December 25, 2004

The 22-year-old soldier of 1841 Highland Ave. was getting the best Christmas gift a soldier could want as he serves his country in Iraq.

Although thousands of miles away from his family, Anderson was able to celebrate his first wedding anniversary to the day with his wife, Corey, and see their 3-month-old daughter, Keirsten, for the first time.

The wonderful Christmas Eve surprise was provided for Anderson through a video conference over the Freedom Calls Foundation Network from his home.

And the event was a total surprise for the young soldier.

Anderson had received a directive to report to his commanding officer at Camp Cooke, north of Baghdad in the Sunni Triangle of Iraq. When he arrived for the appointment, he was surprised to see his wife and baby waiting on a large-screen monitor.

"Merry Christmas, Nate!" was the greeting he got from Corey, also 22, and the rest of the family.

"Here's your surprise," said Corey, holding their daughter, who was dressed in a Santa's helper suit for the occasion.

Anderson had only seen still photos of his daughter before the video conference.

"I see her," he said. "She moves a lot more (than in the photos)."

He repeatedly called her by name, and when she began to cry at one point, a family member joked, "See what you're missing, Nate?"

His younger sister, Jessica Anderson, cried when she saw her brave brother.

"Hi, brat," he kidded with her.

He also talked to his 16-month-old nephew, Joseph Baptista, and they waved to each other.

"Hi mom," he said to Bea Anderson of Lincoln, R.I., who also had served in the military.

"I miss you," she told her son.

Adam Franco of Fall River, Corey's cousin and Keirsten's godfather, told Anderson, "I miss my drinking buddy."

"I miss drinking," he replied.

It is clear from newscasts that American soldiers are under constant threat of attack by insurgents and others opposed to democracy in Iraq.

Asked the first thing he wanted to do when he got home, Anderson said, "Walk around with no weapon."

"You can have the baby instead of the gun," Corey told him.

"I wish I was there," he said.

"She looks just like you, Nate," his wife told him.

The soldier was reminded of a planned trip to Aruba after he gets back.

"It'll be nice to have sand and water at the same place," he suggested.

Anderson appeared tired and a family member asked him if he was getting enough sleep.

"Somewhat," he answered.

"I'll take that as a 'no,'" the relative said.

"I'll be up at 4 in the morning," Anderson said, as it was just after 10 p.m. in Iraq.

He said he was playing poker when he was told to report for the surprise video conference.

"I lost more money," he said.

His video reception evidently was quite clear, as he noticed Franco in the background concealing a bottle of beer under his shirt.

"Hide that Corona, you bastard," he told Franco with a smile.

Another family member told Anderson that a big party would be held for him when he gets home.

He said he hoped to be home in about two months.

He was deployed on Jan. 6, then left Kuwait on his birthday, March 15, to go to Iraq.

Until the video conference, Corey said she was only able to contact her husband through e-mails and occasional phone calls.

Asked if she worried about her husband's safety, she responded, "Yes, constantly. It's a full-time job just to worry."

"He has good days and bad days," she added. "Some days he's OK, and other days he's not the same."

For security reasons, soldiers are not allowed to talk to family members about their activities in the war zone.

"I do know he's with the Quick Reaction Force," Corey said. "And he's said that he does gate duty and guard duty."

Anderson is with the 103rd Field Artillery Group, based in Cranston, R.I.

The event uses the Freedom Calls Foundation Communications Network, supporting connections between servicemen and women in the war zone and their families at home in the states.

The foundation has integrated systems, services and equipment in military hospitals and bases around the world to reunite separated families across the United States, enabling soldiers and marines to attend milestone family events remotely.

"When I contacted the Freedom Calls Foundation, this was just a dream," Corey said Thursday. "Now that it is a reality, I am so excited."

"I thank the Freedom Calls Foundation from the bottom of my heart," she said. "It is just amazing that they do this kind of thing every day for soldiers' families all over the country."

According to foundation Executive Director John Harlow, "The foundation is transforming a long-standing family communication paradigm in time of war by enabling soldiers in the war zone to attend and participate in milestone family events. ... Soldiers are now in a position to keep their commitments to their families at the same time they keep their commitment to their country.

"The long-term vision of the Freedom Calls Foundation is that our war fighters will be able to come home from a day on the battlefield and virtually be with their families and tuck their children into bed every night, using state-of-the-art technology," Harlow said.

"This is a time to reflect and honor the sacrifices and service of our soldiers and their families," said Ed Bukstel, the foundation's director of operations. "It is especially important that all Americans support our soldiers during the holiday season."

The foundation is a public charity, building a communications network, dedicated to providing state-of-the-art video conferencing, telephone and Internet services to enable American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan to stay in touch with their families and loved ones at home 24 hours a day for free. The foundation provides services to more than 20,000 soldiers and Marines, and the Army has requested that the foundation install eight more facilities in Iraq and two in Afghanistan in the coming months.

