Poker 2007: Biggest Change

I have been reading all of the year end poker articles and blogs the past several days. You don't need me to give you another recap of the year in poker, so I thought I would look for the one single event or change that has taken place in poker that was the most significant happening in 2007. My pick:

Around the world, wherever governments have attempted to limit access or prevent access to online poker; wherever this has happened, the games have gotten harder to beat.

Sweden, Turkey, France, United States and the list goes on. Whether the government is attempting to set up there own state controlled gaming site or limiting access to 'foreign' sites or seeking to prohibit gaming completely; the effect is the same. If new players cannot easily establish an account the deposit funds the player pool shrinks and the remaining players get better.

This analysis does not even consider the billions of potential players in Southeast Asia and China, who are effectively prevented from accessing online gaming sites, at least until the governmental agencies (Vietnam for instance) are in place to allowed state controlled poker.

With all the noise about "Free Markets" from the various western governments, the facts demonstrate that morality and greed dominate the various restrictions and, so far, none of them are even 50% effective in stopping players from playing. The real effect has been to prevent new players from joining poker sites and therefore depriving them of their basic human right to be free from governmental interference in their private lives.

Of course part of the learning curve of any game involves some losses, without new players the games get tougher and although that may help you take your game to a higher level. It will also stress your bankroll at times.

The bottom line? Prohibition does not work. It never has, it never will and there are certainly better endeavors for Parliaments, Congresses, Legislatures, Commissions, Agencies and Churches to spend time and taxes on.