RESPONSE TO PPA EMAILS

Here is the 1 st one I havereceived




Dear Mr. Sayers:

Thank you for contacting me regarding internet poker and the Unlawful Internet Gambling Act (UIGA). I appreciate hearing from you.

The UIGA was included in the final passage of H.R. 4954, the "Port Security Improvement Act of 2006," and was signed into law (P.L. 109-347) by President Bush on October 13, 2006.

I support placing a ban on internet gambling, and I supported the final passage of this bill. The National Gambling Impact Study Commission documented, and Senate and House hearings confirmed, that internet gambling was growing at an explosive rate. Because the internet can be used anonymously, the danger existed that access to internet gambling would be abused by underage children. In most instances, a would-be gambler merely needed to fill out a registration form in order to play. Most sites relied on the registrant to disclose his or her correct age and the sites made little or not attempt to verify the accuracy of the information. Underage gamblers could easily use their parents' credit cards or even their own credit and debit cards to register and set up accounts.

While I believe P.L 109-347 is a good law intended to protect children and reduce crime, I do understand the concerns of many internet poker players who will be affected by this new law. Should legislation regarding a poker "skill game exemption" come before the Senate for debate, I will give your views consideration.


Please do not hesitate to contact me if I may be of assistance to you in the future. In the meantime, if you would like to receive timely e-mail alerts regarding the latest congressional actions and my weekly e-newsletter, please sign up via my web site at: www.chambliss



said how he voted but if it comes up again he will rethink it usual bull answer from elected officials

99% positive that your congressman never saw your email. This reads like a form letter all the way through.

You need to write back and remind him that his job is to represent his constituents views, not push his own. If the majority of his constituents disagree with UIGEA, he needs to represent that, and his votes need to reflect the same. That's what the problem is with the US these days. Too many congressman pushing their own ideology and pet projects, and ignoring what the people want. All the while placating us with an "I know better than you" attitude.

Props to you though for writing your congressman. Now just keep doing it until they can't ignore you anymore.

And by all means, keep writing. The number of letters they get are tabulated on one side of an issue or another, its not typically the content that matters to them.

I got the exact same form reply from Chambliss (you're in Dalton? Me too!)

I've always voted for him, but after this I'm planning to write a letter (to be read by an aid if anyone, but I'll do it nonetheless) expressing my disappointment in his position, and a reconsideration of my vote come election time again. I hate it with a passion when officials trot out the old "but think of the children!" line, as if responsible parents can't parent their own children without help from the government. He's defending the ban on internet poker as a danger to children, but any sort of porn site is legal? If they can "regulate" internet porn to reduce access by children, they can do the same for internet gaming. As for the parents, I can handle that, thanks. I've raised three kids to adult hood through the internet age, and closely monitored their internet access. They *gasp* turned out fine.

Get real: how many children would play online poker for real money using their parents bank/CC accounts, and their parents not know? That's a typical red herring argument if ever there was one.

Howdy neighbor so wheres the home game I was heading out to rockyface today and passed that pegasus bar and a sign said nl holdem tournament gonna check it tomorrow never voted fr the guy moved here and lost my job with brown industries not many printing presses around here

to bobsay and dmorris >> you have a real clown for a US Senator ....

His comments about the NGISC go back to 1999. A ten year old study...

(from Wikipedia)
The National Gambling Impact Study Commission Act of 1996 (Pub.L. 104-169, 110 Stat. 1482, enacted August 3, 1996) is an Act of Congress that was signed into law by President of the United States Bill Clinton.

This legislation established the National Gambling Impact Study Commission in 1997 to conduct a comprehensive legal and factual study of the social and economic impacts of gambling in the United States on: (1) Federal, State, local, and Native American tribal governments; and (2) communities and social institutions generally, including individuals, families, and businesses within such communities and institutions. Mandates a report to the President, the Congress, State Governors, and Native American tribal governments. Requires the Commission to contract with the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations and the United States National Research Council for assistance with the study. Authorizes appropriations.[1] Specifically the commission was to look at the following:

1.existing policies and practices concerning the legalization of prohibition of gambling
2.the relationship between gambling and crime
3.the nature and impact of pathological and problem gambling
4.the impacts of gambling on individuals, communities, and the economy, including depressed economic areas
5.the extent to which gambling revenue had benefited various governments and whether alternative revenue sources existed
6.the effects of technology, including the Internet on gambling

The study lasted two years, and in 1999 the commission released it final report. There was a separate section on Indian gaming provided.
------------------------------------------

Your Senator doesn't even know that the UIGA is really UIGEA...

UIGEA was an amendment to the SAFE PORT Act, not a stand alone Act. The amendment was nothing more than a special interest add-on to a necessary Act regarding our ports of entry. Not unlike any other amendment that a politician adds to an Act or Bill that they KNOW will pass because of the PRIMARY purpose.

I received a postal communication from our House Representative, Dean Heller, from NEVADA, who is actually in favor of doing away with, or seriously hancuffing, the UIGEA.

There IS support out there. We just have to keep pushing it in the face of our politicians.

Nice one nick , i have been sending in emails...

