Yeah, what was that all about? Bad form definitely...

yeah, kind of had a lump in my throat and a snarl on my face when i saw him do that. ehhh, but he's rich, so what does he care. like poker's trump.

why does a legal and lawful private social club, that derives no economic benefit (lol), need city council approval?

Why not just open the club and tell them to talk to your attorney?

Because they’ll get raided and shutdown.

Ever heard of zoning laws?

The number of poker players I've seen on Twitter taking issue with Doug's "some of the best people I know are poker players" take is driving me absolutely bonkers.

I'm not asking people to be fans of Doug Polk nor approve of his approach to bringing poker to Farmer's Branch, but the "actually, we ARE terrible people" crowd is flabbergasting. I can scarcely believe such a segment exists. I guess a lot of poker feel a lot of shame and self-loathing about what they do.

Playing poker is not immoral. Playing poker for a living is not immoral. If poker attracts more scum than other vocations and avocations - and I don't think it's a given that that's true - it attracts even more regular, normal, nice people who try to do good and do right by people.

I for one strive to do the right thing and be a good person, and I'm not ashamed to be a poker player.

Plus, as poker rooms get debated by cities across the country, the anti-poker people are going to use these tweets as ammo. Don't let your own weird internalized issues with poker deprive other people of being able to conveniently play live, as you do.

Of course. Have you heard of "If you build it, they will come?"

Perhaps build it somewhere without the need for zoning changes? I lived in DFW for a time. Road tripping across town for an activity or an event is nothing new.

I guess you answered your original question then.

There were multiple speakers who spoke of how much money they made playing, how it changed their lives, etc.

The focus should've been on the friendships formed, the fun vibes, how it brings people from all walks of life together into a joint activity, and the benefits of added jobs in the area that pay on average "x" amount, as well as the increased tax revenue for the town from the operation, etc.

Because there are often specific licenses and permits that need approval, otherwise you're just going to spend a bunch of money and get shut down and kiss all that time and $$$ goodbye.

This is what happened roughly 10 years ago in Dallas when card rooms started popping up. Card rooms have been shut down as recently as 2022 in the DFW area.

Thank you for clear and cogent answer. I guess I just didn't understand why Doug feels the need fight an unwinnable battle like this? If this is classified as a private social club; this shouldn't be that difficult to find a place. How is this club any different than... the VFW, or the LIONS clubs, F&AM, or an organization like that? Those organizations have offices all over the place, in both residential, industrial, commercial areas, etc.

If this was clearly stated as the barrier to entry in the OP, I have no clue why he would waste everyone's time asking people to show up to a council meeting.

Almost every single metro area in the USA has an abundance of available commercial real estate. DFW is no exception; based on some stats I recall seeing.

Others ITT have stated the obvious. You don't get zoning/permits/etc changed without greasing the pockets of politicians; sad but true.

It's possible to think that poker isn't inherently immoral, and still think the poker community is infested with thieves, scammers, cheaters, and grifters.

It's different in the very way that it's worth posting about in this forum: it exists to promote gambling. Don't play dumb. It just makes you seem ashamed of it.

If I was Doug, I would reach out to people in the Texas Horse Racing community about establishing a partnership.

Remember back in the 90s, when Florida tried to save the Dog Racing Industry (I know) by allowing poker to be dealt at the dog tracks? Eventually the greyhound racing went away, but the poker rooms stayed.

Horse racing in Texas is currently at an impasse; The Texas state law says that the federal legislation called HISA is unconstitutional because the Texas law establishing horse racing says that no other body can oversee horse racing in Texas.

Therefore, pari-mutuel wagering on horse racing can only happen at the track and the Texas race track signal can not be broadcast outside of the state.

Texas funds it's horse racing purses with a tax on horse supplies and services; that's why the wagering pools are tiny but purses have actually went up, despite other locking out patrons from states outside of Texas.

I know many of you here dislike horse racing; This is exactly how a lot of non-gamblers feel about poker being dealt in their communities.

I feel like there's an opportunity here for Poker to compliment the horse industry, while also perhaps gaining some legitimacy and advocacy with people who are already embedded in one of the few legal and regulated wagering activities in the state.

I'm sure this idea will get tons of objections; but I don't think it's any different than going to city hall and getting shut down at public hearings.

You know that these private social clubs that I listed often have poker games being run, right? There's a poker table in my local VFW as soon as you walk in the door.

please, please, please stick to attempting to argue that poker is morally neutral. because it is not, never has been, and never can possibly be a moral positive, for anyone, or anything, in any way.

"doing right by people" does not entail manipulating, by deception, your fellow man for the sole purpose of taking your fellow man's money.

unless, of course, you are trying to talk about charity events or play money poker.

just stop. stop typing. step away from your keyboard.

your post will make me have to take a shower, to wash off the stench of righteous cringe.

Sure, but your VFW isn’t a for profit gambling enterprise.

Gang activity forms friendships.

Gang activity has 'fun vibes' for its members.

Gang activity brings in all walks of life.

Gang activity also increases jobs, security jobs.

Congratulations.

You just made good arguments for increasing gang activity.

I thought the spirit and interpretation of law that allows Texas poker rooms to operate is that they are social entities like country clubs, etc which often allow poker games to be dealt without deriving economic benefits? The texas poker room model, i thought, was built on this same idea. It was just centered around having poker tables on premises, versus a golf course, like a country club. You guys don't think wagering between golfers doesn't happen on the greens?

I don't play in these facilities, nor do I live in Texas anymore, nor am I a legal expert like everyone else ITT appears to be. The loophole and legal interpretation of how these establishments operate still leaves me scratching my head.

For example, if I purchase a former hotel, rent out rooms by the hour, and turn a blind eye to men/women of the night loitering outside the establishment, can I just call my brothel a "Private social club" since I am simply charging an hourly membership fee and deriving no profits from the transactions occurring between the people inside my facility?

Hyperbole, I know... but I suppose I didn't realize that private social clubs were subject to such scrutiny by local governments.

Thank you to every one ITT for enlightening me.

I live in the area and won't pretend to understand all of the nuances, but from what I can gather, it is still very grey and needs specific approval from individual cities. Even with that approval, I believe TCH was in some hot water for a while.

Texas is still very much a bible thumping state. When I was a kid, you couldn't buy beer and wine in the grocery store, and had to drive to a different county to buy beer, and even further to buy liquor. It's kind of the same thing, I guess. It is very hypocritical, and not based on any type of logic.

Sophistry.

Because it's not unwinnable? We have poker in Irving and Burleson, as well as slightly further out places like Canton and Mabank, so who really is to say which communities might be amenable to the idea and which ones won't?

What the hell are you talking about? I'm not running a 3-card monte game outside a train station, nor am I teaching old ladies at nursing homes so I can win their social security checks off them . Pretty much everyone I sit down with is there for the same reason I am: the belief that they can play their cards and chips better than other players at the table enough to walk away with a profit. With rare exceptions we all know the rules very, very well, and we all made the effort to be there at that given time.

The shower you need to take is the one that'll wash off your moral absolutism. "Deception?" Gimme a break.

You feel this way, and yet, here you have 434 posts on a poker forum.

OHHHH! I get it now. You're one of those guys I mentioned in my first post. You play or used to play poker and you hate yourself for it.

Odd that someone that hates poker and poker players is hanging out on a poker form. Of course a person can play poker and be a good person.

Getting one outta five votes is pretty sick. He’s two votes away from approval. Dope if you ask me