[ QUOTE ]
We are going to play a game, but the rules are secret???

[/ QUOTE ]I would imagine that reading the rules is perfectly fine with the floor, as long as you're not sitting at an active table at the time. Not having the right to read and argue the rules, right there and then, should not be confused with the right to know the rules (which I would argue is a responsibility, not a right).

In the end, the house has the right to not even have its own written rulebook. Universal cardroom rules can be easily obtained before you hit the casino - and the right to see showdown hands IS a universal rule (look under "Showdown"). The guy sounds like either a cardroom newbie or an angle shooter.

On the other hand, if you're going to ask to see someone's hand, you had better 1) ask fast, and 2) expect to have to show him yours a lot from then on.