Monthly Archives: September 2021

Marxist Nature of Black Lives Matter Exposed in New Book – Daily Signal

Posted: September 12, 2021 at 10:08 am

America has spent years fighting communism outside its borders, but now a Marxist threat is growing from within the country, Heritage Foundation senior fellow Mike Gonzalez says.

Gonzalez, author of BLM: The Making of a New Marxist Revolution, says the Black Lives Matter organization has encouraged Americans, especially young people, to embrace communist ideology.

In 2020, there were 633 riots according to the U.S. Crisis Monitor run out of Princeton [University], and 95% of those riots in which we know the identity of the perpetrator Black Lives Matter members were included, Gonzalez says.

Through his book, Gonzalez hopes to open peoples eyes to the true nature of Black Lives Matter.

Gonzalez joins The Daily Signal Podcast to discuss the book and why hes standing against the communist influences in our culture today.

Also on todays show, we read your letters to the editor and share a good news story about a New Jersey community that is going above and beyond to make sure all returning military personnel receive the welcome and thank you they deserve.

Listen to the podcast below or read the lightly edited transcript.

Virginia Allen: I am so pleased to be joined by Heritage Foundation senior fellow Mike Gonzalez. Mike is the author of the brand new book BLM: The Making of a New Marxist Revolution. Mike, the book is out today, congratulations.

Mike Gonzalez: Thank you, Virginia. Yes, Im very happy.

Allen: You really didnt mince words with the title of this book: BLM: The Making of a New Marxist Revolution. Thats pretty straightforward. But I do want to begin with defining some terms. What exactly do you mean by new Marxist revolution?

Gonzalez: When we talk about Marxists, were talking about communists. They have tried to take over America for many decades, for many centuries, really. They have always seen America as a rich country, the world leader, at least since World War I. They want to see us as a top target, but they failed miserably.

In all the years as a Soviet Union, they tried to infiltrate us or tried to influence Americans and they failed. This time through Black Lives Matterand I can get into whyMarxism and Marxist communists have come very close, the closest theyve ever come, to changing our way of life and that is what is happening right now.

Allen: I found it really fascinating that as youre going through the book, youre explaining that very thing, this changing culture and how the Black Lives Matter organization has an agenda. You actually started the book by talking about Frederick Douglass. That fascinated me. Why did you feel the need to give that historical perspective and talk about a figure like Frederick Douglass before diving into this larger conversation about Black Lives Matter?

Gonzalez: Yeah, Chapter 1 starts with Frederick Douglass, the introduction obviously starts with Jan. 6. I explain my understanding of Jan. 6, but I start the book proper on Frederick Douglass because Frederick Douglass really is the best known abolitionist in U.S. history. He was a man of noble character. He was a man of courage. I started with his fight with a sadistic master to whom he had been loaned and how he said he became a man by beating this man who owned them on loan.

I started with him because throughout his life, he was anti-socialist. I describe in the book a meeting in which he spoke and there was a socialist. One of the quirky, weird, odd things about communists and socialists, by the way, [Karl] Marx and [Friedrich] Engels never established a difference between socialism and communism, but they used the terms interchangeably. The socialist speaking with Frederick Douglass really was not putting an emphasis on the abolition of slavery. He was putting an emphasis on the abolition of wage labor.

Communists believed that wage laborin other words, what we all dois a continuation of slavery, which is crazy, just as communism is crazy. Frederick Douglass could not stand that this man was saying these things.

To Frederick Douglass, abolition was about one thing: It was about ending slavery, ending this blight upon our country. To communists, abolition is a completely separate thing. They want to abolish the family, the state, and all the institutions. In 1848, when this meeting takes place, Frederick Douglass understood that what we needed to abolish was slavery.

Allen: Yeah. That historical context is so critical for this broader conversation. I loved in the introduction, you really clearly lay out the mission for the book. You say, This book exists to fill the void in public awareness. You go on to say, If journalists will not report on the real nature of the Black Lives Matter organizations and their leaders and if the federal government cannot gather information on First Amendment-protected activities, this book will attempt to correct the record and analyze all the aspects of what transpired in 2020, as well as the historical forces that led up to those events.

So what then is that real nature of the Black Lives Matter organization and their leaders?

Gonzalez: First of all, I want to make it very clear that I agree with demand on the federal government not being able to collect information on First Amendment-protected activities. Im saddened by the fact that journalists did not vet, in fact, refuse to vet and did not cover the Black Lives Matter movement.

They covered for them. They de-emphasize or deny the Marxism of their foundersPatrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and also Melina Abdullaheven though they themselves are quite open about it and make videos saying, Yeah, Im a Marxist and Ive being trained as a Marxist.

They say this all the time and journalists, when they report on itwhich is very, very seldomthey say, I think I quote a PolitiFact fact check, in which he said, Well, Marxism these days, its really considering life through an economic lens.

