Since the publishing of Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson’s op/ed piece for Forbes last week, internet poker players have been up in arms over his attack on the game, particularly considering his position in the brick-and-mortar gaming industry and his ability to influence politicians. Adelson is pictured.

To recap, Adelson wrote that online gambling has, and will continue to have, a huge negative impact on land-based casinos, causing many people to lose their jobs. He estimated that if online gaming were to be legalized in the U.S., 200,000 brick-and-mortar gaming industry jobs would be lost as well as another 200,000 that are indirectly related to the industry. He claims, however, that his businesses would not feel much of an effect since most of his company’s money comes from Asia.

Adelson also took the supposed moral high ground when it comes to online gambling, saying, “The plague (that online gaming) could bring to our society is even more far-reaching. The possibility of underage children finding ways to place online wagers and the potential of people betting under the influence of drugs or being coerced are all scenarios that can happen. When gambling is available in every bedroom, every dorm room, and every office space, there will be no way to fully determine that each wager has been placed in a rational and consensual manner.”

He added that online gambling is “a toxin which all good people ought to resist.”

In the days since the op/ed ran on Forbes’ website, the poker community has responded by flipping Adelson the collective bird. Ninety-nine percent of the comments related to his piece have been scathing. Here on PocketFives, member Gameslutwrote, “Las Vegas was built on ‘lose your house’ money… including the Sands. Anything said after that by a casino executive is obviously for self interest only.”

On Two Plus Two, poster “uppie_” pointed out, “Best part of the ‘click a mouse lose a house’ quote is it wasn’t originally coined for online gambling. It was in reference to online trading of stocks, which is perfectly legal and allows way more money to be ‘raked’ and lost every day than online gambling ever will.”

“Neurotoxin” added, “Oh God his hypocrisy is tilting. Internet poker = compulsive behavior, destroys communities. Physical gaming = wholesome entertainment. Internet gamblers can be under the influence of drugs with no oversight, while meanwhile he serves his ****ing customers drinks to get them to gamble more.”

And one of the more succinct points was from “spewie_griffin,” who wrote, “Dinosaur roaring as it sinks in the tar pit.”

There have been some rumblings of a boycott of the Venetian in Las Vegas, the best known of the Sands properties, but nothing formal has been organized. It was mentioned in a Tuesday article on ABC News’ website, which may actually help get the ball rolling.

Poker Players Alliance Executive Director John Pappas (pictured), who wrote an op/ed on the issue for PocketFives, told ABC News, “Nothing’s being organized by us; but yes, we’ve heard, certainly, from plenty of outraged players. The fervor has increased since last week, with some saying they will never play at the Venetian again.”

Many poker players have spread the word on the Venetian’s Facebook page, not only expressing their disgust with Adelson, but also encouraging people to stop visiting the Venetian and any Sands property. John Prywes wrote, “Adelson is both a hypocrite and a moron. He is a hypocrite because he’s against online poker for moral reasons while profiting from brick-and-mortar casinos. He’s a moron because he does not remember what caused the B&M poker boom in the early 2000s.”

One person’s words likely speak to many online poker players around the U.S.: “Mr. Adelson, here is a cold hard fact for you – I, like thousands of other U.S. poker players, used my online poker winnings to fund my live play locally and to travel to Las Vegas and play. Since the shutdown, I have not been to Las Vegas or any of the 3 card rooms in MN that I play.”

Mike Qualley continued, saying, “Basically, sir, with the Forbes op-ed you did and your stance on online poker, you are only hurting your own industry and casinos in Las Vegas. Since the shutdown, several poker rooms have shut down in Las Vegas. Sure, this helps your poker room at the Venetian, but overall it hurts Las Vegas. You really need to reassess your stance on online poker.”

What do you think? Would you consider boycotting the Venetian(pictured) and Palazzoin Las Vegas because of Adelson’s comments? Let us know by posting in the “Comments” section below.

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