Goodnight Goodlatte

While the internet gambling bill passed in the House of Representatives, it appears the bill is unlikely to pass the Senate, due to the little time remaining in this session of Congress. That should keep all online poker players in the clear for another year.

If for some reason this bill sniffs the Oval Office, I'm preparing to make some changes in my online poker routine. While I don't want to be an outlaw, I'm in the process of starting a poker related business, so I want to protect my investments AND my earnings potential.

If you're in that same boat, consider these changes you can make to your online accounts:

1) Get a Canadian bank account. This is something you can do online, from the convenience of your home. While Neteller may be located in Canada, passage (enforcement) of the Goodlatte bill may prevent your local bank from allowing a transfer to/from Neteller.

2) Shop around for a new ISP. It is expected that enforcement of this legislation will allow government to force ISP's to block access to gaming sites (censorship!). So make sure your ISP will allow you to access the sites you like to visit. I'd take this a step further and acquire cellular broadband cards from Canada, which would work in the U.S.

3) Acquire an international mailing address. Since I live(d) about 5 blocks from Canada, it's easy for me to visit a Niagara Falls UPS store and get a P.O. box. Five bucks a month and I can get mail in Canada. If the poker sites decide to play ball with this legislation and prohibit U.S. customers.... well, problem solved.

These actions might seem extreme to the casual player but if you make your living in online poker, it would seem wise to consider some of these changes.

(BTW, the Goodlatte bill has exemptions for lotteries and horse racing. Now I realize there are some professional handicappers, but how many professional online lottery players are out there?)