No, it isnt. Marxism is what it is, what it says it is. Its communism. It is getting rid of the market economy, getting rid of capitalism, which Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Cullors say they want to do. They want to get rid of free markets. They want to get rid of our ability to own property and sell that property or sell our labor for a wage. They dont even like our system of representative democracy.

Opal Tometi has been very praiseful of the Chavismo in Venezuela. She was photographed with Nicolas Maduro. She believes in this type of direct democracy, which is not a democracy at all. Its just a dictatorship of one party.

So this is what they want to do. They want to abolish the family. In fact, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation had it on their website that they wanted to really make deep changes to the family system.

I wrote about it with my colleague, Andrew Olivastro, in a piece that was read by over a million people. Within a month, they did what all Stalinists do: They airbrushed that out of their website. All of a sudden that was gone, except that it is in other parts of the literature. They cannot hide this. They want to abolish the American way of life. This is what theyre about.

They hide themselves behind a very good slogan: Black lives matter. Who could be against that? If you dont think that black lives matter, I dont even want to talk to you. They hide themselves. If they call themselves Red Ideas Matter, it would be much more representative of who they are, but of course, like all communists, they hide themselves behind these noble sentiments, like black lives matter.

Allen: Thats really helpful context, Mike. I know you talk about the fact that, for so long, and during the Cold War, America was fighting the Soviet Union and we were fighting communism from afar, but now what we see is that were fighting it within our own borders, were fighting it from within.

Talk a little bit about how the organization Black Lives Matter is responsible. Are they responsible? Should we blame them for what we see now in this new interest that we see young people having in socialism and in new fascination with communism? Is Black Lives Matter really to blame for that?

Gonzalez: Yeah, let me put it together. First of all, its a really sad irony that as we celebrate this year, the 30th anniversary of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, that were seeing communist ideas gain such currency in our system.

We spent all these resources, all this time and energy and lives fighting socialism, fighting communism, fighting what [former President Ronald] Reagan called the evil empire, the Soviet Union, which was finally dissolved on Christmas Day 1991. The significance of the day is underlining the noble and moral character of our crusade against communism.

It is because of what happened in 2020, the year of turmoil and the riots. There were 633 riots, by the way, at least according to the U.S. Crisis Monitor run out of Princeton. And 95% of those riots in which we know the identity of the perpetrator, Black Lives Matter members were included.

It is because of this that critical race theory all of a sudden jumps the university walls and enters K-12 in full force. Were seeing as a result of last year, our classrooms completely change and teachers. It was happening before, but it really enters into full force.

We see also critical race theory entering the military, the houses of worship. And corporate America has completely surrendered to this ideology. Sports and every aspect of our lives is because of this. It is because of what happened last year.

The manipulation of the tragedy of George Floyds death, which is a tragedy, the manipulation of this into making people believe the leaders of all our key institutions that we are systemically racist and that our criminal justice system is systemically racistthey threw in the towel and accepted all of this.

And were telling our soldiers to read critical race theory texts, which say that the Constitution is illegitimate. These are people who volunteered to defend the Constitution from enemies, foreign and domestic, and yet, were telling them to read Kendi and all these other writers, Ibram X. Kendi, who say the Constitution is an illegitimate document.

This is happening because of the year of unrest that we had the riots and demonstrations, the upheaval, that people want to forget. Nobody wants to talk about it, but we cannot forget what we had after May 2020 for many, many, many months. Ive written the book just to shine a light on this and say, We cannot give in.

In fact, youve seen resistance from the American people. Ive crossed the country and speak to groups from coast to coast and I get hundreds of people, Im not that electrifying a speaker, and people turn out because they demand information about critical race theory. They want to know whats going on. They want to have it explained to them.

The resistance is now coming from the grassroots. The American people are standing up and saying, No, I dont want these things taught to my children. I dont want to be trained and go through these reeducation camps at my place of work. This is a form of workplace harassment, so theyre fighting against what Verizon is trying to do, what American Express is trying to do, and even The Salvation Army has these training programs.

Allen: Well, Mike, I really appreciate the research that you have done on critical race theory. You really are the expert at Heritage on that subject. I encourage all of our listeners, if you want to read Mikes pieces on this, you can check him out on The Heritage Foundation website.

Mike, you mentioned the riots last year that obviously took the nation by storm and really changed so much in our country. I was fascinated that in the book, you mentioned how Antifa in some ways became a distraction from Black Lives Matter. I was really, really interested in that point. Talk a little bit about that.

Gonzalez: I say that in a way to castigate politicians. Politicians from both parties are not courageous or as courageous as they should be. They dont want to talk about Black Lives Matter because black lives matter, because of the slogan. They are very shy to talk about these organizations, which are distinct from the concept.

Antifa, which is a much more white phenomenon, these are anarchists. Theyre violent anarchists. As I see it, they dont have a thought-out academic discipline, like Black Lives Matter has critical race theory behind it. Theyre all practitioners of critical race theory. Antifa doesnt have that. Antifa is anarchism and its just pure violence, almost for the sake of violence. I think they have goals like overthrowing the state, but they dont have a well-thought-out program.

