packing a LOT of links and material here - make it your one-stop shop on the subject

Start here, because it has Chesterton!  Obama Administration’s Outrageous War on North Carolina—Part 2 (Chesterton’s Advice)

then here:  [Eugene Volokh] Prominent feminist: Bans on sex discrimination ’emphatically’ do not ‘require unisex restrooms’ 

Separate places to disrobe, sleep, perform personal bodily functions are permitted, in some situations required, by regard for individual privacy. Individual privacy, a right of constitutional dimension, is appropriately harmonized with the equality principle.

The author? Now-Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, writing in The Post on April 7, 1975, and explaining why the Equal Rights Amendment shouldn’t be opposed based on “the ‘potty issue.’

More from the Notorious RBG here:  Ruth Bader Ginsburg Defends North Carolina Law

Then there's the first win .... North Carolina Law Wins Under Fourth Circuit Transgender Ruling

Three on the silliness of Obama's position:  Obama Transgender Ideologues Imprison Themselves, Under Obama Illogic, Women's Sports Teams Violate Title IX, Inconsistent Consistency (yes, Ed Whalen had a VERY busy week!)

and then we get the executive over-reach:

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION FORCES TRANSGENDER BATHROOM RULES ON EVERY SCHOOL IN AMERICA: “If anyone wondered what President Obama meant when he promised to ‘fundamentally transform the United States of America,’ now they know.”

Related: An Insta-follower on Twitter asks, “What’s [Hillary] have to say about this? Press has asked her, right? Right?”

and another readable series:

Obama Administration ‘Guidance’ on Bathrooms/Showers—Part 1

Obama Administration ‘Guidance’ on Bathrooms/Showers—Part 2

Obama Administration ‘Guidance’ on Bathrooms/Showers—Part 3

Obama Administration ‘Guidance’ on Bathrooms/Showers—Part 4

Obama Administration ‘Guidance’ on Bathrooms/Showers—Part 5

Had enough?

which today sounds like a pretty good idea.  This is some general stuff ... not war, not Obamacare ..... just stuff about His Petulancy and the Mrs.

[David Bernstein] Obama administration lawlessness: the top five

ONE OF THESE HEADLINES IS NOT LIKE THE OTHERS:

● Desperate lives of women domestic workers exposed to appalling exploitation, physical violence and sexual abuse in Qatar.

—The London Daily Mail, April 22nd, 2014.

● Qatar’s foreign domestic workers subjected to slave-like conditions.

—The London Guardian, February 26, 2014.

● In Qatar Speech, Michelle Obama Complains About Growing Up as a Girl in America.

—The Weekly Standard, yesterday.

related:

WASHINGTON POST: From coast to coast, conservatives score huge victories in off-year elections. “Even in San Francisco, the sheriff who steadfastly defended the city’s ‘sanctuary city’ policy went down.”

AND YET PEOPLE IN THE GOVERNMENT THOUGHT OBAMACARE WOULD BE EASY: A decade into a project to digitize U.S. immigration forms, just 1 is online. “Heaving under mountains of paperwork, the government has spent more than $1 billion trying to replace its antiquated approach to managing immigration with a system of digitized records, online applications and a full suite of nearly 100 electronic forms. A decade in, all that officials have to show for the effort is a single form that’s now available for online applications and a single type of fee that immigrants pay electronically. The 94 other forms can be filed only with paper.”

Innovation At The Speed Of Government!

Why, it’s as if President Obama is the second coming of Woodrow Wilson or something.

FUNDAMENTALLY TRANSFORMED: Obama Legacy in State Offices: A Shrinking Democratic Share. 

A year ago, I read a short post on a new decision interpreting the federal gambling laws:

Is Playing Texas Hold’ Em a Form of Gambling?
No, rules Judge Jack Weinstein, at least for purposes of the Illegal Gambling Business Act (IGBA), 18 U.S.C. § 1955, because Texas Hold’em “is not predominately a game of chance.” It seems difficult to me to square that conclusion with the Second Circuit’s ruling in United States v. Gotti, 459 F.3d 296, 342 (2d Cir. 2006). But as with all conclusions by Judge Weinstein, I suppose that is a matter for the Second Circuit to handle (assuming DOJ authorizes the appeal).

Last week's Second Circuit decision reversing the district court is available here.

When the same sequence of cards was dealt at a mini-baccarat table at Atlantic City's Golden Nugget casino twice in a row, was it just probability in action. Out of all the packs of shuffled cards in the world, the cards ending up in the same order happens now and then. Then the cards came up in the same sequence a third time. Fourth. Fifth. The players played forty-one hands where the cards came up in the same order, betting larger and larger amounts each hand. Wouldn't you? They ultimately won more than $1.5 million. Casino security staff swarmed the table, trying to figure out how the fourteen players at the table were cheating. They weren't. A vendor allegedly supplied the casino with packs of unshuffled cards, which were dealt as-is. Now the casino is suing the fourteen gamblers and the playing card company, and the gamblers are countersuing the casino.

The gamblers were allowed to cash in $558,900 worth of chips, but the casino argues that the win isn't legit because the game was unfair to the house. Gambling regulations in New Jersey state that gambling must be fair to both sides. No fixing games, no cheating. Even though the players did nothing wrong, the casino claims that the baccarat games were fixed...if unintentionally. They want the games to be declared illegal.

