Busted for good....

Poker is a great leveller in that ten players sat round a table are all equal on a social level. Whether they are an academic, or left school early with just a clip round the ear to show for it, whether they are a company director or signing on, it doesn't apply once the cards are dealt. I'm friendly with people through poker whom I wouldn't have ever met if I didn't play - I met my partner through the game and as he lived in Wales back then, it's unlikely we would have got together any other way.

So, when you make poker buddies, their "day job" or their background is never an issue. I have a number of poker buddies who I'm aware make their money from "careers" that are not strictly legal; however, while I'm not burying my head in the sand, their source of income is none of my business, and is certainly not relevant to a friendship that begins and ends in the casino.

I mention this because I heard some bad news this week. A young lad who I have known for a couple of years was arrested last week and won't be around for some time now, due to the nature of the offence. I'm a big believer in those who live by the sword die by the sword etc but I can't help feeling it is such a waste. I have played the same circuit as him for a couple of years and watched as his game turned round from amateur bluffing faciliatated by his deep pockets and replenishable income, to a strong, aggressive tournament game that saw him cash in GUKPT events and similar over the past year.

The lad and his girlfriend were both arrested at the same time, which resulted in their young baby being put immediately into care. This has genuinely sickened me. While him and his missus made their decisions as to which way they wanted their lifestyle to go, and did what they needed to in order to finance that, how could they risk their own child's future happiness? I'm trying to not be judgemental over this I really am, but when I think of this toddler in care because of their stupidity I'm gutted.

Obviously they must be gutted more than anyone else, they've lost their freedom, all of their assets will be taken off them, and of course, the worst thing must be knowing their baby is with social services through their own actions. I know there's that old cliche about doing the crime and doing the time, but the baby is the innocent party in all of this, yet the baby's life is now as fucked up as it's parents, before it even made it to school.

Have thought long and hard about whether I should even be posting this, but it's a poker blog about my poker experiences, so it's on here. Just a complete waste, ultimately for nothing.