Black Lives Matter has bills in Congress. Black Lives Matter has a curriculum that is being taught in many of our childrens schools already. Black Lives Matter has a foreign policy. They came out and supported the communist government of Cuba. As the communist government was rounding up protesters, beating them up, and putting them into prison through kangaroo trials, BLM came out and supported them. BLM came out in support against Israel as Israel was fighting the terrorist group Hamas earlier this year.

So Black Lives Matter has a foreign policy and it has a gazillion dollars. They raised $10 millionwell, no, sorry, they raised $100 million last year. It has all these assets that Antifa does not have.

Allen: You mentioned the money and you have a whole chapter in the book specifically titled Following the Money, what did you discover as you looked at the money coming into and out of the Black Lives Matter organization?

Gonzalez: There are all these corporations that have gone woke. There are many reasons being given why.

Vivek Ramaswamy, a colleague, he does a lot of [anti-critical race theory] work, has another book out in which he talks about how this is really easy for the CEOs to go woke. This is costless to them, but were seeing all these foundations raising money.

A lot of times, as I point out in the chapter devoted to this, these foundations have links, longstanding links, to Marxist groups, such as the Sandinistas. One of these groups is a [pro-Peoples Republic of China], pro-Maoism group in San Francisco, the Chinese Progressive Association, which is the financial sponsor of two of the Black Lives Matter affiliates.

The Chinese Progressive Association in San Francisco was founded to support the Peoples Republic of China against mainland China, against Taiwan. It was founded in the 70s for that reason.

Allen: In your writing of this book, in the research that youve done on the Black Lives Matter organization and critical race theory, ultimately, in your assessment, whats the end goal for Black Lives Matter? What are they aiming for? You say that they have public policy, they have bills in Congress. Whats their end-all, be-all?

Gonzalez: Their goal is what Alicia Garza said in 2019, when she was visiting a group of Maine leftists. She said, What we want to do is dismantle the organizing principle of society. She said that, and thats what they want. They want to dismantle the way were organized. They want to dismantle the American system.

They say that were systemically, structurally, institutionally racist, because they want to pull out all the institutions and want to change all the institutions, all the structures in the very system of America. That is their goal and they hide behind this good slogan that black lives do matter in order to pursue the complete overhaul of the United States.

Look, we have problems, problems that we need to solve, obviously, but were still the fairest, most prosperous country in the world where real human flourishing can take place. Thats the reason why people fall from airplanes out of the sky to come to this country, and theres no line of people leaving to get out.

Theres a very, very long line of people coming to get in because they see, they understand that America is the land of hope for the working man and woman of the world, of any race. These are people coming of all races. If we were a racist country, systemically racist country, we wouldnt have so many people of all races wanting to come in here and succeeding here and thank God for that.

Allen: This might be a naive question, but why? Youre saying that they want to fundamentally change America, they want to unravel the traditional structure of the family, of capitalism. Why?

Gonzalez: Well, on the family itself, it was Marx and Engels who put that in The Communist Manifesto of 1848 that they wanted to abolish the family.

I dont think anyone embraces evil qua evil. I think that they do believe that this is an oppressive system. Critical race theorists, just like critical legal theorists, just like critical theorists in the 1930s and 20s, believe that the West has a superstructure that is oppressive. They admit that capitalism produces the goods, but they say thats whats bad about capitalism, because it produces material well-being and that it perpetuates a very oppressive system.

They are crazy, and Im not a psychologist, but you have to believe that Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Melina Abdullah believe that we live in an oppressive society. Obviously, they havent traveled, or they havent traveled extensively outside of the U.S.

I have lived in at least seven countries, at least a year, as a foreign correspondent. I lived in Kabul for a month. And I can tell you that compared to the rest of the world, not only are we not oppressive, but were pretty, pretty good.

Allen: Where do we go from here then and what is really your hope as readers read the book, what do you want them to take from it?

Gonzalez: I want to open peoples eyes. I want to convince people who are either ambivalent about Black Lives Matter or actually believe that this is a noble endeavor and noble organizations, as a concept, of course its noble, but as organizations, no theyre not. And I want to convince people of that.

I also want to stiffen up the resolve of the American people that, no, we shouldnt allow this here. The American people are exceptionally attached to liberty. We have always been. This is something that has been remarked upon by social scientists and foreign visitors for centuriesG. K. Chesterton and before him, Alexis de Tocqueville and Herbert Marcuse, who hated it.

I want the people who already are suspicious of the BLM organizations to stiffen their spine against this and make sure that this does not take hold. I also want to reach out to people who do believe that these are good organizations, who have been misinformed, who have been manipulated into believing that we live in an oppressive system with systemic racism.

Allen: So critical. Well, the book is BLM: The Making of a New Marxist Revolution. You can get it on Amazon. Mike, final words, anything youd like to add before I let you go?