The Golden Nugget isn't the only casino in Atlantic City where this has happened recently. The Trump Taj Mahal dealt unshuffled cards for three and a half hours without noticing last year, and was fined $90,000 by the state.

Unshuffled cards a costly headache for AC casinos

After four hours of poker The Boy and I left our hosts house quietly.  I didn't know what to say.  So he broke the ice.

"That was quite a butt kickin'".

And indeed it had been.  After giving him a rundown of the games to be players and a pretty good portfolio on the styles of each of the other players at the table --- he got his clock cleaned.

He thought it was gonna be EASY!  A bunch of old guys sitting around playing poker, talking sports and movies and stuff.  The young kid would just dazzle 'em.  Instead, as he admitted, the worst other player at the table was better than the best player he's used to opposing.  And the speed of the game kept him off balance as well.  He did win a few big pots, which kept him in the game, but he stayed in too many pots too long.  And in the close of the evening tourney his old father took him out.  The Boy was the big blind, I was left of UTG.  K-10 off suit saw me just call.   Flop came K - 7 - 5 rainbow.  Checked to me I went all in and after taking45 seconds The Boy called.  Ishowed my top pair. He showed Seven Deuce!  He thought I was bluffing.  

Sadly he still has some learning to do.

Interesting evening in the offing tomorrow.  My regular poker game has been limping a bit and is looking for some decent fresh meat.  We WERE going to have to cancel the Sunday night game this week, but I suggested "The Boy" might be available. 

Keep in mind that I TAUGHT him the game.  And from time to time he's been able to supplement his income when he's found a fishable pond.  I'll give him the rundown on our tablemates.  Should make for an interesting evening.

because it seems that one of the FEW things I actually agreed with the Donks on is one of the MYRIAD on which Obama has "changed his mind."

I switched my “poker home” from SpadeClub to PokerStars this week. Why? I was tired of the Donks @ SC … tired of playing a tourney for 1-2 hours for NOTHING … tired of spinning my wheels. So why PS? Been listening to the 2+2 podcasts – they do a nice job “softselling.” So far I've been “pointing” pretty often and even when losing SnG's I feel my play is improving. Been playing a lot of mixed hold em and pot limit Omaha with a little success. Would LOVE to throw some cash into the ether but it's just not there.

Also been watching the 2009 WSOP … “I believe they're the Rajun' Cajuns” never stops being funny.

Interesting chat at the (online) poker game last night. Over the months this has become like a home game. We're all getting to know each other, our styles, etc. So last night another “longtimer” decided to hold forth on how he views our styles. He's one of the good guys so his comments were enjoyed and taken in the spirit of good fun which they were intended. Then some of the “newbies” or “occasionals” started to chime in and their observations were, well, just goofy.

Especially about me. Here's a little tip about how I (and many others) play tournament poker. We play small ball early when everybody has chips and blinds are small. After 3-5 levels however the mix is QUITE different. You encounter (or find yourself in) more short stacks. And SS play is VERY different from “normal” play. So I find myself pushing more – either because I wanna steal blinds, force drawing hands out or force SS's into committing when they shouldn't. Nothing radical there. And yet there sits a guy who, over the course of the last six months, has played probably a dozen hands with me. Tops. Telling everybody how I play. It'd be like visiting The Strip at noon then telling everybody there really aren't that many bright shiny lights. Then another noob picks up on one of the longtimer's comments. He'd mentioned how “lucky” I am. I “always” draw/suck out. Three hands later I'm UTG with JJ. I raise 3xbb....two callers. Flop comes 3-5-K rainbow. I bet the pot, everybody folds and he sez “see, you ALWAYS hit.” At which point I showed my cards and advised that I DON'T “always” hit – I just outplay him. Then I catch hell because I got testy about it. Sheesh. Went on to finish 4^th. Here's the deal: the math of cards is immutable. The math IS the math. If I'm getting pot odds, I call. If I'm not, I don't. And since I don't, other players rarely see me in hands when I REALLY suck out (2 outers, etc.) They OFTEN see me in hands where I'm getting the correct odds to make the play and when I win them they remember, but can never recall it when I don't.

Bottom line – the view of the donk is that the other guy ALWAYS wins because he's lucky, and the donk ALWAYS wins because he's skillful. The view of the good player is that 25% of the cards in the deck are spades, 1/13^th are aces, sometimes the donk wins but over time the good player will.

Here’s the problem: I play on two poker sites (ujogo.com and clubcgn.com.)  These sites offer daily tourneys with prizes ranging from $10-$25 in poker accessories or Amazon cards to $50 in cash.  They also have a weekly game with a prize of $500/150/50.  In the last month I’ve hit for $25 in poker supplies twice, $50 in cash once and took 2^nd in the biggie once.  Not bad for 30 days of amateur play.  But I’ve been SECOND in the $50 game over half a dozen times!!!!!

That’s not good.  Second place is just the first loser.  Now I KNOW my heads up game is weak but that’s just crazy.  I THINK I’ve hit on an answer.  After looking back at the last 6 tourneys I find that I’m playing a tad conservative just to MAKE it to heads up.  My opponent usually has take out #3 and I find myself at a 3-1 or worse disadvantage.  Solution – when it gets down to about 4-5 get more aggressive.  If my assessment is correct I should finish second LESS often but first MORE often. 

Remind me.