March Madness Pools Ruled Online Gambling by FBI

Now the government is looking at potentially prosecuting those who publish their brackets for illegal online gambling.

The federal government has a long-established pattern of sticking its nose into the enjoyment of its citizens, rooting around in the name of moral outrage, and causing trouble for those involved in the most seemingly innocuous pastimes. Next on the list of activities to be scrutinized is the practice of playing March Madness pools.

Entering a bracket of selections for the NCAA basketball tournament in March is as American as apple pie. Virtually every office in the country has at least one pool operating during the event. Almost all involve paying an entrance fee, with the proceeds to be divided up amongst those whose picks are truest to form.

Millions of Americans participate, playing for the most meager of sums to thousands of dollars. The one sure thing is that people love trying to figure out which teams will go on winnning streaks, and which will emerge as the national champion. Betting on the validity of one's choices just increases the enjoyment; as Homer Simpson said, "Gambling is something to make good things even better!"

With the advent of the internet, running the entries and results of office pools online became easier and more convenient to participants. Now the government is looking at potentially prosecuting those who publish their brackets for illegal online gambling.

Social networking sites like Facebook have been used to attract more players and post results. Federal authorities say this may be a violation of interstate wagering laws, and constitues internet gambling.

Attorneys specializing in internet law say the two components of illegal online gambling are met by the pools; they charge an entry fee, and reward prizes. An FBI spokesman said the only problem his office had was gathering the resources necessary for such a large-scale prosecution; after all, it is estimated 48% of all workers play in an office pool.

Law enforcement would use this case to show how insidious gambling is, to have entered into our everyday pattern of life to a point at which unsuspecting individuals are in violation of the law. Would not the view be more accurate if we observed how insidious foolish morality laws are, to have worked their way into our everyday pattern of life to the point at which normal citizens are de facto criminals?