The poker world has been turned upside down since the passage on Sept. 29 of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. Senator Bill Frist was instrumental in getting the legislation attached to an unrelated defense bill called the Safe Port Act.

The law makes it illegal for banks, credit card companies and other financial intermediaries to transfer funds to online gambling sites. It does not outlaw the sites, or make playing on them a criminal act, it just makes it difficult to conduct financial transactions. Curiously, online betting on horse racing is still allowed, and not surprisingly, state-sponsored lotteries have also been exempted.

There is a huge amount of speculation about the ramifications of the Act. Some expect the equivalent of the 1929 stock market crash in terms of its impact on poker, its people, and associated businesses. Others say there will be effective ways to challenge, or lawful ways to circumvent, the Act.

In either case, one can conclude that, in the short run at least, televised poker, poker publications, celebrities, advertising, and tournaments like the World Series of Poker, will be severely impaired. Several online poker sites have suspended U.S. operations, others plan to maintain U.S. operations; others are still deliberating.

Recent polls show convincingly that the large majority of Americans see online gambling as an act of personal choice, and would prefer regulated Internet gambling to prohibition.

I see this legislation as part of an ongoing assault on individual choice and privacy afflicting our country, and a distressing governmental incursion into cyberspace. Poker writer Nolan Dalla reminds us of the bumper sticker that says "If you aren't outraged, you aren't paying attention."