FIRST: MY BIAS. I'm a small player. I'll never get a rebate and I'm fine with that. I'm also fine with the idea of larger players getting rebates. What bothers me is how the influx of huge money is changing the game. I aspire to be a value player and I know I can't get there unless I have a good idea of what the final odds will be and am able to take them into account when I make a bet. Huge, late money makes that impossible.

SECOND: MY OBSERVATION. A lot of things are written about rebates and offshore players without any explanation of some facts that, it seems to me, are fundamental to an informed discussion. The people who contribute to this board seem like an informed bunch, so I'm coming to you for some of those facts.

FINALLY: MY QUESTIONS

How does the purse account get funded? Does it make any difference to the purse account at the host track whether a bet is made on or off track?

What exactly is batch processing?

How late can a big offshore player make a bet? (If I were in that position, I'd want to be allowed to cancel my bet until the gates open.)

What's wrong with closing the pools when the first horse loads? We can't all change our bets if a horse acts up in the gate, so why should anyone be permitted to?