Family Group Doesn't Realize Gambling a Family Activity

What has never been acknowledged by the anti-gambling commentator is that gambling in general, and in particular poker, are learned largely by kids having fun with their adult relatives.

Citizenlink, the website for religious fundamentalist group Focus on the Family, reported on the finalization of regulations implementing the UIGEA this week. Disregarding the underhanded and sneaky way in which the rules are being imposed, Chad Hills of Focus praised the decision.

Hills said, "This is a huge victory for families. For the past decade, Congress has tried to pass such legislation, and now it is complete."

What has never been acknowledged by the anti-gambling commentator is that gambling in general, and in particular poker, are learned largely by kids having fun with their adult relatives. Ask any online poker player when they first played, and almost always comes a story about a father or uncle playing penny poker.

Bridge, hearts, poker, gin rummy, and many other card games are learned in adolescent years, and taught by those closest to the children. Sociologist Raymond Abraham says, "Competitive games that happen to use money as a scoring system teach children several things. Among those is the danger of reckless gambling, an important lesson that acts against problem gambling.

"The value of money, and strategy, planning, and competitive instincts all are concepts that are developed by gambling games."

Further, in the brief article, Focus writer Jennifer Mesko and Hills give the impression that all of Congress has striven to impose these regulations for years, while Barney Frank has single-handedly prevented such action. No mention is made of the litany of testimony by financial and political leaders that the online casino bill was unworkable and problematic.

Nor is there any attention given to the many pieces of legislation which seek to undo the UIGEA, bills likely to pass under Democratic Congressional leadership.

Hills and Mesko seem blithely unaware of the true nature of families, or of the Congressional membership that opposes the new rules. But, even as the regulations are pushed into place by a fading administration, Congress and President-elect Obama are expected to act to protect Internet freedom and individual choice, including online gaming.

Families will probably rejoice across the country, then go back to playing cards...holding dances...listening to rock and roll... and all that other evil these religious caricatures from the Fifties hate.