Gonzalez: Yes. As I said, America, I dont want to pretend that we do not have our faults. No system ever is going to be perfect on earth because its dealing with flawed individuals, right? Man is flawed, but this is a good country. I traveled the country, I go everywhere. Americans are good people. We have a good system. So before we think about completely overhauling and pulling out the foundations, we should really think hard: Is this really what we want to do?

Allen: Critical. BLM: The Making of a New Marxist Revolution, get it on Amazon. Mike, thank you so much for being here.

Gonzalez: Thank you, Virginia.

Have an opinion about this article? To sound off, please email[emailprotected]and well consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular We Hear You feature. Remember to include the url or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state.

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Government reacts to driver shortage: 50000 more tests promised – Tina Massey

Posted: at 10:08 am

London, UK: The government has recognised industry calls to deal with the driver shortage with plans to speed HGV driver licence tests.

Up to 50,000 more HGV driving tests will be made available each year by shortening the application process and the tests themselves, the government said.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said in a written statement to the House of Commons, the government would now overhaul regulations to boost capacity so drivers will be able to get a licence to drive a maximum weight articulated truck without first getting licences for lower weight categories.

This is expected to make around 20,000 more HGV driving tests available every year. Shapps said the changes, which still need to be approved by parliament, will generate additional test capacity very rapidly.

These changes will not change the standard of driving required to drive an HGV, with road safety continuing to be of paramount importance.

The industry is sceptical about the plans, hinted at earlier this week, reiterating calls for temporary work visas to woo back around 20,000 EU drivers who have left the industry something the government has rejected.

Richard Burnett of the Road Haulage Association said the industry was losing 600 drivers a week and it would take nearly two years to fill the net shortfall.

Logistics UK welcomed the increase in testingcapacity but said these promises need to be implemented quickly if they are to make significant difference to the currentshortagein time forChristmas.

Elizabeth de Jong, policy director, Logistics UK said the impact of todays measures is unlikely to make a significant difference on the driver shortage if they cannot be implemented in time for the industrys Christmas peak, with DVSA, DVLA and the wider training industry needingtime to apply the changes and adapt theiroperations.

She also warned of safety implications of the change. Logistics UK had strongly voiced our concerns about the proposed abolition of the B+E driver category, as this could pose a risk to road safety.

This is a sensible move but its not enough to fix the problem, Paul Jackson, managing director, Chiltern Distribution, told the BBC on Thursday.

We dont put newly-qualified drivers straight behind the wheel on their own. We buddy them up with experienced drivers for the first eight to 10 weeks and the insurance costs for new drivers are also much higher.

We desperately need to put HGV drivers on the list of skilled workers we can bring in from abroad, Jackson said.

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Dzivielevski Joins partypoker After "Special Year" of Poker Results – PokerNews.com

Posted: at 10:06 am

Nearly seven years on since finishing runner-up to Fedor Holz in 2014's WCOOP Main Event for $1.2 million. Yuri Dzivielevski is the latest poker pro to join partypoker as an ambassador.

The Brazilian poker player won his first Gold Bracelet taking down Event #51: $2,500 Mixed Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better, Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better at the 2019 World Series of Poker. Then secured his second WSOP title a year later winning Event #42: $400 PLOSSUS [Day 2], $1M GTD.

These results online and live have contributed to the more than $15 million Dzivielevski has won playing poker, which sees him sit in 10th on Brazil's All Time Money List.

Head to the PokerNews Live Reporting Hub for the latest WPT World Online Championships news

With a poker resume that many would be envious of, Dzivielevski's career began with humble beginnings, similar to that of many poker professionals who now play the highest stakes.

"I started playing home games with friends and then started to learn some techniques from my brother," Yuri Dzivielevski told PokerNews. "Having gained some experience from this, I decided to try to make a living from poker for a year when I was still quite young. Now, more than a decade later, here I am, and I am extremely happy with my story."

"I believe this is one of the greatest achievements a professional player can make"

Now more than ten years removed from playing poker with friends around the table, it is hard to believe that the two-time WSOP Gold Bracelet winner felt like he needed to achieve anymore in the poker world. partypoker going all-in on Dzivielevski has allowed him to achieve one of his all time poker career goals.

"Since the very beginning of my career I have always dreamed of being a sponsored professional. I believe this is one of the greatest achievements a professional player can make and being recognised by partypoker as someone who can add to the brand is very special. I feel extremely privileged."

Related: Schemion and Proudfoot Bag WPT World Online Championship High Roller Titles

Dzivielevski is just one of a star-studded stable of partypoker Ambassadors that have joined the site in recent years, and he is not the only one waving the Brazilian flag whilst representing the site.

"I am very good friends with Joo Simo and Dayane Kotoviezy, and I have played with almost all the Team partypoker pros. I have a lot of respect for everyone on the team and I can't wait to get to know them better."

