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Posted by on Aug 25, 2014 in Blog, General Poker, Talking Points, Video 1 | 2 comments

Video: My Reply to Robbie Strazynski (Politics at the Poker Table)

 

OLYMPICS BLACK POWER SALUTE

 

I promised readers a passionate video montage, taking the opposite side of the current censorship debate about whether or not politics has any place at the poker table.

I say “yes.”

Israeli poker writer Robbie Straznski says “no.” 

READ HIS PERSUASIVE VIEWPOINT HERE

Here’s the raw footage of my 38-minute reply to PokerStars’ misguided decision to ban all political expression in their tournaments.  In this clip, my response is unrehearsed and often comes across as disjointed.  Rambling.  Less than stellar.  Certainly not my best video.  I would have junked it if I didn’t promise delivery.  Borrowing an album title from Van Morrison, here’s my “Inarticulate Speech of the Heart.”

But I did agree to post one final summation of my viewpoint in front of the camera, and so here it is.

Run time — approximately 38 minutes.  Apologies for butchering Robbie’s name in the opening segment.  I also get interrupted a few times by overhead aircraft noise and my 13-year-old tabby, Alex, who makes a reluctant appearance on camera.

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Posted by on Aug 8, 2014 in Blog, General Poker, Talking Points, Video 1, World Series of Poker | 1 comment

My Interview with Tatjana Pasalic on Online Gambling (Calvin Ayre.com)

 

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Tatjana Pasalic and I have done quite a few interviews together.  I’m a big fan of her work, which is regularly posted at CalvinAyre.com.

Below this most recent interview, at the 2014 WSOP, see Part 1 of “How the West Was Won,” which is a nice overview of WSOP history.

 

READ:  More background on the history of the WSOP

TAG: “Indeed, the casino started to look filthy.  Everything inside smelled like smoke.  Televisions inside the hotel rooms were broken and stayed that way for months.  Some of the TVs still used old-fashioned rabbit ears.  Hotel rooms went for as cheap as $19 a night, and they still couldn’t book them.  Binion’s Horseshoe was an excruciating reminder that “old” Las Vegas was disappearing fast, soon to be extinct.  It was a dying dinosaur on its last legs.  Fewer tourists came downtown anymore and those who stayed there didn’t tend to gamble much.  The real casino action and entertainment were down on The Strip, which might as well have been not just in a different state, but on another planet.”

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Posted by on Aug 6, 2014 in Blog, Movie Reviews, Talking Points | 6 comments

A Profanity-Filled Video Rant About Awful Summer Movies

 

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I suspect that my intense interest in, and passion for, things like American politics, world history, international affairs, and my deep sense of civic responsibility stems largely from the important lessons I learned while still young. 

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Posted by on Jul 1, 2014 in Blog, Talking Points, World Series of Poker | 1 comment

Welcome Back Henry Orenstein

 

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Thanks to Remko Rinkema at Poker News for this nice feature and tribute to 90-year-old Henry Orenstein, who participated in today’s $10,000 buy-in Seven-Card Stud Championship.  This marks his first appearance at the World Series of Poker in several years.

I was interviewed by Remko and was asked about Mr. Orenstein.  It was a great honor to speak about him, albeit briefly.

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