Ode to Laura and JR Bellande

[AK47Suited]

JR B is 100% balla

stfu haters, also hes verrrrry good at live pokah, Ive seen him play I cant see how he can be busto.

[Peter McDermott]

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Yes, yes, yes, I'm sure I'd be happy to leave my infant children in his care, and that his TV schtick is precisely that -- good TV schtick. (And it is good.)


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don't be a douche.
JRB is good people.

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Where does what you quoted imply anything else?

[shaniac]

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why does he look like the crack head on "the wire" in this picture

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POSTER IS BANNED FOR WATCHING THE WIRE AND SOMEHOW NOT REALIZING THAT IT'S HEROIN THAT EVERYBODY (including Bubs) IS ON.

GOSH.

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I kinda don't get that though--certainly people still smoke crack in Baltimore, right?

[FoxwoodsFiend]

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why does he look like the crack head on "the wire" in this picture

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POSTER IS BANNED FOR WATCHING THE WIRE AND SOMEHOW NOT REALIZING THAT IT'S HEROIN THAT EVERYBODY (including Bubs) IS ON.

GOSH.

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I kinda don't get that though--certainly people still smoke crack in Baltimore, right?

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my friend's girlfriend lived in Baltimore for 2 years. she told me it is indeed heroin that is all the rage (by far the biggest drug she says, although if you want crack you can obviously find it fairly easily).

[mrburr]

For all you guys who are talking about what a great guy JRB is, you should keep in mind he is an addicted gambler with a serious gambling addiction which has probably ruined his life, and hanging out with all you "pros" in the poker world and enternatining you with his personality is not doing him any favors.

I remember when he first started playing in LA 6-7 years ago in the mid limit (by todays standards) mix games there. He owned a sushi bar and was a pool huster and was definitely not busto. He probably blew through 1,000,000+ those first couple years playing poker. I remember he would play almost every night (very badly), run out of money, and then have to take a "loan" from one of the pros, and then when he invariably lost that money too he would have to take money from his bar to pay his debts/stay in action. Needless to say, with his gambling problem he was not able to keep his bar. Obviously he is an extremely charming and charismatic person who is a lot of fun to be around and seems to always enjoy himself wherever he goes(although he is definitely a jerk at the table, especially when he is losing or winning a lot), but dont kid yourself. He obviously would have been a lot more in life if he had never picked up a card.

I have not seen or played with JRB for several years, but I know from what I did observe of him that there is a 0% chance gambling will every be anything but destructive for him, and I am sure most of you "pros" who make your living off of him and many people just like him, realize this. I dont really know why I went through the effort to make this account (I am a lurker, not a regular poster) and go through this rant. I guess it bothers me a lot when I see all you poker pros (I am a semi-professional player so I am no way absolving myself) saying what a great guy someone is when you are basically making your living off of him and people like him, who have a sickness they cannot control.

There is and always will be a certain level of hyprocrisy among us professional poker players who make our livings off of other peoples sicknesses, and I know we all find ways to raionalize it and make it ok in our own minds. But it still is important to always keep things in perspective and realize the next time you are hanging out and partying with "the fish," and defending what a great guy he is, how you are really just leeching off of them and what kind of a friend/human being you really are.

[shaniac]

What a sanctimonious post. You assume that the only reason people like JRB is because they are taking advantage of his gambling problem, and you act as if JRB's place in the poker world, by virtue of the fact that he's a degenerate gambler, is some kind of major tragedy.

[TStoneMBD]

LOL

[mrburr]

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What a sanctimonious post. You assume that the only reason people like JRB is because they are taking advantage of his gambling problem, and you act as if JRB's place in the poker world, by virtue of the fact that he's a degenerate gambler, is some kind of major tragedy.

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No, I am sure most of why people like him is that he is a very charismatic person who is fun to be around. But I am also sure the millions of dollars he has dumped to all you guys (collectively) doesn't hurt. And yes, his gambling problem is a personal tragedy, but in his defense he seems to handle it better than most and still manages to live a semi-functional existence. However, if it wasnt for such personal tragedies of him and countless people like him, you and all the other pros (myself included) would have to get a real job, so I guess one persons tragedy is anothers victory.

[shaniac]

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What a sanctimonious post. You assume that the only reason people like JRB is because they are taking advantage of his gambling problem, and you act as if JRB's place in the poker world, by virtue of the fact that he's a degenerate gambler, is some kind of major tragedy.

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No, I am sure most of why people like him is that he is a very charismatic person who is fun to be around. But I am also sure the millions of dollars he has dumped to all you guys (collectively) doesn't hurt. And yes, his gambling problem is a personal tragedy, but in his defense he seems to handle it better than most and still manages to live a semi-functional existence. However, if it wasnt for such personal tragedies of him and countless people like him, you and all the other pros (myself included) would have to get a real job, so I guess one persons tragedy is anothers victory.

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But Bellande gets by on tour, so poker allows him to not have to get a real job, either. The distinction seems less obvious to me in this isntance.

[mrburr]

Its a matter of perspective I guess. Yes, he probably is getting by better than the average minimum wage worker at McDonalds. But remember, he used to be wealthy guy who owned a hip bar in LA, who hung around with beautiful, interesting people all the time. Now he is a broke degenerate who spends most of his time in seedy casinos with seedy people (I am sure you are the exception to this).

Excuse me for being melodramatic and sanctimonious, but sometimes it really does make me sad to see exceptional people ruin their lives because of a serious sickness, and us "pros" just smile and say what a great person they are while raking in the dough. And I am not just talking about JRB. There are thousands of similar people with similar stories who feed the poker pyramid, ruining their lives and the lives of all those around them so some nerdy, pimple faced 18 year old kid will never have to go to college and get a real job or some fatcat bigheaded casino tycoon can build a multi-billion dollar casino with his name on it. But then again, that is really what capitalism is all about, exploiting others for your own personal gain (I really am a communist at heart) so maybe all us poker pros are the quintisential American dream.