That is part 2 of a multipart group of articles regarding proposed anti-gambling legislation. In this article, I begin discussion of the quoted reasons because of this legislation, and the particular facts that exist in the real world.
The legislators want to protect us from something, or are they? Everything seems only a little confusing to say the least.
As mentioned in the previous article, the House, and the Senate, are once again considering the issue of “Online Gambling” ;.Bills have been submitted by Congressmen Goodlatte and Leach, and also by Senator Kyl.
The bill being put forward by Rep. Goodlatte, The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, gets the stated intention of updating the Wire Act to outlaw all types of online gambling, to create it illegal for a gambling business to accept credit and electronic transfers, and to force ISPs and Common Carriers to block access to gambling related sites at the request of law enforcement.안전놀이터
In the same way does Rep. Goodlatte, Sen. Kyl, in his bill, Prohibition on Funding of Unlawful Internet Gambling, helps it be illegal for gambling businesses to accept credit cards, electronic transfers, checks and other styles of payment for the purpose on placing illegal bets, but his bill does not address those that place bets.
The bill submitted by Rep. Leach, The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, is actually a copy of the bill submitted by Sen. Kyl. It is targeted on preventing gambling businesses from accepting credit cards, electronic transfers, checks, and other payments, and just like the Kyl bill makes no changes to what is legal, or illegal.
So, regardless of whether online gambling is legal or not, just what’s it that the politicians want to protect us from? How come it so important to create online gambling illegal?
One answer is within this quote from Rep. Goodlatte “can keep children from borrowing the family charge card, logging onto the family computer, and losing tens and thousands of dollars all before their parents get home from work” ;.
I do believe a reasonable translation of the quote would be “American parents are incapable of raising their own children so Congress should part of and get it done for them’ ;.Because obviously we are all conscious that the politicians have a much better idea of what’s best for all of us and our children than we do.
And in another quote “In short, the Internet is a challenge to the sovereignty of civilized communities, States, and nations to choose what’s appropriate and decent behavior” ;.
An acceptable translation of this quote would seem to go something such as “Individual Americans aren’t effective at deciding for themselves what behavior is appropriate and decent in their own homes. Fortunately Congress will be here to protect them from themselves and legislate morality for them” ;.
Not just is Congress supposedly in charge of raising the children of America, but to be able to do this, and to avoid us from unknowingly doing something indecent, they will legislate what we can do with our personal money, on our personal time, in our personal homes. Does this appear to be the very style of a free of charge society, or the beginnings of a misguided totalitarian state?
Let’s delve only a little deeper into these protections and see so just how interested the politicians really are in ensuring our students are safe from the evils of gambling.
Remember, many of these following types of gambling are either currently legal, or would be made specifically legal in the bill being put forward by Rep. Goodlatte.
First, we have casinos, and race tracks. These little money makers are proliferating throughout the country and generate a lot of tax revenue for federal and state governments as well as profits for his or her operators. Individuals behind the anti-online gambling bills could have you believe that casinos are not an issue in regards to underage individuals, since casino staff can easily see the individuals in person and assess their age.
Quite to the contrary however, we have this quote from The Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery “Casino kids have been left by themselves at the outer rim of casinos while their parents gamble, according with a casino security officers. In a few extreme cases, students are left in the family car in the casino parking lot all night at any given time while their parents gamble inside. Less obviously, children could also spend hrs every week with babysitters while their parents gamble in casinos, bingo halls or card rooms.”
While I certainly wouldn’t try to declare that online gambling is wonderful for the American family, clearly, to the extent that children can relax and play in their own homes, and sleep in their own beds, online gambling presents less of an issue than the present state supported alternative.
Another form of online gambling that the proposed legislation would exempt from illegal status is the sale of lottery tickets by the states on the internet. It’s difficult to see how these legislators show deep concern for the children of America on the basis of the following quote from Overcoming Life Digest (July/August, 1998 Issue) “Studies reveal that lotteries are the favorite legal gambling game for teenagers. Statistically, certainly one of seven who play will become addicted.” And from the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (6 June 2003), “Many regard lotteries as a comparatively benign form of gambling. However, 31 percent of callers to the 1-800-GAMBLER national hotline (operated by the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey) indicated problems with lottery gambling.”
In another exemplory case of government raking in cash without regard for the children of America, we have Video Lottery Machines. Video Lottery Machines, or VLTs are only state sponsored electronic video poker machines. Based on David Plotz in Slate.com on Friday December 17th, 1999 “These are the absolute most addictive of any gambling instrument we have today. It is a cinch for children to play video lottery machines, because they are often within businesses that kids frequent.” These units are increasingly being licensed for use within supermarkets, convenience stores, bars and markets around the united states, where the children of America have easy access.
Clearly, the legislation proposed does not “keep children from borrowing the family charge card, logging onto the family computer, and losing tens and thousands of dollars all before their parents get home from work”, They will have a way to purchase lottery tickets, bet on horse races, and head down to the local convenience store to play the VLTs.
