Chinese law enforcement agencies arrested at least three executives of the Chinese gaming giant Ourgame International Holdings in April as part of the crackdown on illegal poker games in the region as the Ministry of Culture promised to break the back of the movement on June 1st.

As I sit outside, my bum bones feeling the weight of my chickpea filled gut pushing down onto the cushionless frames, birds swirling above my head singing a dawn tune, I can hear the symphony of fierce thunder roaring from beyond the clouds.

The poker gods are expressing their concern.

It’s coming from China, but I can hear it all the way from my vantage point in Montenegro.