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I may be a little late with this because I notice that the subject is now being discussed in another area but I feel the topic is important enough to merit it’s very own thread.
For the past 2 days I’ve read all the back and forth that’s going on with RJ and many of the members. It’s been pretty hectic and several thoughts occured to me. ( RJ, you and I have always gotten along well and I want it to stay that way. These are general comments and not meant to single out any one of us in particular. You’ll see what I mean )
Maybe … just maybe … we can finally all agree that there is absolutely no upside in declaring money amounts when posting plays. Units and /or Stars would better suit our needs. Posters can state the range of plays … ie . “I rate my plays 1* - 5* with 5 being highest” or “my plays are rated 1 Unit to 10 Units “ …or “ Top and Regular “ etc. so we all can know the relative strength of any given play. Sure there is underlying competition .. that’s understandable …. it goes along with the pride we have as handicappers. … but when competition gets out of hand play posters sometimes say and do untoward things which effect lots of members. Responsible posting is not about glory … the glory lies in each of us living well .. with values that are meaningful.
There are fellas in here representing themselves with 5k, 10k , even 20k wagers per game. … others have demonstrated that they have a 5,000 to 10,000 a day gambling activity pattern. And these are good, decent people , too… buddies of mine and ours here . But this is not healthy for any of us and for a number of good reasons and I’ll offer two .
1)Our first priority and responsibility is, of course , to ourselves ( that’s a given ) … then to our fellow members with special consideration for the newer ones.
Please let us always ask ourselves: “ What kind of message am I sending to the younger , more inexperienced players ? “ Some are most impressionable … and are counting on us and sometimes hang on our every word . Some are getting misleading hopes of being a “ high roller “ when in fact it’s not all that glamorous … it’s not financially sound most of the time; in fact in some cases it’s devastating to the individual, his family and friends. It’s just not fair to them and I don’t want to see them get hurt. Let’s tighten up and choose our words a lot more carefully when posting … We all have an obligation to help each other and it goes way past just the art of picking winners.
2) This may seem far fetched, but … do we actually think we are insulated and bullet proof in Chat from authorities ? … that there is no one watching ? … The OCB or The IRS ? We are ALL catching a lot of EXPOSURE from the few who dare to post exhorbitant wagers. How easy would it be for a few of us to be flagged by an ambitious Assistant DA and / or an OCB Bureau Chief with enough fire in his belly to warm a city ! These are very serious people and we should all thank God they are. At the very least we would not be the intended target … but we’ll have to give up an uncomfortable amount of information about some less than honorable people … They’ll come at you knowing most of the facts and answers in advance so don’t even think about taking the 5th Amendment or falsifying testemony … that would be suicide .. and if the people we gave up do not cop a plea and in fact go to trial .. they will face their accusers eye to eye … guess what ? that’s you and that’s me. And the many many thousands in legal fees ( $500 / hour is not uncommon for legal counsel … $1,000 the hour for trials ) Hey I’m talking about a physical, emotional and monetary ENEMA here … the worst !!! And I’ll tell you something else , guys … straight from the heart … it could be an ordinary day … a day like any other … you’re approached by a stranger .. a regular guy … next thing you know you’re hit with a subpoena … and in the blink of an eye your whole FUCKING world is turned upside down .
Am I being paranoid with respect to reason #2 ? Probably . But why even place ourselves and everyone else here in a compromising position ? Let’s make changes for the better as a precautionary measure , even if my fears are unfounded.
Guys you know I’m talking in behalf of all of us and for the general well being of the site.
Please just consider the above and feel free to discuss like the gentlemen we are. Keep it cordial and reasonable. This matter really needs to be addressed.
I’m staying out of it from here on but I’ll be looking forward to all your opinions. Toss some ideas around… let’s also seek out the leadership and input of The Administrators and the “ Old Guard “. We are all on the same side here… no pun intended. We’re the best but we need to get better.
My vote is Let’s Think Smart and be a lot more Cautious… and above all … No More Talk Of Money.
