Why online gambling should be legal

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Why Online Gambling Should be Legal

Under the Internet Gambling Prohibition and Enforcement Act of 2006 online gambling is illegal in the United States (GovTrack .us , H .R 4411 . The law prohibits casinos , sport betting companies , and other businesses that take wagers from operating in the United States . The law also prevents American citizens from placing bets through gambling establishments that are based in other countries . American history however , indicates that laws against popular activities are generally

not very effective it is likely that the prohibition of online gambling will be no more effective than the Eighteenth Amendment 's prohibition of alcohol . The ban on online gambling is especially hypocritical because a number of states use lotteries , which are nothing more than state-sponsored gambling games , as a way of raising revenues . Congress should change the law and adopt the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act , which would make many types of online gambling legal in the United States (GovTrack .us , H .R . 2046

Gambling is big business . According to the American Gaming Association online gambling revenue in 2005 , the last year before online gambling became illegal , was 5 .9 billion . In other words , outlawing online gambling cost the American economy 5 .9 billion in lost revenue . The federal government also lost the opportunity to tax the winnings of online gamblers , as did the various state and local governments . The importance of this last revenue should not be overlooked . Unlike other forms of gambling which use cash transactions that are difficult if not impossible to trace , online gambling could provide a clear trail of a player 's winnings . These winnings could be easily tracked by the government for tax purposes

Opponents of online gambling have pointed out that there is a greater chance that online operators would cheat players by fixing game or by committing other forms of fraud (Kyl . Fraud , however , is not limited to cyberspace . Casino operators , for example , are also able to fix machines to determine how often there will be a pay out . These opponents have also cited the social problems that are associated with gambling including gambling addictions and loss of income (Kyl . According to Jon Kyl , gambling is "as addictive as crack cocaine " and leads to domestic violence , divorce , child abuse , and a range of other problems . It should be noted , however , that Kyl does not state that these problems are unique to online gambling , but that they are associated with all forms of gambling , including legal gambling in casinos and , one would assume gambling in the Power Ball or other state lotteries

The government 's crusade against online gambling would have greater credibility if the various state governments did not have a vested interest in eliminating the competition to their own games of chance While there is no federal lottery , many of the members of Congress who voted for the ban on online gambling come from states that have such interests

The United...