There has long been a debate about whether poker, or specifically Texas hold’em should be considered gambling. The term “gambling” seems to imply taking part in a game of chance. Poker, on the other hand, requires a lot of skill, especially the Texas hold’em variation.

Last fall, a South Carolina Circuit Court overturned the convictions of 5 Mount Pleasant poker players, stating that since Texas hold’em is a game of skill and strategy, it is not affected by the state’s ban on gambling. The 5 poker players likely celebrated the ruling, possibly by having a huge poker night, but the fight isn’t over.

South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster has appealed that court’s ruling. Normally, the appeal would go to the Court of Appeals, but the AG skipped that step and went straight to the state Supreme Court. His reasoning is that the legal issue deals with the wording of the constitution in regards to gambling.

In the earlier ruling, Circuit Court Judge Markley Dennis stated that a private game of Texas hold’em in one’s one home does not violate the state’s anti-gambling laws. The attorney general disagrees, stating that whether or not a game requires skill does not make a difference. Soon there should be a third opinion and one that counts much more than those two: one from the state Supreme Court. We’ll keep you posted.

Well, Christmas is over now, so we’re in that part of the year that is a bit of a letdown. The excitement of Christmas is over and it’s too soon to be excited about the New Year. It’s the time of year when people show that they weren’t nearly as excited about those presents as they seemed. Or if they were, then exchanging them for something else at the store is a strange way of showing it.

This time of year is always a little depressing. People are exchanging our gifts, we notice that all of that turkey, candy and pumpkin pie has made us fatter, and we have to go back to work after a few days back. Usually the Christmas tournaments are over and the New Year’s tournaments have yet to begin. Well, Online Vegas casino may not be able to do anything to cure that post-Christmas letdown, but they are offering a nice bonus for new customers.

Right now Online Vegas casino is offering a multi-deposit bonus of up to $5,125 spread out over the first 10 deposits of new customers. Not only that, but the new customers will get to enter four slot tournaments of their choice for free. By getting free entry to the slot tournaments, that gives the new players a good chance at winning even more money on the casino. It seems that even though Christmas is over, Online Vegas is still in the spirit of giving.

To get the deposit bonuses and participate in the slot tournaments, visit Online Vegas today.

From now on, let’s all just assume that we know nothing about any celebrities. We’re wrong far too often. Even those that are seemingly clean-cut and upstanding citizens, perhaps even role models, have come to disappoint us. I mean, if Tiger Woods is a degenerate sex addict, then what are we supposed to think? Tiger always seemed as controversial and edgy as Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. But now we know that we never really know anything.

We’ll never know for sure what happened on the Thanksgiving weekend, but I am in the camp that believes his hot Swedish wife went after him in retaliation for his cheating and the two cooked up a story in an attempt at damage control. Whatever happened, we’ll never look at Tiger the same way anymore. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that he’s a cheater. After all, the man was trained to play 18 holes. And before you judge him, have you seen Rachel Uchitel?

The more we learn, the more impressive Tiger’s accomplishments, but it degrades the others involved. It’s no longer cool to be one of Tiger’s mistresses. For the first one to come out, it’s pretty damn cool to say she had been with Tiger Woods, but then another woman came out and then another. I think once you get to the teens, it’s no longer cool to be the mistress of a celebrity because it’s no longer a rare accomplishment. Now I’m wondering what’s wrong with those women who weren’t with him. Why not? Were you busy? Also, at this point I think we should stop using the word “mistress” and start using other words.

But all of that brings me to my real reason for writing. They say now that aside from women, Tiger had an affinity for blowing too much money in casinos. Some have said he was a compulsive gambler who would regularly wager $25,000 on a single blackjack hand. This is a common issue for super-rich celebrities. Just ask Michael Jordan. Now, Tiger can afford to wager as much money as he wants in the casinos (it has been reported that he has a $1 million credit line at the MGM Grand). After all, I think his Nike contract alone is worth the GDP of Germany. The question is, is that a good use of his money? Look at it this way. Lyndon Johnson started the “War on Poverty” in 1964. It has been a losing battle starting in roughly 1964. I’m pretty sure that Tiger could go a long way toward winning that war by himself.

