for receiving and sending money from and to players; 5.) More banks will be enforcing the UIGEA making the movement of money to and from the sites harder still. Bank of America and Wachovia have already started, with many more coming soon; 6.) There will be more arrests by the DOJ, some could come as soon as this week. This will put even more pressure on any entities involved in the transfer of money to and from the sites to pull out of the US market. It will also put a great deal of fear in any new money transfer business considering opening up shop in the US; 7.) Beacause of all this the great majority of players will adopt a "hunker down--stop playing till things look better" attitude-- as many already are-- which of course will be devestating to the sites, as you can imagine. To conclude, I think my date of 3/1/07 is accurate considering how fast things are already progressing. It could come a little sooner or later but The Armageddon Date 3/1/07 is a good choice. So mark it on your calendar. Etch it in your brain. 3/1/07. The Armageddon Date.