Poker Players Alliance host charity event
28th August, 2008
Raising money for the Paralyzed Veterans of America, while also making a political statement about the current gambling laws banning online poker, the Poker Players Alliance hosted a charity poker tournament at Coors field in Denver, Colorado.
The $500 buy-in tournament helped raise $100,000 for the Paralyzed Veterans of America, which is why the event was legal – because it was all in the name of charity. Congressmen and their staff were invited to play the game for free because the idea was also to create awareness about the gambling laws in the US.
“Next year, we’re going to have a new Congress, probably even a more broader Democratic majority,” said John Pappas, PPA’s executive director. “I think we have a real good opportunity to move toward the direction that we want.”
However Pappas expressed his belief that online gambling should be a regulated industry like any other, so that poker players have a safe environment in which to play and a level playing field with transparent poker operators - creating an environment where only the best gambling sites survive.
“We’re not saying that this should just be the Wild West where we have Internet gambling operators operating out of anywhere,” Pappas said. “We want a licensed, regulated, safe industry that Americans can enjoy.”
World famous Hollywood actor Ben Affleck ended up winning the tournament after all was said and done, which added $0 to his bank account but probably a lot to his ego.
The Poker Players Alliance has been lobbying Congress since the passing of legislation prohibiting US banks and credit cards from making transactions with gambling websites. The Alliance believes that poker is a game that is much more to it than gambling and should be exempt from such restrictions.
“There are misconceptions about poker and about online poker,” said Andy Bloch, a poker professional. “Some people think that online poker is gambling like a slot machine, and it’s not. We’re fighting for the rights of people to do what they want in the privacy of their own home.”
By Michael