Now, I have no idea whether or not Tiger donates to charity and, if so, how much, and I would never tell other people how to spend their money. It’s his money and he can do whatever he wants with it, so long as it’s legal. And I’m not going to tell rich people they shouldn’t gamble. There’s nothing wrong with that. But gambling should always be done responsibly. If you intend to just give your money away, I would rather you give it to charity than a casino. That’s just my take. If you want to have some fun and don’t mind risking some of your money because you have plenty, feel free to do so. Then again, if throwing money around can get you hot women like Rachel Uchitel, then maybe I should do it, after all. Anyway, that’s my opinion. What do you think?

This time of year, it’s easy to characterize people as one of two extremes. You can either call them a Scrooge or Grinch if they’re not getting into the spirit of Christmas and are not in a giving mood or you can put them in a category with Santa or Charlie Brown if they really seem to get it. Companies can be looked at the same way. Luckily, Millionaire Casino, like many online casinos, goes into the Charlie Brown camp.

Millionaire Casino has had good bonuses and other giveaways going on all month, as we have reported previously, and they are ending the year with a bang. The Countdown to 2010 tournament is still going on, and ends as 2009 comes to a close. The tournament fittingly has a prize pool of $201,000 and the top prize is $20,100. See what they did there? Yeah, it’s the year 2010 put into money value. Yeah, pretty cool.

Anyway, aside from the year-end tournament, Millionaire Casino is also giving out daily reload bonuses. All deposits made throughout the remainder of the month are subject to a bonus and a new member’s initial deposit receives a bonus of $5,000.

One of the best promotions going on right now is a keno bonus. This is particularly exciting for keno players because their game doesn’t usually get a lot of bonuses or promotions. Those are usually reserved for the more popular games, like slots and blackjack. Right now, however, keno players get to play their favorite game and receive double VIP Plan rewards, which is the loyalty rewards program offered by the casino. Double points can really add up over time and once enough are accrued to be traded in for credits, the credits can be used to win enough money to buy a Kindle book reader for someone on your Christmas list. Or, if you would rather get one for free, you can enter the casino’s sweepstakes, where five lucky winners will get a free Kindle. Yeah, I know that was a terrible segue, but it had to be done.

To take part in any of the bonuses, tournaments or giveaways, visit Millionaire Casino and do so soon, because the year is almost over.

You know what I hate about Christmastime? Almost nothing. There are a few things, but I want to stay positive here. It’s the time of year of happiness, goodwill, charity and gift giving, among other things. Speaking of gift giving, Casino Tropez is really getting into the spirit. The online casino is holding new promotion they call “Tis the Season to See Green.” Even though I’m blue-green colorblind and could take that to be offensive, I like their idea. Their idea is to give away money, and as long as it’s not mine, I love the idea of giving away money.

Casino Tropez has always offered sign-up bonuses to new members.  They’re giving out a 100% match bonus on players’ first deposit up to $100 and a 50% match on the second deposit up to $200. As part of the “Tis the Season” bonus, every Sunday for the next 27 weeks, new members can earn a 100% match bonus on their deposits up to $100.

At the risk of sounding like a television infomercial…But wait, there’s more. For existing members, Casino Tropez is offering a 25% bonus on all deposits. Yes, that is on all deposits and there is no cap, so if you’ve ever wanted to deposit a billion dollars, then this is a good time. To take part in this promotion, though, you must be on Casino Tropez’s email distribution list, because they only send you the access code for the promotion through those emails.

To take part in the giveaway and get into the Christmas spirit, visit Casino Tropez today.

This is the time of year when all kinds of toys and gadgets pop up. There’s something for everyone and anything new is going to get some buzz. A new product getting attention in the gambling world is the eDeck, which is made by Cantor Gaming. The product is a small electronic device similar to a Blackberry or an iPhone. With it, players can gamble online at a Las Vegas casino from wherever they are.

The eDeck uses Wi-Fi to connect to any of three Vegas casinos, which includes the Venetian, the Palazzo and M Resort. The game has high-resolution graphics and realistic gameplay, giving players the experience of gambling in their favorite casinos without actually needing to make a trip to Vegas. Though the game is being marketed for poker, it also includes other games, such as roulette, baccarat, blackjack and slots.

