I'd venture to guess that many of the members of this forum don't have clean hands, and nobody questions how some have made their money. They seem to ignore this little nugget. Some tournaments, in fact, have been funded by money made in an illegal manner.
I don't really know Scooter well, but the few times I've met him, he was very young. It was obvious to me that this pool world attracted him as a young boy. His mentors were probably coin theives, FWIW, and the lure of that quick money gambling in the pool room became a way of life, a societal norm in Scooter's world.
Whatever happens to Scooter, legally speaking, it's his business. Nobody outs those tournaments that are funded by monies earned in an undesirable manner, as well as the action games funded by pimps and drug dealers. It's like that's pool's dirty little secret.
I feel bad for Scooter that he may have never enjoyed a normal lifestyle as a child. He is, in my opinion, a product of his environment. Hopefully, he will learn the error of his ways while he's young. The attraction of quick money seems to be an occupational hazard of many a pool player, whether coins, drugs, or pimping.
The mortgage and credit card debacle that has plagued this country has also touched the pool world. We all have skeletons in our closet. How many people drink and drive and have never been caught? How many have gotten caught when they drink and drive? If one of those drunk drivers killed somebody while driving drunk, I'd consider that a worse offense than ripping off coins.
Rather than belittle others who have made poor decisions in their life, I choose to pray for Scooter to have a better life, one filled with happiness. He's still so very young, and people do change. In fact, you're never too old to effect a change for the better. Let's hope Scootter sees the light and effects that change for the better.
