Poker777

[samantha88]

When the government in Cyprus decide that playing cards for cash in your own private home is still an illegal act the law they hand down excludes no one no matter what the age or gender of the offender. The Cyprus police did not think twice about hauling 42 women, all of whom were elderly, off to jail this week for playing poker in their own homes for cash. The majority of the women ranged in ages from 75 years old to 85 years old with the oldest woman arrested being 95 years of age and the yougest being 50 years old. The women played a game every week and rotate between houses to play at. The ladies were not hurting anyone by playing their games but were dobbed in by a neighbour who lodged complaints stating that the house was used as a noisy gambling den (hmm elderly female party animals? Crochet parties?) Maybe the neighbour simply got jealous because they were not invited so they decided to instead do the whole "if i can't play no one can" thing. The police confiscated a total of 530 playing cards and 546 poker chips which the women were playing for at an average of 100 euros each. The women were booked and then released but are not likely to receive any punishmet other than a small fine if they are convicted.

[Lovechips]

I am really not sure how i feel about this. I mean yes they were breaking the law, but at the same time were they hurting anyone? I don't think so. They were spending their own money, In places they chose, in privacy, they weren't broadcasting it all over the news or anything, if anyone at all then the only person they "hurt" was probably the nosey neighbour, seriously that's just ridiculous, if they were have huge rave parties, gambling for or with drug money or something like that then different story, but how can they be legally permitted to play bingo then??? that's for real cash, it's a gamble, how silly! I think that it was absolutely ridiculous, maybe it was time for some extra revenue to be generated or something like that so they decided to get them for it. Just my opinion.

[trishelle-NY]

Oh these poor old ladies. They should have just let them be, yeah it was illegal but it's not as though they were off as a gang of elderly people spray painting graffiti onto buildings and houses and vehicles in the street or anything like that, they were just having some fun and making a little extra income whilst doing it and doing something else with their time rather than the usual old lady sterotype of knitting scarves and sweaters. I hope that whoever dobbed them in finds themselves bored out of their brain one day and realising the reasons behind why these women played these games when they did.

[shyguy]

I guess that it really is hard to choose where to stand on this story. The women were breaking the law, whether or not the elderly ladies were aware of the fact that their activities were in fact illegal is not said in the story and is therefore unknown but it's not like they were really breaking some law that was really important for society or anything like that. Is their age a reason that some people feel outraged over the police actions in this case? It very well may be, it's a possibility that must be accepted but still in my own opinion if the women were in their thirties and twenties i would still think that the punishment was rather excessive for the crime. Maybe they should have just confiscated the poker tools instead and the money and given the women a warning and left it at that instead of taking it so far.

[3kings]

Would i like it if these people burst in and arrested me and my friends whilst playing some weekly poker in the privacy of our own private homes? No. Would i like it if my grandmother was one of the women this happened to? No. No matter what way i look at it, when trying to see it from the womens point of view and then also looking at it from the authorities point of view, there is no way in my mind that i could possibly deny that what happened to these women over this is absolutely ridiculous and in my opinion overkill. Unfortunately it looks as though law enforcements and the political persons involved in this are purely taking that action in order to make a point and make an example of these women in order to prove their point. Rather unfortunate but just the way it all goes these days.

[sleuthy]

I find myself to be completely on the fence on this topic because i do see it from both sides and it is difficult to call the result. I can see it from the police point of view, what the women were doing was illegal even though they were not causing any disturbances or hurting anyone other than one anothers purses. But at the same time i can see it as it would have been in these womens point of views. They were not hurting anyone and they were just having some fun in their own private residences and not in any community halls or anything like that. Were they even aware that they were breaking the law in the first place? that is another thing that i wonder. Also why is it legal for little old ladies to go to bingo halls and play bingo every week but they can't have some poker games at home with less people than what would be at these bingo games? The bingo industry isn't regulated in the proper ways either when they are run through veterans clubs and what not, that is one part that they really need to sort out because they are making themselves look like they are contradicting the law in some areas.

[aussiegirl]

The women were breaking the law, and the law should not change for different people. It should be one law for everyone to abide by, not one which discriminates when it comes to different aspects such as the age of a person or their gender or anything like that. Just because these women were elderly it should not excuse them from having to abide by the law just as everyone else does. Would we even be having this conversation here about this topic if it had been a group of college students doing it or a group of young people doing it with just as many people and with the same frequency and with the same behaviour? Unfortunately as much as you may not want to admit it , i don't think we would be having this conversation if it were them instead of a bunch of old ladies. But the law is clear and they broke it, they should face the same punishment as anyone else would if they were in the same situation and facing the same charges.

[Avenge]

I think that as soon as people read this story and see the word "elderly" they automatically pass judgement on the law officers for arresting them and for charging despite the fact that these woman, elderly as they may be, were completely and obviously breaking the law. They may be old, but that should not excuse them from having to abide by the law and it should not excuse them from being punished when they choose to ignore the law and break it. If it is good enough for one then it is good enough for all. I also have to ask whether it would be the same big problem if it were elderly men and not women?

[PrettyInPink]

I would have to agree that they seem to be placing too much of an emphasis in this story on the age of the women because they are considered to be elderly (despite there being a few women in the group who were certainly not elderly) and people seem to overlook the fact that what the women were doing was illegal. Do not get me wrong on this, I do think that the whole thing went a little bit too far as they could have just gotten a fine each or something like that as punishment rather than having to go to court, and i think that punishment would be suitable for anyone too not just these women, but i do think that people are only up in arms because of the age of the women and nothing else. They were breaking the law and they should have to deal with the consequences that go with the actions and decisions that each and every one of them chose to make.

[aceshigh]

In my opinion, the punishment, regardless of the gender or the ages of the offenders, was too high for the crime. Having to go to court for playing poker at a friends place with a group of friends is just overkill. What would happen to a minor who went into a casino and gambled underage, knowing full well that it was illegal to do so, and ultimately ended up getting caught? Would they have to face all of this as well? Probably not, they would more likely get a slap on the wrist, told not to do it again and possibly face fines, and that is if it even went to court in the first place, probably would only result in the underage patron being kicked out of the gambling establishment and told not to come back. If they do end up deciding to send these women to Court for this is too much and it makes me think that it was done purely to make an example.