With an online poker resume that features WPT Online Series final tables, as well as MILLIONS and WSOP Online titles, it's clear that Dzivielevski is at the top of his game. One of the most consistent performers in recent months, this new partnership reflects the standard of poker that he has been delivering.

"This year has been the most special of my career, in terms of results. After all this, entering into this partnership with partypoker is something very special. Its a brand I really admire and feel proud to represent. I love playing poker and I am also very curious and competitive. This makes me motivated to solve problems and create new strategies to stay ahead of the competition."

With two Brazilian's making it to the final table of this year's WSOP Online Main Event, as well as his own WSOP success, Dzivielevski gives an insight to the secret ingredients that Brazilian's possess that has helped the South American country become a poker powerhouse on a global scale.

"Brazilians are competitive, intelligent, creative and passionate. All these things are very present in poker and I believe this is the reason why Brazil is having so much success in poker."

Read More: "A Brazilian Storm is Coming" says Joao Simao After WSOP Bracelet Success

Admirably, Dzivielevski wants to be the catalyst that sees more people hit up the poker tables, whether online or in a poker room. One characteristic all great players share is their ability to grow the game and the newly sponsored pro is going to give it his all to do this.

"Yes. One of my goals in life is to inspire people and make them as happy as I am. I hope this achievement of becoming a partypoker team pro inspires the poker community. Everything is possible when you give 100% of yourself and stay true to yourself."

Check out live updates from the 2021 WPT World Online Championship

Before Dzivielevski gets back to his ambassadorial duties, he let PokerNews know his aspirations of crushing the high roller scene when they are back in circulation. He also gave a very wholesome answer on what he's putting 100% focus into before the curtain closes on what has been a very successful 2021.

"I'm 100% focused on poker and my family, so my main goal for this year is to win as many tournaments as possible and create great memories with the people I love the most. Talking about career goals, Im excited to play some high roller live tournaments when they are back. Ill give my best and I hope to create good memories in this field too."

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Poker run to benefit Beaver Local grad | News, Sports, Jobs – SalemNews.net

Posted: at 10:06 am

A Poker Run and Benefit for Lindsey Brewer will be held Sept. 25 at Saddle Ridge Bar and Grill, 2097 Lincoln Highway, Chester. All vehicles welcome. Registration is from 10 to 11:50 a.m. with the first bike/car out at noon and last in at 5 p.m. Cost is $25 per rider, $10 for guest and includes dinner and prizes. Dinner for riders served at 5:15 p.m. Dinner for non-riders start serving at 3 p.m. and cost is $12. Menu is ham or hot sausage, potatoes or ziti, green beans and dessert. Carry out or eat in available. Craft and vendor show, Chinese auction, raffle tickets.

Brewer is a 2003 graduate of Beaver Local. She has two children, 8 and 17. She has been battling ovarian cancer for a few years. The cancer has spread to her spine, brain and other parts of her body. She has been undergoing extensive chemo and radiation. She is currently in UPMC under hospice care. The event is raising money to help with her medical bills and needs for her children. Any questions or wanting to make a donation contact Janice Shanabarger at 330-853-8085 or Bernadette Blakeley at 330-420-5851.

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Become A Better Poker Player With This Training Package – GameSpot

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The history of poker is nebulous. Nobody seems to know exactly when the game started being played in America, but what isn't in question is the rapid ascent of poker that has seen it become one of the most popular card games, whether you're gambling with real money or fake chips. Nowadays you can find a game, in person or online, anywhere, with a vast variety of different skill levels and stakes.

If you want to become a high-level poker player, The Ultimate Poker Pro Blueprint Mastery Bundle from Alton Hardin is a great choice. Valued at $2,200, it's on sale now for just $21.

Featuring classes inspired by Amazon's #1 bestselling poker book and led by a pro poker coach, this bundle deals with the essentials of poker all the way up to the tiniest details that will give you an edge over your opponents. Plus, you'll learn about the different types of games you'll be playing as you make further progress as a player, such as Zoom games, micro-stake multi-table tournaments, and 30nl cash games. With 11 different mastery courses included, you can take serious strides toward becoming a positive cash flow poker player, and maybe one day reaching a professional level. While you may not get to the level of Daniel Negreanu, you'll be able to improve your skills.

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This Company Will Pay You to Drink Martinis Like James Bond – Thrillist

Posted: at 10:06 am

It's not every day you come across a dream job. When you do, you should seize the opportunity and apply. Take this gig, for example, ahead of the release of the latest James Bond film, My Poker Coaching is looking for an official martini tester.

Yes, we're absolutely serious, but before you go quitting your actual job to pursue a life as a cocktail taster, there are some things you need to know. For one, this isn'ttechnicallya full-time job. The selected candidate will be paid $500 for their work and get a professional cocktail set and booze to whip up martinis at home. My Poker Coaching will also cover the cost of your drinks, but that's it. So it certainly won't pay the bills, but it could be fun.