I sent one, this was the response I got.

Dear Mr. _______,


Thank you for contacting me about H.R. 2267, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act. I truly appreciate hearing from you, and I am working hard to stand up for New Hampshire's interests in Congress.

I understand your support for ensuring that online gambling is legal. The Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act would allow licensed online poker and Internet gambling operators to accept bets and wagers from individuals in the United States. Such licensed operators would be exempt from the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).

H.R. 2267 has been referred to the House Committees on Financial Services, Energy and Commerce, and the Judiciary. As a member of the House Committee on Financial Services, please know that I will monitor this legislation closely and keep your views in mind.

I encourage you to continue to contact me about the issues that are important to you. Please feel free to visit my website at www.hodes.house.gov where you can share your ideas with me, learn about the services I can provide to you, and sign up for my periodic e-mail updates on what I am doing to help New Hampshire.



Sincerely,
Paul Hodes
Member of Congress

I have to say I don't know if he read it or not, most likely just an aid and a form letter reply. Atleast he's on one of the committee's, lol, not like that means much.

Paul Hodes and Dean Heller are BOTH members of the House Financial Services Committee and support HR 2267 in the 111th (current) Congress. There's a lot of support in the voices of the voters, let it be heard.

Write your Senators and Representatives BEFORE they write the end to internet gaming in the US.

I'm a horrible writer and never take part in any thing, however I'll send a letter today because this is ridiculous. Best do my part I hope everyone who knows about this does theirs.

Have thought seriously about setting up a home game. I work with a handful of poker players who have expressed interest, but we'd like to have 8-9 reliable folks to be willing to do it, plus my wife has basically forbidden our house for the location, LOL. I'll keep you in mind if we start actively recruiting for it though!

Pegasus? I actually live in Rocky Face and am not sure which bar you're talking about, it's probably a new name for an old bar -- maybe the old Oyster Pub between Los Pablos and West Yellowknife on 41? Not sure that venue would be "ideal." Also, you know how Georgia is about gambling, I expect any sort of public tournament will be more like a "funny money" tournament, like those at CBC in Chattanooga (door prizes or very small token cash prizes, picture on the wall, that kind of thing).

Sucks that you lost your job at Brown, have you tried Marketing Alliance Group (Brown's biggest competitor in town, I'd think)? I'm not originally from here either, I worked for a friend whose company moved me here 16 years ago, then I went to work for Shaw a year later and have been with them ever since.

Well, he's done well for the constituents since I've been here and has been overwhelmingly voted in each time, so it's hard to hang him out to dry on a single issue that I feel he is simply ignorant about. I'd love to have a sit-down with him to debate the issue but that's unlikely of course. I'll write a letter and hope I can at least grab the attention of one of his staffers with it, maybe I can strike a chord of common sense (but we are talking about politicians here). Thing is, he's a conservative and gambling still carries a negative connotation with some old-time conservative types, especially down here in the Bible Belt. Throw in the high-tech internet stuff and you totally lose them. As was said, if enough constituents make enough noise about it, he should listen, but then again there's enough old conservatives down here, likewise clueless about such things, who would quickly rally around him in opposing those "evil gamblers." So I'm not optimistic we can either change his mind or vote him out.

i got basically the same letter from sherrod brown and george voinovich. blah blah blah. form letter. blah blah. sincerlely, blah blah. but at least they responded.

You can bet their staff all talks among themselves, but at least a few are willing to admit which side of the fence they are on.

No surprise that we get a 'form' reply. After all, in most cases it was a 'form' support poker letter that we all signed and sent ... After getting 100's/1,000's of form letters from us I don't think we can expect personalized replies ...

I try to sennd a letter a day. The more i send the more cha

This is the response I got from one on my senators. Notice that he did not say if he was for internet poker or not.



Thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA). I appreciate hearing from all Pennsylvanians about the issues that matter most to them.

UIGEA cuts off revenue streams to unlawful Internet gambling businesses. It prohibits the receipt of checks, credit card charges and electronic funds transfers by such businesses.
Banks, credit card issuers and other payment system participants have been enlisted to help cut off these revenue streams. Under the UIGEA, as currently written, the term “unlawful Internet gambling” is ambiguous and creates difficulties for law enforcement.

There are several bills in the House of Representatives which deal with the regulation of Internet gambling. H.R. 2266, the Reasonable Prudence in Regulation Act, would delay the deadline for compliance with UIGEA’s prohibition on funding unlawful gambling until December 2010. H.R. 2267, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act, as well as H.R. 2268, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2009, would create a licensing and regulation system for Internet gambling activities.
These latter two bills would also tax lawful Internet gambling. Currently, there is no related bill in the Senate. Please be assured that should similar legislation come before the full Senate, I will have your views in mind.

Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future about this or any other matter of importance to you.

If you have access to the Internet, I encourage you to visit my web site, http://casey.senate.gov. I invite you to use this online office as a comprehensive resource to stay up-to-date on my work in Washington, request assistance from my office or share with me your thoughts on the issues that matter most to you and to Pennsylvania.

Sincerely,
Bob Casey
United States Senator