A public apology to the posters at Bettorsworld...

[Boomer]

This morning I received the overdue monies from the Unified Gaming books that were mentioned in the "letter to my creditors" post. It is my belief that the rest of the funds due me will arrive sometime this week.

In an effort to secure my funds, I used extremely bad judgment in the way I went about it. I attempted to manipulate Bettorsworld posters and public opinion by putting an untruthful post about not paying my creditors in an failed effort to embarass Unified Gaming into paying me. I was never late with one creditor. It a foolish attempt to make Unified look bad which only succeeded in making me look bad.

More importantly, I put in a post about Unified Gaming having never had a no-pay which at that time was true, but was very inappropriate considering they were slow-paying me. Especially to Dot Mix and some of the other people I respect, I apologize for violating a trust.
It is this that I am most remorseful about and deserve all the reaming I've been getting.

Regarding the employee bonuses early on, this was never an issue of contention between Unified Gaming and I, even though it was made out to be. I did not intend my dirty laundry to come out in public. I do not do it now and haven't done it for many months. Who among us hasn't done something in their life they're not proud of. I don't need to be reminded about this forever.

The posters I respect here should be allow to make the decision whether I should be allowed to post here anymore. I'll abide by their decision.

If it is decided that I should continue to post here, Bettorsworld has told me not to have an agenda other than the sharing of information. I will, of course, abide by their wishes.

[Ronbets]

Boomer,

I vote you in under the conditions set by Bettorsworld management.

People hate to be used. You have been censured and should make amends. PAY BACK the bonuses you received under less than honorable methods.--Ron

[Mikes1212]

Boomer, how is it that this guy Ross had the possession of your funds? As the head of Unified Gaming, doesn't he just provide the software to those sportsbooks in question? If you drop 10 dimes into Rosie's Casino and lose, then 10,000 goes to them, so aren't they the ones to pay you when you win?

[JTChicago]

Boomer,
Although I am new to BW your posts carried a lot of weight for me right away. When I joined I read through the archives and this is where you developed credibility with me. It was a bit sad to have felt decieved by you since my first post was a question to you regarding another books credibility. I am glad you have resolved your situation and I look forward to your future posts. I have one question though if the bonuses were never the problem between you and these books, and Al Ross, then what was the problem? Thanks and I hope you finally get a good nights sleep!

[sportshobby]

Boomer, you have been repented and, even though Father Guido is no longer with us, I believe that you will be forgiven. You have certainly paid the price in sweating out getting your money, and in the thrashings the BW posters have given you.

[JohnnyDeMarco]

Boomer,
If you felt like you got reamed here, go over to Bookies hell & check out some of the things they have said about me. I'm glad you got your money and I'm also glad it came out that some of Unified is slow pay. Your posts were not entirely wrong. You totally trusted someone and then got pounded in the end. Good luck to you.

[IBTom]

apology accepted.....I don't know if I would have done differently.....now lets kicks some BM ass. (no offense BM's its just what we do) I like you when you send me money, and you like me when I send you money. Sounds like there is alot of love in this room.

[IBTom]

I think Boomer and Reno are still captains of BW. If you think otherwise , I respect that. Actually some of the winning cappers come first, as all we're trying to do is put dough in our respective pockets. I have been here 3 years or so and Boomer and reno are by far the ones that get me to click the mouse the most. And I beleive that is the case for most BW visitors. Just ask Jeff. Egos will get in the way boys, which is what I see alot around here. Lets keep Boomer on board here because it will only help everyone who is attentive to posts. If Boomer gets all his money then nobody got hurt, and we will keep rockin. Lets Kick some BM aassssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




[This message has been edited by IBTom (edited 06-05-2000).]

[Dot Mix]

BOOMER

When E.F. Hutton talks----people listen. In the Bettor's World forum when BOOMER talked people listened. You were respected and trusted on the highest level. You realize and sound sincerely sorry that you compromised that trust.

I certainly can move on and accept your apology and acknowledgement that you made a big mistake. I'm sure your predicament and the large monies involved clouded your judjment. I'm sure you won't allow that to happen again.

Im glad Unified Gaming is getting you paid. It's hugely important for you, and hugely important for them that you get your money.

Regards and future good luck .......Dot

[loudog]

Boomer,

Under the circumstances, I would consider anything short of setting somebody on fire a restrained reaction.

peace,

loudog

[zippy]

Boomer:

With considerable interest I have followed the threads directly or indirectly related to your recent problems. It has been interesting to observe “public opinion” gradually but decisively shifting against you from the “Action Sports” days when posters were nearly unanimous in your favor. I haven’t added to any of these recent threads myself, choosing instead to see how things play themselves out, and to collect my thoughts in the meantime. Now I’d like to share a few of those thoughts with you.

