[Kurn]

Be careful what you wish for.

As I've said before, the attempt to get this exclusion is why I do not belong to the PPA.

Philosophically, this request expressly agrees that the government has the right to restrict what citizens do with their own money on their own time. I can't belong to any organization that advocates that. But that's not the practical reason.

By focusing the exclusion on the skill aspect of poker, you do nothing to counter the "protect people from themselves" cadre of legislators that favor the ban. These are different from the purely "gambling is immoral" cadre. Many of the legislators who want to protect us from ourselves are from the liberal side of the aisle.

The fact that poker has a huge skill factor does not make it better in the minds of these types. Think of it this way. Everyone who plays craps or roulette or (internet) blackjack has approximately the same expectation from the game. They will lose the house edge over the long run.

Poker is different. The casual player can get "fleeced" by the "sharks" (apologies for mixing animal metaphors), thus making it possible for out "protectors" to make a case that poker belongs being banned. In one sense, they're right. A clueless player can lose his roll much quicker at NLHE than at craps.

Let the PPA start fighting for real online gambling freedom by taking out their support of a carve-out, and I'll join.

<rant off>