(1) Is it OK for vp gurus to work both sides of the fence, and
(2) Do you buy their products if they do?
I'm new enough here that I don't know who creates these polls.
The Administrator, I presume, but it's not signed as such.
Back when my hair was a lot darker and I was employeed as a
research economist, one of my doctoral fields was Econometrics --- which
basically means applying statistical methods to economic data. We
learned, among other things, that the phrasing on a poll very often
determines the answer. In our culture, the phrase "work both sides of
the fence" is NEVER used in a positive manner. Just the phrasing implies
somebody is doing something rather sleazy. If a doctor, say, treated
both prostitutes and nuns, you wouldn't call that "working both sides of
the fence." But if someone worked for the Mafia and snitched to the
police, you would. So phrasing the question as it is done here is akin
to saying, "do you think the people doing something sleazy are wrong?"
When questions are phrased that way, the answer is a foregone
conclusion.
I'm curious why there are only two sides to this fence. I've consulted
with casinos, to be sure, but also with gaming manufacturers, a state
gaming commission, lawyers in several different legal cases, and I've
been hired by several different players for one-on-one teaching --- and
these players have very different goals. I've helped out-of-work casino
executives to find suitable employment. It's hard to know where this
fence we're talking about is.
Even if that were defined, let's say I certified machines were over 100%
with perfect play. I didn't receive money for this job, but they did put
up one-foot circular signs on top of every qualifying machine saying
"Bob Dancer Certifies . . . " and a reference to www.bobdancer.com at
the bottom of the sign. Would this be counted as "working both sides of
the street?" If so, we have to add at least one more person to the list
of people who work both sides because exactly this sort of compensation
has been given to someone who is quite adamant that he/she has never
been paid by casinos.
It is interesting that the phrasing of the second part of question
implies that these "vp gurus" have products to sell. That would leave
out, for example, Harry Porter. I've seen Harry's posts on a variety of
video poker subjects that indicate he is very knowledgeable about many
aspects of video poker and can explain things clearly. I'm sure that
many of you agree with me and find his posts generally speaking well
worth reading. I would have thought that would make one a guru, but not
here, I guess, because he doesn't have a product to sell. (So at least
now, Harry, if you wish to be a guru when you grow up, you know there's
a "publish or perish" rule in effect.)
So presumably a "vp guru" would have had to write extensively about
video poker AND have products to sell in order to qualify. Depending on
how deep you go, that list would include, in no particular order,
myself, Liam W. Daily, Dan, Skip, Stanford, Frank Scoblete, Rob Singer,
John Robison, Michael Shackleford, John Grochowski and Elliot Frome.
Michael Shackleford, a friend who I greatly respect, consults for
on-line casinos and one of the things he pledges on his website is that
if you have a legitimate dispute with one of the casinos he consults
with, he will go to bat for you if you can convince him of the validity
of your case. I don't know anyone who knows him to speak of him other
than in the highest regard. But the phrasing of this poll certainly
includes him in "working both sides." (Anyone who decides against
getting his "Gambling 102" because of this is making a poor decision.)
Presumably these gurus also have to be alive in order to "work both
sides" so that lets Lenny Frome out of the definition, even though he
would otherwise qualify.
Or it could include people who have written about other subjects but
SELL video poker products. That would now include Jean Scott, Anthony
Curtis, and Howard Schwartz.
If I've left someone out, it's not intentional. I certainly don't know
who was supposed to be included in this poll.
I'm curious whether any of these gurus have to admit consulting as part
of "working both sides". I'm open about this, obviously, but many other
gaming writers choose to keep that quiet. So if you don't admit to
consulting, does that mean you don't work both sides?
If someone otherwise on the list is perceived so poorly by casino
executives that he/she is never OFFERED consulting opportunities, is
that a point in their favor, signifying purity, or a statement that
maybe he/she isn't such a guru after all?
Finally, does anyone really expect any of these vp gurus, however
defined, to act differently in the future no matter what the poll
reveals?
Bob Dancer
For the best in video poker information, visit www.bobdancer.com
or call 1-800-244-2224 M-F 9-5 Pacific Time.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]