The newspapers have plenty of stories of professional online poker players lamenting a lack of a way to make a living too. Indeed, you would think everybody is making money from online poker, both players and operators. However, there have to be losers to pay for it all, but I have yet to hear anyone confess to losing.
So, let me be the first. I've played plenty of online poker, usually $1-$2 to $4-$8 structured games, and I don't need to keep track to know I'm down. I don't even know if I'm strong enough to beat the rake. In my opinion, many online poker sites have become infested with bots and pros, aided with player tracking software, making it tough for the recreational players, like me, to have a chance.
If the U.S. government ever does legalize online poker, and I strongly feel it should, I hope a solid regulatory agency will oversee it and make sure it is only human beings playing on a level playing field.
This question was raised and discussed in the forum of my companion site Wizard of Vegas.