Your Friend,
-CB
For the past 2 days I’ve read all the back and forth that’s going on with RJ and many of the members. It’s been pretty hectic and several thoughts occured to me. ( RJ, you and I have always gotten along well and I want it to stay that way. These are general comments and not meant to single out any one of us in particular. You’ll see what I mean )
Maybe … just maybe … we can finally all agree that there is absolutely no upside in declaring money amounts when posting plays. Units and /or Stars would better suit our needs. Posters can state the range of plays … ie . “I rate my plays 1* - 5* with 5 being highest” or “my plays are rated 1 Unit to 10 Units “ …or “ Top and Regular “ etc. so we all can know the relative strength of any given play. Sure there is underlying competition .. that’s understandable …. it goes along with the pride we have as handicappers. … but when competition gets out of hand play posters sometimes say and do untoward things which effect lots of members. Responsible posting is not about glory … the glory lies in each of us living well .. with values that are meaningful.
There are fellas in here representing themselves with 5k, 10k , even 20k wagers per game. … others have demonstrated that they have a 5,000 to 10,000 a day gambling activity pattern. And these are good, decent people , too… buddies of mine and ours here . But this is not healthy for any of us and for a number of good reasons and I’ll offer two .
1)Our first priority and responsibility is, of course , to ourselves ( that’s a given ) … then to our fellow members with special consideration for the newer ones.
Please let us always ask ourselves: “ What kind of message am I sending to the younger , more inexperienced players ? “ Some are most impressionable … and are counting on us and sometimes hang on our every word . Some are getting misleading hopes of being a “ high roller “ when in fact it’s not all that glamorous … it’s not financially sound most of the time; in fact in some cases it’s devastating to the individual, his family and friends. It’s just not fair to them and I don’t want to see them get hurt. Let’s tighten up and choose our words a lot more carefully when posting … We all have an obligation to help each other and it goes way past just the art of picking winners.
2) This may seem far fetched, but … do we actually think we are insulated and bullet proof in Chat from authorities ? … that there is no one watching ? … The OCB or The IRS ? We are ALL catching a lot of EXPOSURE from the few who dare to post exhorbitant wagers. How easy would it be for a few of us to be flagged by an ambitious Assistant DA and / or an OCB Bureau Chief with enough fire in his belly to warm a city ! These are very serious people and we should all thank God they are. At the very least we would not be the intended target … but we’ll have to give up an uncomfortable amount of information about some less than honorable people … They’ll come at you knowing most of the facts and answers in advance so don’t even think about taking the 5th Amendment or falsifying testemony … that would be suicide .. and if the people we gave up do not cop a plea and in fact go to trial .. they will face their accusers eye to eye … guess what ? that’s you and that’s me. And the many many thousands in legal fees ( $500 / hour is not uncommon for legal counsel … $1,000 the hour for trials ) Hey I’m talking about a physical, emotional and monetary ENEMA here … the worst !!! And I’ll tell you something else , guys … straight from the heart … it could be an ordinary day … a day like any other … you’re approached by a stranger .. a regular guy … next thing you know you’re hit with a subpoena … and in the blink of an eye your whole FUCKING world is turned upside down .
Am I being paranoid with respect to reason #2 ? Probably . But why even place ourselves and everyone else here in a compromising position ? Let’s make changes for the better as a precautionary measure , even if my fears are unfounded.
Guys you know I’m talking in behalf of all of us and for the general well being of the site.
Please just consider the above and feel free to discuss like the gentlemen we are. Keep it cordial and reasonable. This matter really needs to be addressed.
I’m staying out of it from here on but I’ll be looking forward to all your opinions. Toss some ideas around… let’s also seek out the leadership and input of The Administrators and the “ Old Guard “. We are all on the same side here… no pun intended. We’re the best but we need to get better.
My vote is Let’s Think Smart and be a lot more Cautious… and above all … No More Talk Of Money.
Your Friend,
-CB
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