How do YOU feel about the PPA?

[TruePoker CEO]

Tuff, you wrote "You will have regulation and taxation or you will NEVER have safe legal US based online poker."

With due respect, your statement is complete and utter nonsense on a couple of levels.

First, US players currently have the same "safe, legal ... online poker" they have had for years. Unless you have some reason to doubt the honesty and experience of established online offshore operations, "safety" is a red herring. Market discipline has worked pretty well to regulate practices to date. Somehow, you think that gaming needs "regulation" more than the deregulated successes of the airline, telecommunications, and other industries. The political trend in the US is to lessen regulation, not promote it.

Why demand that US poker consumers fall on the sword of regulation to obtain what the free market already has shown it can provide ? Sounds downright Un-American to do so.

Second, playing semantic games, like inserting the words "US based online poker" is disingenous at best. You have spoken like a real politician, Tuff. There has NEVER been US based online poker because of government thrats and interference. Do you think for one minute that FTP would not have remained based in L.A. but for threatened prosecution and pressure ? Do you not think that unfettered access to the US banking system would help rather than hurt off-shore operators in serving the demands of US consumers ?

The Wexler Bill does not tax/regulate offshore poker, it allows the rather successful market-based industry freedom to serve US consumers.

To argue that Party 2004-2005 is "gone, gone, gone" is irrelevant. PStars 2007 seems a popular replacement. Regulation had nothing to do with Party's success and plenty to do with its exit from the US market.

Finally, it is not a lack of "consumer confidence" afflicting the US poker market, it is a direct political assault and pressure upon its market functions, infrastructure, marketing and operations.