A Kick In The Gut

It was with more than a little dismay, not to mention disbelief, that I read of attempts by the authorities to close down Gutshot - probably the best know 'pure' cardroom in the UK. The current membership of Gutshot numbers over 11,000 people.

Rather than go into the legal ins-and-outs of the situation, there's an article on The Times website here which explains the situation.

There's also some discussion on the Gutshot forum here.

There's another Times feature here, which invites the views of their readership.

A lot of the debate revolves around the old 'is poker a game of skill or luck' question. As one contributor says, anyone who believes poker is purely a game of luck, is welcome to play me online at any poker site.

I'm no advocate of the Thatcherite/Reaganite model of small government, but I do believe scarce resources should be focused on the most pressing issues.

I really can't see how spending time and money on trying to close down a poker room benefits the nation.

Purely off the top of my head, I rattled off a list of more pressing issues which might concern the government.

• Iraq


• War On Terror


• Avian Flu


• Possibility of a 1-in-50 Winter


• People Trafficking


• Street Crime


• Race Riots


• Schools In Disarray


• Economy Slowing


• Transport Shambles


• Health Service Infections - MRSA

Once the government has the health service and schools running efficiently, crime down, economic growth up, and the trains running on time, I might be willing to allow them to take more interest in how people choose to spend their leisure time.

This is made all the more ludicrous by the ongoing growth in online gaming share issues on the London markets. 888, Party, Empire being among those to go public in recent times.

While Chancellor Brown would love to tempt these company headquarters to London from their present offshore havens, it appears the government wouldn't want the bankers who pocket the big bucks for getting the share issues away to pop down to Gutshot for some live poker?

The entire situation is entirely nonsensical, and it beggars belief that after all the debate in recent parliamentary sessions over the introduction of mega casinos, there are such grey areas remaining in the existing law.