Online Casinos Best Addressed by Guidance, Not Law
Even as the zealots of Focus on the Family continue to distort numbers and invent facts to scare voters away from the regulation of Internet gambling, one of the very sources quoted by the religious group advises that public policy is not the preferred method for preventing social ills.
Focus on the Family has relied on information and analysis provided by the Adolescent Risk Communication Institute, of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, to build its case that online wagering is overwhelming the youth of the United States. But, on the Annenberg Website, when discussing the results of the National Annenberg Survey of Youth, the respected branch of the University of Pennsylvania asserts that an atmosphere of respect is a distinctly more effective approach to adolescent problems than behavior control.
In other words, proper parenting and education are the right paths to avoiding the social costs of gambling, or other childhood difficulties, rather than legislation and bans.
The Annenberg website credits ARCI director with concluding from his research that "climates of respect", which value the opinion and feeling of the children, is best for developing healthy behavior. "Such climates produce healthier behavior than those that focus exclusively on behavioral control. "
So it seems that even the very organizations Chad Hills quotes realize that legislating bans provides minimal benefit, whereas responsible regulation accompanied by educational programs might generate revenue for the country, respect individual freedoms and rights, and still best protect adolescents.
If only Focus on the Family members would read the sources footnoted and quoted on their own site, many might realize the way these facts have been manipulated and twisted by their leaders.
