Poker fad already fading?

[revots33]

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Think about this: ALL casino games ARE "rigged"/tilted in favor of THE HOUSE...
people KNOW this good and well before they go to a casino to gamble...yet they continue to do so...why?
I don't think the casino business is going to drop off the face of the earth...

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I've heard this argument many times. But if that's the case - where were all the poker players until recently? Poker isn't a new game. If the fact that people just like to gamble explains why it will always be popular - then why WASN'T it always popular? Most casinos didn't even have poker rooms until the current boom (a boom fueled largely by poker on tv).

I don't agree with the argument that just because people like to gamble, poker must therefore always stay as popular as it is now. One does not equal the other. People move on to different things and newer fads. Even if everyone who currently plays continued to play, the decline of poker's popularity in the popular culture would ensure less new players joining the game.

It's not just a question of television ratings. It's a question of poker's place in the popular consciousness. In a few years, I'll be interested to see how many poker chip sets are on the shelves of Target and Wal-Mart, and how many poker-themed t-shirts are on the racks at Kohl's. Not too many, I'm guessing. Because fads don't last forever. Just because this fad involves a gambling game doesn't mean it won't suffer the fate of most other fads. It will continue to be played by those who love the game, and it will no longer be played by those who were just playing because it was the "in" thing to do.