As for what the job entails, it's pretty straightforward.My Poker Coaching is looking for someone willing to go out to well-known establishments to taste martinis. The hope is that the martini tester will be able to uncover the perfect martini, one 007 himself would love. Each drink must be judged on a strict set of criteria, which includes the following categories:

If you're interested, you can applyhere. You'll be asked some questions about yourself and have to tell My Poker Coaching why you're the perfect candidate for the job. Applications are open until September 30. The winner will be announced on October 8. Applicants can be from the United Kingdom, United States, or Canada.

You may not get to give up your day job to drink booze for a living, but you will get to live out your Bond fantasy for at least a little while.

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Shannon Shorr Wins The Kickoff Event At The 2021 Poker Masters – Poker News – CardPlayer.com

Posted: at 10:06 am

The 2021 Poker Masters kicked off this week, with the first of twelve high-stakes events on schedule being a $10,000 buy-in no-limit holdem tournament. A total of 82 entries were made, building a prize pool of $820,000. In the end, the lions share of that money was awarded to eventual champion Shannon Shorr, who took home $205,000 for the win. The score increased his career tournament earnings to $9,157,400.

This was Shorrs third title of 2021. He won a Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open $2,650 buy-in event roughly a month before this victory for another $186,261. Back in April he took down a $5,000 buy-in event during the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Showdown_ for $296,535.

In addition to the title and the money, Shorr was also awarded 480 Card Player Player of the Year points for his latest run to the winners circle. He has now made a total of six POY-qualified final tables this year, with $797,579 in earnings across those scores. As a result, Shorr has climbed into 15th place in the 2021 POY race, which is sponsored by Global Poker.

He also earned 205 PokerGO Tour rankings points as the champion of this event. This was his fifth qualified cash on the tour, bringing his point total to 363. He now sits in 49th place on the PokerGO Tour leaderboard, and has taken the early lead in the Poker Masters points race. The player with the most points accrued by the end of the series will be awarded the Poker Masters Championship, along with the Purple Jacket and $50,000 in added prize money.

The final day of this event began with 2016 Card Player Player of the Year award winner and three-time World Series of Poker bracelet winner David Peters in the lead, and Shorr in second place. Ben Yu, another three-time bracelet winner, came into the day as the shortest stack with just more than eight big blinds. Shorrs K-J outran Yus A-9 in the first hand of the day to narrow the field to six. Yu earned $41,000 as the seventh-place finisher. John Riordan followed not too long after, with his A-8 running into the A-Q of Shorr, who overtook the lead when his queens with an ace kicker earned him the pot and the knockout. Riordan took home $49,200 for his sixth-place showing.

Five-handed play continued for roughly two hours, but the stalemate ended when World Poker Tour main event winner Jonathan Jaffes pocket deuces lost a preflop race against the A-9 of Brock Wilson. A nine-high flop gave Wilson a lead which he never relinquished, and Jaffe hit the rail with $65,600.

Wilson got the last of his short stack in on a king-high flop with the K36 he had defended from the big blind. Peters had raised with KQ from the button, though, giving him a big lead when the chips went in. Wilson found no help on the turn or river and was eliminated in fourth place ($82,000).

Dylan DeStefanos run in this event came to an end when his three-bet shove with Q9 from the big blind ran into the pocket jacks of Peters, who had opened with a raise on the button. DeStefano picked up both flush and straight draws on the flop, but failed to improve any further and was knocked out in third place. The $98,400 he earned for his deep run in this event was the largest live cash of his career.

With that, Peters surged past Shorr to take the lead going into heads-up play. The two traded the advantage a few times over the course of their nearly two-hour showdown. Peters nearly put things away when he had the lead and the best hand in one of the final showdowns of the event, but his A-9 lost to a flush made on the turn by Shorrs A5 to see the stacks return to nearly even. The two agreed to a deal at that point, and ran a flip to determine the champion. Shorr ended up winning the hand with ten-high to secure the title.

Peters earned $147,600 and 400 POY points as the runner-up. This was his ninth POY-qualified final table of the year, with three titles won along the way. The 2021 U.S. Poker Open champion now sits in 12th place in the POY race. The 148 PokerGO Tour point he earned moved him into sixth place on that leaderboard.

Here is a look at the payouts and rankings points awarded at the final table:

Winner photo credit: PokerGO.

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Shannon Shorr Wins The Kickoff Event At The 2021 Poker Masters - Poker News - CardPlayer.com

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Nick Wright Turns Top Pair Into Bluff, Hellmuth and Negreanu Bicker on Latest Poker After Dark – PokerNews.com

Posted: at 10:06 am

September 08, 2021Jon Sofen

Nick Wright, host of FS1's popular "First Things First" sports TV debate show, returned to the felt on this week's "Poker After Dark" Season 13 first episode for "Fight Night," and he showed even an amateur can have a creative bluff in their arsenal.

The most ardent LeBron James defender you'll probably ever encounter sat down at the table against a few talented poker pros Maria Ho, Daniel Negreanu, Phil Hellmuth, and Jon Aguiar. He also took on UFC ring announcer Bruce Buffer and daily fantasy sports legend Peter Jennings.