When I first heard about the device, I was skeptical, but I still remember saying crazy things like: Why would anyone buy a Kindle? Just buy a regular book and read that! Why would people pay that much for an iPod when you can just get CD’s? Home video? That will never catch on!

So I will put my natural skepticism aside and let people decide for themselves if you want an eDeck. After all, I’ve kind of been wrong about every other gadget.

Free stuff offered by casinos is good for everybody. It’s good for the members because they are given stuff they didn’t have. It’s good for the casinos because they increase business. Everybody wins. Sometimes, however, getting something for free isn’t enough for people, because they wish they had even more for free. Well, even those people should be excited about the news to come out of the Cherry Red camp.

Cherry Red casino has long offered a sign-up bonus of $777 across two deposits. The deal was that the casino would match the first deposit of up to $400 and then the second for up to $377. Now Cherry Red has upped the ante. They now combine that into one bonus of $777 on the first deposit and offer it over the first 10 deposits, meaning new members can get bonuses of up to $7,777.

The bonus money can be used on many different games, such as blackjack, slots, poker and more. The bonus money must be wagered at least 25 times before it can be withdrawn. To receive the bonus, upon joining the site, enter the promotional code of 777FREE1 for the first bonus. For all other bonuses, enter 777FREE2 through 777FREE10.

To join the casino and take advantage of up to $7,777 in bonus money, visit Cherry Red Casino today.

All Slots Casino is getting into the Christmas spirit by giving the gift of new games. Four new casino games have been released, one of which has a Christmas theme. The non-Christmas new games are a Golden Opportunity, Tribal Treasure and Buffet Bonanza.

Golden Opportunity is a 3-card rummy game, where the player attempts to get the lowest possible score. Tribal Treasure is an online slot featuring a tribal theme, including masks, tribal jewelry, arrows and more. It is a 5-reel, 25-playline video slot. Buffet Bonanza is a 5-reel, 25-payline online slot featuring lots of tasty food. It is sure to get your taste buds ready for that Christmas feast, unless you can’t afford one and are going to split one bean among the family because your boss laid you off on Christmas Eve, which brings us to the other new game.

Everyone’s favorite miserly old curmudgeon, Ebenezer Scrooge, is featured in the new game, Scrooge Repents. The game features various symbols and motifs from the classic Dickens novel, A Christmas Carol, including Tiny Tim, the ghosts haunting the protagonist, and of course Scrooge himself. Old Ebenezer may have been stingy, but this online slot is not. Players can win up to 120,000 coins.

To get into the Christmas spirit by playing Scrooge Repents or just get a different game on, visit All Slots Casino.  

It’s hard to believe that 2009 is almost over. I can’t remember seeing a good movie this year, the President of the United States accomplishing anything or, well, anything else big happening this year. Well, other than the recession, but that started before 2009. But it’s almost over and to commemorate that, Millionaire Casino is holding the Countdown to 2010.

The Countdown to 2010 is a playoff-style slot tournament with 5 rounds of play. The first four rounds are weekly tournaments that started November 30 and run until December 28. Then the final tournament, which you can consider the championship round, runs from December 28 to December 31. Each round has an individual prize pool of $40,200 and the combined prize pool for the playoff is $201,000.

Winners of the preliminary tournaments progress to the next round with no entry fee. For everyone else, including players who have not yet joined the tournament, there is a $5 buy-in for the preliminary tournaments. For the final round, the buy-in is $100. There will be different games played on each round. In the first round the game will be Dr. Love, in the second it will be The Right Prize, and the third the game will be X Marks the Spot, in the fourth it will be The Reel Deal and then in the final round it will be Vegas Party.

The money for this tournament is big and prizes will be disbursed as follows. The first-place winner will earn $10,000; the second-place finisher will win $7500; and the third-place finisher will take home $5000. After that, people start splitting the prizes. Fourth prize is split among two players, with each winning $2500. Fifth prize is split five ways, with each winning $500. Ten players share the sixth prize, with each getting $250. Seventh prize is split among 30 winners, with each taking away $100. Fifty winners split eighth prize, with each winning $50. Ninth prize is split among 50 players, with each winning $25. And finally, 95 players split the tenth prize, with each taking home $10.

To take part in the tournaments, make your way over to Millionaire Casino.