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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 9, 2013 7:57:46 GMT -8
There are three seats in the legislature up for vote in November, and while two of them appear to be no contests, the 26th LD Senate race is a close fight between current appointee Nathan Schlicher (DEM) and current Representative Jan Angel (GOP), with Angel taking the top spot in the primary by ten points. These two will face off in November #ipoker needs allies in the State Senate, and I feel this is a great opportunity to get our issue into the campaign. Let's get a twitter campaign going, and get these two candidates to look at and address our issue. I linked both candidates' twitter accounts to their names above. Let's follow them, and send them tweets expressing our desire for regulated internet poker in Washington. I created a couple of 'click to tweet' links for both candidates, with these two messages: "#ipoker is an important issue to me; regulation assures public protected; we arent criminals ipokerwa.com/page/why" "#ipoker prohibition infringes on freedom without addressing genuine concerns; regulate to protect consumers #WAipokerNOW" spredd.it/4182un30spredd.it/Nray6obespredd.it/VAJP2Udkspredd.it/28006NsCRemember, your vote is yours alone, and cast in private. Be sure to vote for the candidate you think will do the best job for your district.
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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 13, 2013 12:02:59 GMT -8
On the 1st Tuesday of the month, the 26th LD Democrats hold their general meeting, in the Kitsap Room, at the Givens Community Center, Port Orchard. Coffee & cookies, 6:30 p.m. Meeting at 7:00. That will be September 3rd coming up, with another opportunity on October 1st to meet with Democrats in the district before the election.
Nathan Schlicher is the current State Senator, but he trailed his GOP opponent by ten points in the primary.
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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 17, 2013 11:57:49 GMT -8
I sent e-mails to their respective campaign managers in hopes of getting a reply regarding their position. I encourage others to do likewise. For Nathan Schlicher, Crystal Anguay is the campaign manager, and her e-mail is cm.nathanforsenate@gmail.comFor Jan Angel, Adam Isackson is the campaign manager, and his e-mail is adam_isackson@yahoo.comBelow is the e-mail I sent: Poker enthusiasts in the 26th LD, and throughout the State, want very much to see internet poker properly addressed by the Legislature, and we are looking for the Senator's position on the issue. We feel strongly that prohibition has failed to address the concerns of many regarding internet poker, at the same time it infringes on the freedoms of consenting adults to play a game amongst themselves. Had the Legislature instead put regulations in place, it would then be able to identify behavior associated with problem gambling, as well as ensure that under aged persons could not participate. Instead, these behaviors go largely unnoticed, thought they very much still exist. Poker is distinct in that players play against other players, not against the house, and the players' skill is the determining factor in long term success. There is a ton of material readily available to those interested in learning and improving their game, and there are vast online communities of players, where they share experiences and knowledge. We would very much like to hear from Sen. Schlicher regarding this issue. Thank you Curtis Woodard Washington Internet Poker Initiative ipokerwa.com
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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 18, 2013 14:51:50 GMT -8
I received a reply from Jan Angel today . . .
Chris (not the first time someone replied to me as Chris lol) – Hi – Jan Angel here. I had a lot of emails on this through the last couple of sessions. I do not believe or support Government being involved in telling you what you can or cannot play online. Simple as that (smile). Next they will be telling me I can’t watch the Poker Tournaments on TV - - -(smile). Jan
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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 20, 2013 15:05:01 GMT -8
Finally did hear back from State Senator Schlicher:
Thank you Mr. Woodard for your email regarding internet poker. I have spoken with a number of poker enthusiasts and am following the issue. I am supportive of a pathway forward that works for all parties, is legal, and controlled. I am aware of a number of initiatives that are being proposed and look forward to following them through the process and seeing where the interests of the voters lie in moving this forward. Thanks again for the email and keep in touch. Best, Nathan
Nathaniel Schlicher, MD, JD
The Senator does a pretty fair job of not taking a position at all, rather adopting a 'wait and see' position. This also highlights one of the potential pitfalls of going filing an initiative.
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Post by Curtis Woodard on Aug 20, 2013 15:10:38 GMT -8
I sent much the same reply to both candidates . . . Unregulated offshore sites pose many problems, and while prohibition has done nothing to resolve those problems, we feel strongly that regulation will. We would like to see internet poker providers make their home in Washington State, operate under regulations established and monitored by the WSGC, and doing their banking in our State, so that our money is safe.
Further, we want to establish protocols to be sure that minors aren't playing, and that behaviors associated with problem gambling are detected and addressed. The technology of the day is fully capable of dealing with these issues.
We have proposed an Initiative to the Legislature, but we are going to fall short of our signature goal. However, we would still like to see our language introduced as a bill, or incorporated into a bill, in the next session. I am including a couple of link below I hope you will check out, and perhaps consider taking up our issue. Prohibition fails to address anyone's concerns, and regulation is the way to go forward in the best interests of the people.
Thank you again!
Curtis Woodard Washington Internet Poker Initiative
LINKS:
Initiative 582 - sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/initiatives/FinalText_433.pdf Initiative 583 - sos.wa.gov/_assets/elections/initiatives/FinalText_430.pdf DoJ opinion on scope of the Wire Act - www.justice.gov/olc/2011/state-lotteries-opinion.pdf Player-proposed Regulatory Guidelines for internet poker - pokerloversunion.org/guideline.pdf
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