FWIW I am getting the same impression of cards being dealt out of the middle of the deck.

Spoken like a true gambling man (oh, wait....I'm confusing you with the guys from "The Deer Hunter")....

There are no cards from the middle of the deck - I felt from day one that John shouldn't have been banned, and I'm petitioning to change it. As I've subsequently learned that Michel allegedly would have lost a large amount of money (a conclusion I find questionable), the fact that most who have responded want him back is additionally interesting.