The foundation is authorized by the secretary of the Army to provide communications services to the troops and their families, and recently received a commendation from the Army and a personal letter of appreciation from Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba.

The foundation is supported by donations of corporations and the American people on the foundation's Web site, http://www.freedomcalls.org/.

E-mail John Moss at jmoss@heraldnews.com.

(The staff at The Poker Web would like to wish all the brave men and women serving our country in Iraq, and overseas, a merry Christmas and the happiest of new year wishes - come home safe)

December 22, 2004

CBS/USA Today

(CBS) Poker-related accessories are among this holiday season's best-sellers. And that's not surprising.

Popular TV shows such as "Celebrity Poker" have not only turned the game into a spectator sport, they have upped the ante, inspiring increasingly younger fans to play the game themselves, reports The Early Show correspondent Tracy Smith.

She says TV poker is not only popular, it's contagious.

On a typical Saturday night, New Jersey high school freshman Reid Coopersmith and his buddies try their hands at poker hands. He tells Smith poker is "pretty huge" among his friends.

The boys model their playing after what they've seen on TV: the same game ("Texas Hold 'Em), same lingo, even the same fancy chips. "That's the only thing I asked for, for my birthday, nothing else. Just poker chips. That's all I wanted," Coopersmith says.

What's so much fun about this game?

"I guess the betting. Most likely," he chuckles, "just knowing that in one night, you can win a lot of money and the next night you can lose a lot of money."

How much money are we talking here? "Not that much," Coopersmith says, laughing.

"The truth is," Smith notes, "these bets, usually 20 cents apiece, won't break anyone's piggy bank. And the boys confine their poker playing to an occasional Saturday night basement game. But some kids take it much more seriously."

Nick Joy, co-producer of the Oxford Film Co./Stone Dog Films documentary, "The Games Children Play," says TV has an effect. "The World Series (of Poker) creates superstars and kids want be like them and play with their friends. …I don't know if it's gonna create the situation later on in life where kids start gambling. (But for) now, they're gonna continue to gamble."

Part of the documentary shows video made by two high school seniors in Washington state. Parts of it show kids playing poker and dice games right in the middle of the school day.

"For most kids, gambling if they choose to engage in it will not be harmful. But for a percentage, four to six percent of kids will develop a serious gambling problem,' says Keith Whyte, who runs the National Council on Problem Gambling.

He's urging broadcasters who air poker shows to add warning labels. "You would never see a celebrity drinking tour without some very strong warning messages not to drink and drive, and that this is potentially dangerous behavior," Whyte points out.

But to many parents, poker's a safe alternative to other things kids could be doing, notes Smith.

In fact, Coopersmith got those chips he wanted, as a birthday present from his mother, Liz Perry, who says poker is just innocent fun for kids: "Totally," Perry exclaims. "Having a great time. They're …home. They're not out on the street. They're all great students great athletes and at night, this is a great way for them to hang out with each other and be with each other."

At least for now, the boys say sooner or later, the poker trend will end. Coopersmith concedes his new chips will "probably gonna go to waste in a couple years. Collect dust in my attic."

Some say poker can also help kids with math and social skills, but for many parents, such as Coopersmith's mom, the real benefit is knowing their kids and their buddies are home safe on a Saturday night.

December 21, 2004

A deal to bring Major league Baseball to Washington has potentially been saved by a generous offer from an online poker site.

Empire poker has offered up to $50 million to prevent the potentially new team, the Washington Nationals, from non- existence. The company would finance the team's move from Montreal to a new District stadium.

Ron Burke, the company's top marketing executive said, 'If you turn on the TV, you'll see poker being played more and more. It's become a lot more mainstream. It's like the national pastime.' He adds, 'The exposure [of the stadium name] would be good for us, and the city would have baseball.'

Empire has yet to hear back from baseball or city officials.

December 19, 2004

Jennifer DeLeo
Forbes.com

In the last few years, poker has emerged from smoky backrooms to prime time spectator sport television. The Web is a big contributor to the spread of poker fever. A number of big money champions, including Chris Moneymaker, learned on the Web and it is estimated that nearly 1.5 million are playing online each month. Whether you're a pro or just an amateur, go online to find all you would ever want to know about poker.

Jennifer DeLeo reveiw of PokerPulse.com

Sports fans love statistics and Poker Pulse is the place for stats on poker tournaments, players and online poker dens. The Action page provides a table-by-table view of current high stakes online games and the Tournaments click lists final and upcoming tournaments with a total prize pool of $100,000 or more. Counts are updated every hour. Industry Wide Statistics give counts of things like 560 books about poker available and 225 online poker networks. Sign up to receive the free PokerPulse ChartLetter for access to charts showing recent industry playing trends.