US Gambling Law
- October 16th, 2008
- Posted in Articles
The Republicans have come out and said that they want to ban online gambling. I quote:
“Millions of Americans suffer from problem or pathological gambling that can destroy families. We support the law prohibiting gambling over the Internet.”
Source: http://www.gop.com/2008Platform/Crime.htm
So there you go - can’t get more black and white than that. Family values though? Not so sure…if you look at the track record of the Republicans up to now, they have advocated State lotteries, land-based casinos and horse racing via carveouts to existing legislation. So it’s all smoke and mirrors - grab the moral vote while keeping the home-based gambling operators sweet. Have your cake and eat it.
They just need to be honest. It’s about keeping the US $ in the USA. It’s got absolutely nothing to do with protecting the “family”. If it was, they would ban gambling outright on land and in the virtual world.
And finally, is prohibition really the answer? It just lets in all the shady folk and opens up the public to fraud, deception and danger. Ban gambling, remove the reputable operators, and I guarantee the really bad people will be deceiving and endangering Americans in no time. So what’s worse? A regulated enviroment with safe operations that follw the laws of the Land, or prohibition where the real addicts get shafted by dodgy outfits over and over?
Anyone with any common sense will see that regulation is the way to go. It will not only protect the “pathological gambler” but the funds raised can be used to provide them with support and help. A gambling addiction doesn’t just go away. It needs to be tackled through support and education.
And anywa, Land of the Free right? Is it right to penalise responsible poker players and gamblers for the sake of a few? So let’s ban guns. And stocks and shares. And alcohol. Oh wait! They tried that already and look how that worked out!