Each player began with 125,000 chips in a sit-n-go style format game.

Shortly after Hellmuth inhaled a chicken and bacon avocado sandwich to the delight of PokerGO commentator Ali Nejad, Wright, who made his debut appearance on Poker After Dark last week, tangled in an interesting pot on a dripping wet board against Aguiar.

With in the hole and 128,000 in his stack, the sports TV personality bumped it up to 5,500. Aguiar came along for the ride with from the small blind. Both players flopped a big piece of the flop but they each opted to check. When the appeared on the turn, the competitors stared at a four-to-a-flush board neither player holding a diamond and again they checked.

The river was the and Aguiar went for thin value, betting out 1,500 into a pot of 14,000. Wright, who showed some creativity in the heads-up match he lost in July to Hellmuth on "High Stakes Duel," considered the reality that top pair might not be good on that wet of a board. So, he raised it up to 8,500 and Aguiar quickly let the best hand go.

Phil Hellmuth thinks he's the best tournament player in the world, Daniel Negreanu disagrees. The Poker Hall of Famers, two of the most popular pros ever, have gone back and forth the past year over the "Poker Brat's" abilities. That didn't change during "Fight Night" Episdoe 1 on Poker After Dark.

"Here's what pissed me off," Hellmuth told his Poker After Dark opponents. "All throughout the 90s, all I did was play against the greatest players. All through the 80s and 90s because those are the only people that played the tournaments."

"But everybody was bad back then," Aguiar chimed in to which Hellmuth took offense and told his opponents to keep quiet until he's done with his story.

"I don't want to play the f*****g debate game where I just get cut off with b******t," Hellmuth fired back. "Daniel does that to me all the time."

"Daniel hasn't said anything," Wright said.

"You know how many times he's done this?" Negreanu jumped in. "He says, 'don't say anything, let me finish, and then you can talk,' then I don't say a word, then I go, 'okay, Phil, so here's the thing, and then within three seconds he goes bla bla bla bla bla."

"Yeah, but then you call me out and I shut up," the 15-time WSOP bracelet winner responded before going back to his story.

Hellmuth mentioned that "all through the 90s" he played against what he dubs "the greatest players" and said he "beat them all."

"And then all of a sudden they developed this narrative that I'm not good enough against good players," he continued. "So, the very field that has all the great young players is the turbos. And in the last four turbos, I have a first, a sixth, a fifth three final tables. Some crazy amount, three final tables in five years, and this is the one I'm not supposed to compete because all the GTO guys. It's f*****g aggravating for me."

Hellmuth then went on to defend his poker resume. He said he thought the greatest poker player in the world should be the one who wins the most bracelets, a record he holds. The bickering continued when he accused Negreanu of "studying bad math."

"How do you know it's bad math if you don't study it?" Negreanu asked.

During Hellmuth and Negreanu's back and forth, Maria Ho and Nick Wright were tangled in an exciting pot. Ho raised it up to 6,000 pre-flop with and the amateur made the call from the small blind with .

Both players had just over 130,000 in chips and watched the flop come out , and they each checked. The turn was a , giving Wright a straight and Ho nothing but bottom pair on a wet board. Still, she called a 5,000-chip bet. When the appeared on the river, things got interesting.

Ho, who was playing the board, bet out 22,500 into a pot of 27,000. Wright pondered his move and folded his king-high straight, apparently putting his opponent on a flush.

Remember, Poker After Dark will air every Monday but is only available to PokerGO subscribers. If youre not currently subscribed, you can get a monthly subscription for $14.99, a three-month plan for $29.99, and an annual subscription for $99.99. You can also save $10 off an annual subscription by using promo code PokerNews at checkout.

*Images courtesy of PokerGO.

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Nick Wright Turns Top Pair Into Bluff, Hellmuth and Negreanu Bicker on Latest Poker After Dark - PokerNews.com

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Alexandru Papazian Wins His Second Bracelet In The World Series of Poker Online $888 Crazy Eights Event – Poker News – CardPlayer.com

Posted: at 10:06 am

Alexandru Papazian made poker history as the first Romanian player to ever capture a World Series of Poker gold bracelet when he took down the 2017 WSOP $888 buy-in eight-max no-limit holdem crazy eights event for $888,888. The format of the tournament must suit Papazians game, as he managed to win his second bracelet in the online version of the same event during the 2021 WSOP Online festival. This time around Papazian defeated a field of 2,350 entries to secure the hardware and the top prize of $241,128.

Papazian came into the final day of this event in second chip position with 31 players remaining, with Venezuelas Eugenio Pernia sitting atop the leaderboard when action resumed. Pernia ended up finishing ninth for $24,112, while Papazian survived to the final table in the middle of the pack.

