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The recent seizure of the assets of online poker sites raises a number of questions

Poker websites' actions were risky, experts say http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011/apr/29/poker-websites-actions-were-risky-experts-say/ Poker Black Friday: An online poker ponders how he'll make a living http://www.slate.com/id/2292417/ Time to legalize, tax online gambling http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/7545171.html The official rules of card games: Hoyle up-to-date http://books.google.com/books?id=C5eIAAAAMAAJ&dq=card%20games&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false Frontier Gamblers http://www.frontiergamblers.com/ Last week, the US Department of Justice moved to shut down three major online poker sites. The government alleges that these companies engaged in bank fraud, money laundering, and broke a number of anti-gambling laws. For those who played online poker for a bit of diversion, it is a minor inconvenience, but for those who did it as part of their livelihood, it has become quite frustrating. Professor Charles Nesson of Harvard Law School uses the game of poker to teach legal strategy and has spoken out on this subject recently. Nesson has encouraged the government to legalize online poker, and for Nesson it isn't about the money, rather it is about freedom. "It's actually the liberty of playing. That's a true way of exercising a freedom on the net. It's a form of internet liberty I happen to value considerable and think replicates too many other things." Nesson is not alone, and there are some interesting legal questions involved with this recent move by the government. The government shut down these companies using a 2006 law that bans all financial institutions from dealing with illegal Internet gambling. However, there is no federal law that bans people from playing online poker, and so far no federal court has ruled on whether this activity is in fact illegal or not. It's a curious situation, and one that people with an interest in the ways of the Internet and matters of the law will want to follow. The first link will take visitors to a piece from last Thursday's CNN website about the recent government action taken against three major online poker sites. The second link will whisk users away to a piece from the Las Vegas Sun that provides more details on these recent developments in the world of online gambling. The third link will lead visitors to a piece from last Friday's Slate from Shane Schleger, a self-employed online poker player. The fourth link takes users to an opinion piece by Chris Flood, a defense attorney who represented a major online gambling company, which appeared in the Houston Chronicle on this past Saturday. The fifth link leads to the digitized version of the 1922 tome, "The Official Rules of Card Games: Hoyle up-to-date". Within these pages, visitors can learn about dozens of card games, including "Canfield" and "Misery Bridge". For those who like their card games and gambling up close and personal, the sixth link is quite a treat. The "Frontier Gamblers" site provides information about living (and dying) by the cards in the Old West.
Alternate Title
Poker players protest government seizure
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Date Issued
May 6th, 2011
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Date of Scout Publication
May 6th, 2011
Date Of Record Creation
May 10th, 2011 at 6:30am
Date Of Record Release
May 11th, 2011 at 8:07pm
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