MicrostockGroup

"On March 31, 2011, Full Tilt owed approximately $390 million to players around the world, including $150 million to U.S.-based players, but the company had just $60 million in its bank account, the government said in its filing Tuesday."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904106704576582741398633386.html

Owners took pay and payments, billing was haphazard, eventually they owed much more than they had. (see the first paragraph) The prosecutors call it a Ponzi Scheme. The major problem, aside from draining the company profits and the processing companies in effect stealing $45 million, was the problems processing deposits.

This has nothing to do with Microstock, thus OFF TOPIC, but imagine if a smaller agency suddenly had requests for payouts and didn't have the float of uncashed commissions. More interesting was Lucky Oliver when they went out of business, paying, everyone, every cent, even though they shut down and many had insignificant amounts due. I still admire them for that.

It does make me wonder if some of the Low Earners would be shut down by commissions requests, if they had to pay off everything they owed. The big ones, I'm not as worried, they seem to have a building full of attorneys, thinking up new ways to make life difficult for us. 

I'm still shocked by what's happened with Full Tilt.  They were owned by respected poker players.  With hindsight, perhaps not a good idea, as they like to gamble with lots of money.

I do wonder what would happen if everyone cashed all their money out of the sites at the same time.  Most of them have high enough payout levels to keep a lot of cash that they owe contributors but is that just in bank accounts doing nothing?

I like to cash out as soon as I hit a payout level, it doesn't feel like the money is real until it's in my bank account.

Occasionally I read something that is truly funny.

gambling, while fun and addicting, ruins lives. nuff said

... which was essentially the argument that justified Prohibition. What a great success that programme was. Nuff said.

More lives were certainly ruined by the crime wave that resulted and anyway far more alcohol was probably consumed during Prohibition than before it. Making things illegal usually makes them more popular.

It's essentially the same issue we have with illicit substances in the US/UK today. Such vast sums of money are made by those who peddle drugs that they can easily buy their way through any system of control. We can't even maintain a single drug-free prison, much less a drug-free society. What makes it even worse is the petty crime of addicts (who were created by the pushers) and the gun crime of the pushers defending territories from others.

I think it would be amazing if individual states ran internet poker sites.  The revenue could go to schools or maybe help fund the prisons loaded with people arrested for smoking marijuana. 

Do we need to access gambling from sleazy, dark casinos filled with shady characters?  They are everywhere in Washington.  Don't get me wrong, there are beautiful, lush Vegas-like casinos ran by Indian tribes too but the most common casino here is very sketchy.  I would much rather hang out with a cup of coffee in my pj's and play a few sit-n-go tournaments than worry about getting stabbed in the neck by a twitchy crackhead.

They should be banned by the government!

that will never happen due to politics. Plenty of people will object (conservatives?) to state operated gambling sites and will just use this as another example of govt control.

I'm watching Rounders.  There's a nice quote by Canada Bill Jones "It's immoral to let a sucker keep his money".  Unfortunately, some of the microstock sites seem to live by that quote

Funny it's the liberals in this state who are all worried about what we eat, (as in Kids Meals and those meddling folks) how we drive, what we drink, who gambles and oh by the way, took a payoff from the Indians to block another tribe from opening a casino and then grated an eternity tribal compact with the tribes that were operating. Please don't blame those Bible thumping Southern conservatives, we have just the opposite around here. LOL

Note about prohibition that people often miss. It wasn't illegal to drink it was illegal to produce or sell. Home possession and consumption for personal use was allowed under the law. It was a long running non-partisan effort from before WW I and even longer, before the turn of the century. For those who car, Carrie Nation (the lady with the axe, who chopped up saloons) died in 1905. This wasn't a quick decision, even though I'd agree it was a poorly conceived idea. Prohibition lasted from 1919 to 1933.

About gambling, which is where this started. It's the same as prohibition. Banning things doesn't make them go away, it usually makes them go underground, where organized crime takes over and also makes the situation worse. I go to Las Vegas, Reno and have been other places. I live less than ten miles from a casino, that has poker, roulette and all the games (some Tribal casinos do not) and don't go there, except for the excellent buffet. Thanks gamblers you make my dinner cheaper. I've never played online poker, but I have played after hours in a bar. I don't have a gambling habit, don't play slots in the bars. Heck, I go to bars for the TV and usually don't drink while I'm there. (what a Weenie! Drinking diet Coke, watching football, using the free internet?)