Igor Thiesen ran A-J into A-Q suited to finish in eighth place ($32,155). Nikola Minkov (3rd $42,879) followed not too long after when K-Q failed to outrun the A-J of Patrick Mahoney. A classic preflop race ended in brutal fashion for Aleksey Churbanov. His 77 were up against the AQ of Tal Noach. The sevens remained ahead through the K108 flop and the 10 turn, but the river put two high pairs on the board to counterfeit Churbanovs pocket pair. He earned $57,180 as the sixth-place finisher.

Noach then overtook the top spot in the chip counts when his AA held up against the AK of Mahoney, who had cold four-bet from the big blind after an early position raise was three-bet by Noach. Mahoney found no help from the board and was eliminated in fifth place $76,250.

Cristian Nagaki was the next to fall to Noach. In a battle of the blinds, Noach shoved from the small blind with A6 and Nagaki called with Q9. Neither player improved and Nagaki was sent packing in fourth place ($101,682).

Papazian was the shortest stack when three-handed action began, but managed to surge up the leaderboard when his flopped set of deuces beat out the turned top pair of Santiago Varela. The Uruguayan player fell to the bottom of the chip counts after the hand, and soon was at risk with 64 against the AJ of Noach, who flopped top pair and held from there to set up a heads-up showdown with Papazian. Varela was awarded $135,595 for his third-place showing.

Papazian held roughly a 2:1 chip lead to start, and remained ahead by the time the final hand arose. Papazian raised to 1,000,000 from the button with Q6 and Noach called from the big blind with 87. The Q65 flop saw Noach check and Papazian bet 699,600. Noach check-raised with his open-ended straight draw, making it 2,600,000 to go. Papazian called with his top two pair and the 3 hit the turn. Noach bet 3,660,000 and Papazian called. The 2 on the river prompted Noach to move all-in with his busted draw for 9,482,308. Papazian called with his two pair to lock up the pot and the title, while Noach earned $180,818 as the runner-up finisher.

Here is a look at the payouts awarded at the final table:

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Alexandru Papazian Wins His Second Bracelet In The World Series of Poker Online $888 Crazy Eights Event - Poker News - CardPlayer.com

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WPT GTO Trainer Hands of the Week: 3-Betting From The Big Blind – PokerNews.com

Posted: at 10:06 am

September 12, 2021LearnWPT

This week were focused on a tournament scenario where you are out of position against a tough player in early position who opens to 2.5BBs, you raise to 10BBs from the Big Blind and they call.

This is an interesting situation due to the larger sizing of 4x the UTG+1 players raise since youre out of position. In addition, remaining stacks in relation to the pot size going to the flop are relatively shallow with an approximate Stack to Pot Ratio of 2. These factors coupled with your opponent being in position postflop, leads to a higher calling frequency of your raise even with some of their biggest hands. The early position player will be utilizing a strategy that mixes calling and 4-betting and flat calling our 4x raise with the majority of their range that includes pocket aces, pocket kings, suited broadway hands, plus a handful of suited connectors and Ax combos.

So unlike many other situations with a reraise and call, the preflop caller in this instance doesnt have a capped range. Your range as the Big Blind is also uncapped but is quite polarized with all of the strongest hands still possible as well as a mix of bluffing hands that includes suited combos such as Q5, 75, and 54.

With the shallow stacks, positional disadvantage, and polarized preflop range you should focus on continuation betting strategy balanced between some betting and some checking. You will notice that many that do c-bet in this spot do so at less than a 70% frequency. The best hands to c-bet will have significant hard equity and the ability to fire multiple barrels on certain runouts. For example, hands with reasonable showdown value such as top pair with good kicker and strong back door draws would be good candidates to bet.

To see more examples and test your skills, you can play through five free solved hands from this scenario.

To access the free five hands, visit this page.

Regular play on the WPT GTO Trainer will help you adjust your decisions closer and closer to GTO strategy.

You dont have to be the worlds best player to use GTO Strategy, and thanks to the WPT GTO Trainer, now you dont have to buy expensive software or have expert level knowledge to study GTO.

The WPT GTO Trainer lets you play real solved hands against a perfect opponent in a wide variety of postflop scenarios for cash game and tournament play.

If your goal is to be a tough poker player then you should try the WPT GTO Trainer today.

Register a free account here (it only takes your e-mail address to begin) to play hands and see true GTO strategy in real-time.

The WPT GTO Trainer has over 4 billion unique solved flops, turns and rivers that are fully playable.

As you make decisions in a hand, you receive instant feedback on the specific EV loss (if any) and Played Percentage for every action you take as compared to GTO strategy.

The full selection of scenarios for the WPT GTO Trainer are only available to members of LearnWPT, however were giving PokerNews Readers free access to the Trainer on a regular basis with the WPT GTO Hands of The Week.

Use this series of articles to practice the strategies you learn on LearnWPT (or at the table) and test your progress by playing a five-hand sample each week

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WPT GTO Trainer Hands of the Week: 3-Betting From The Big Blind - PokerNews.com

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