National Columnists Call Out US Internet Gambling Ban
Mainstream media are finally addressing the absurdities of US gambling laws and policies, and this week the topic is the problematic ban on online gambling. The Los Angeles Times published a column this week by Michael Hiltzik exposing the ridiculous hypocrisy and waste involved in the UIGEA Internet casino blockage.
Hiltzik, a financial news writer, exposes the conflicting, confusing, and inconsistent nature of US law regarding online gambling. Hitzlik's opinion piece is followed by Washington Post columnist Maureen Dowd's endorsement of US News and World Report publisher Mort Zuckerman's proposal to allow newspapers to operate sports betting services.
Hiltzik points out the international legal disputes created by insisting on operating a protectionist online gambling ban, and wonders why the six states that do have laws against Internet gaming think their legal land-based gambling is different.
Hitzlik also addresses the misuse of the Wire Act by the US Department of Justice, noting that only sports betting is excluded by the law as determined by the courts. The DoJ insists all online gambling is illegal, despite court rulings to the contrary; but then, the DoJ selectively enforces this law that supposedly makes all Internet gaming illegal.
"Certainly Internet gambling has its hazards, including the prospect of addictive playing and the enticement of minors," writes Hitlzik. "But banning the pastime forces these problems into the shadows where they're harder to address and makes it impossible to enlist the industry in helping to fight them."
