While we all love poker, Texas Hold'em, poker tournaments, and anything that has to do with the industry. Being "poker players" is not all we are about. Most poker players have interests that go beyond what happens during a hand of Texas Hold'em or Omaha. That is why we have the Poker lifestyle section...
As most of us know, the Chinese have named their years for various animals. Tigers, Dragons, Serpents, and various barnyard animals are honored by having years declared in their honor. Now that 2009 is in our rear view mirrors, and we have seen how the twelve months have unfolded, we can probably more accurately describe the year instead of just naming it after a dog or a monkey every dozen years (as is the habit in China). After watching the asinine progression of months pass by, with each successive month looking back at the retarded behavior in the one that preceded it and seemingly declaring to itself “I can top that”, it would be appropriate to declare 2009 the year of the “short bus”.
Obviously, from the standpoint of a poker player, we watched politicians behaving toward the practice of online gaming (and in the case of Russia, casino gambling as a whole) like somebody just handed them a dead ferret. As the coffers of nations are drained, and the politicians are down to a two martini lunch, and 2nd stringers from the local brothels, they turn down the tax money that could be generated from online poker, Texas hold’em in bars, and any other ideas that involves keeping poker players happy. Of course these same people are ready to commit trillions of dollars they don’t have to fix an imaginary climate crisis. Since when did the book “Jack and the Beastalk” become a template for fiscal behavior?
We had lots of celebrities die, and after they passes away, people pretended that some of them (who shall remain nameless) were not predatory pedophiles or the type of guy who would drown a girl in the Chappaquiddick river, then cry about how unfair it was that nobody would elect him President.
On the sexual misconduct front we found out that Tiger Woods really lived up to that last name. Unfortunately Ms. Woods was not happy with him prodding around in a strange rough with his favorite club. Presumably at least one ball was in play. Even more unfortunately for Mr. Woods, his good lady wife got in touch with her inner Viking and reminded him why the sight of a blonde with a blunt metal object in their hand terrified most of the world for three centuries. .
There were thousands of other incidents, but we would need to be writing a book to fit them all in. Hopefully 2010 will be a more reasonable year, and cooler heads will prevail, but somehow I doubt it.