You have taken a great deal of verbal abuse in this forum. Some of the posts against you were blatant cheap shots, (not to mention the bizarre random cheap shot at Pinnacle that somehow found its way into one of the threads). However, there were also many civil and articulate posts that took you to task in more reasonable ways. I’d like to commend those Bettorsworld posters for their sometimes informative and thought-provoking dialogues on various ethical questions and other matters. I found on several occasions that when I had a point I was considering bringing to people’s attention on the forum, someone almost immediately beat me to it.

Some of the opinions expressed I found convincing, some not, and some only partly so. I won’t go back over them all now. (I can’t resist noting, though, that I do get a kick out of the fact that in a forum where so many of the posters proudly worship at the alter of the Randian Goddess of Selfishness, and apparently have zero difficulty morally and politically rationalizing cheating as much as they can get away with on their taxes (i.e., stealing from their fellow taxpayers), that all of a sudden there can be so much moralizing about whether someone has gone too far in exploiting loopholes in the bonus programs of the poor bookmakers.)

As I read the criticisms of you, I found myself somewhat more sympathetic to you than not, and somewhat inclined to defend you. Indeed, one point I’d like to make is that I find your response to it all to be admirably humble and controlled. In your shoes, I would have been tempted to be more defensive or defiant. If anything, your apology and acceptance of blame go farther than is really necessary, in my opinion, though again, that’s to your credit.

For example, I’m still trying to figure out how your statement, “My word is my bond and I will pay back every nickel owed to every one of you so help me God, but I may need a little time depending on whether or not I get paid from Unified Gaming,” can be taken to mean that you are declaring that you “are so unethical that [you] cannot honor a debt until some other event occurs,” as MISTY’s sarcastic post put it. But instead of bristling at that and attacking your attackers, you choose the high road of admitting that your original statement was inappropriate and apologizing for it.

No doubt your conduct--including some of the ways you’ve bent the truth in this forum and made certain posts with ulterior motives--has been unwise and imprudent, and to a lesser extent unethical. But if all of us had our dirty laundry aired in this forum to the degree that you have, I dare say we’d be a little more hesitant to pile on the criticisms.

Boomer, you’ve handled a very difficult situation—which was partly your fault and partly not—with considerable grace and humility. I accept your apology, and respect you for making it. I think you’ve learned some things from this whole process, and are a better person for it. And I’m very pleased and relieved that you are apparently going to get this money that was being wrongfully withheld from you.

As for whether you should be allowed to post in this forum in the future, I don’t think it’s even a close call. I vote yes. I enjoy reading your posts and feel that on the whole they have done a lot more good than harm. Especially in the case of situations where a bettor is being dealt with unfairly by a bookmaker, it should not be the case that the bettor is made to feel that if he is not completely blameless then he must keep the situation secret from us. In some such situations, such bettors can expect to take a few deserved lumps for their conduct, but they certainly should not be barred from posting.

If we ever reach the point where the only people welcome to post here are those with totally clean hands and totally pure motives, then Bettorsworld will be a very, very lonely place.

[Rich]

let him post

[reno]

Zippy, nice post...with one exception: your take on taxes. I'm 180% opposite your point of view regarding taxes. Is it even constitutional for the governnment to collect income tax? The immorality is in the
unjust and hypocritical tax system, not in avoiding paying these ridiculous taxes. Did you know that Ronald Reagan did not even pay California State income tax one year? How could that be? Isn't it lovely that the U.S. sees fit to tax you on your gambling winnings? What other country has the audacity to do that? I can assure you that if I never paid another dollar in taxes, I would not lose one night's sleep or ever consider myself the least bit "immoral."
I have no problem with Pete Rose sticking the money from the baseball card shows in paper bags and not declaring the income. And that is what he improperly did prison time for. His crime was stiffing BMs. That is what he should have done time for. The system is assbackwards.

[Rebunkshus]

Zippy - Very Well Put!

[SoCal]

BOOMER,

In light of the funds involved (which Unified verifies in their "response" post) and your follow up posts in admission of your wrong doing... I welcome you back for a second chance. The simplicity of this is that 100 dimes of slow pay or no pay is more than enough to cloud most people's judgement. I won't say its right to misdirect under any circumstance, it was wrong. But given the numbers involved, it's a bit easier to swallow. You acted irrationally in a perceived desperate situation. I think it's safe to say that you've learned your lesson and you have come clean here with your gambling buds. Welcome back. And for heaven's sake, don't let 100 dimes get tied up in ANY book anymore!