What the fuck is the problem here? "Oh no, people are voluntarily spending their money on entertainment. The horror! Let's protect them from having a good time and not hurting anyone." Or is it, "Oh shit, someone is making the money and the government isn't taxing it. Let's ban it altogether since we can't tax it!"

Either way, congress can go fuck it self, especially Republican douchebag hypocrites who pretend to be for conservative government.

P.S. I'm going to go trade some options, now.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060718/pl_nm/leisure_betonsports_congress_dc_2

Quote :

"Gambling bill in spotlight after industry arrests By Julie Vorman1 hour, 53 minutes ago The indictment of BETonSPORTS executives for racketeering should add momentum to U.S. legislation that aims to ban broader types of Internet gambling, two Republican backers said on Tuesday. The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill earlier this month that would prohibit most forms of Internet gambling and make it illegal for banks and credit card companies to make payments to online gambling sites. A similar bill is pending in the U.S. Senate, where supporters are scrambling to win passage before an August recess. The $12 billion-a-year online gambling industry was shaken this week after a grand jury in St. Louis indicted BETonSPORTS and some of its executives. Chief Executive David Carruthers was arrested while changing airplanes at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport and three other men linked to the company were arrested in Florida. An arrest warrant was issued for BETonSPORTS founder Gary Kaplan, who lives in Costa Rica. The high-profile case is being prosecuted by a newly appointed U.S. Attorney in St. Louis, Catherine Hanaway, and accuses Kaplan of taking bets from undercover federal agents. The government said in court documents it could seek forfeiture of more than $4.5 billion and other assets from the company and its executives. A Texas attorney for Carruthers was unavailable for comment. "This recent indictment of online gambling executives strengthens the need for legislation to ban Internet gambling," Sen. Jon Kyl (news, bio, voting record), an Arizona Republican and bill backer, said in a statement. "I am hopeful that legislation I intend on moving through the Senate this year will provide the Justice Department with the tools necessary to continue aggressively pursuing those that wish to circumvent the rules and engage in this sort of illegal activity." Rep. Bob Goodlatte (news, bio, voting record), a Virginia Republican and co-author of the House gambling bill, praised the prosecution. "We're very pleased that the Justice Department is taking action here with the laws they have available," Goodlatte told Reuters. "We join with them in trying to make it clear that the law covers all forms of gambling." The Republican-backed bill has been criticized by some as an election-year appeal to the party's conservative base. Goodlatte said the legislation is needed to protect minors from becoming addicted to online gambling, and to clarify that most forms of gambling are prohibited. "It is quite clear that the Wire Act covers sports betting," Goodlatte said. "But the Wire Act because it was written in 1961 is not at all clear as to whether it covers other forms of gambling." The existing law does not clearly ban such things as a virtual roulette wheel, poker playing and other kinds of online gaming, Goodlatte said. The http://www.betonsports.com site offers betting on baseball, soccer, football, boxing, rugby and other sports as well as casino games such as poker, blackjack and craps. The site awards "casino loyalty points" for each bet placed. Goodlatte also noted that executives with other overseas gambling companies should take note of the prosecution. "They should be wary of the United States exercising its treaty rights to seek extradition," he said. "Knowingly taking bets from U.S. citizens is against the laws of many states, and they should be prosecuted.""

[Edited on July 18, 2006 at 7:12 PM. Reason : sdf]

7/18/2006 7:11:29 PM

Agreed.

7/18/2006 7:12:09 PM

Quote :

"Oh shit, someone is making the money and the government isn't taxing it. Let's ban it altogether since we can't tax it!"

What are you talking about? You can gamble...as long as it's a state run lottery for the children.

7/18/2006 8:19:44 PM

for education

of future gamblers

7/18/2006 8:21:33 PM

let see, there's

-this
-harrasment of faggots
-steroids in baseball
-flag burning


how much other shit will these neanderthals use to distract the public

7/19/2006 12:34:23 AM

I've written all my congressional representatives letters about how this issue is going to force me to actually vote libertarian. I've always been libertarian, but never wanted to waste my vote until right about now.

7/19/2006 7:31:40 AM

^ Unfortunatly the Libertarian party is so hardline that they support all sorts of things I consider insane (e.g. Reverting to Hard Currency).

7/19/2006 11:09:21 AM

Quote :

"let see, there's -this -harrasment of faggots -steroids in baseball -flag burning how much other shit will these neanderthals use to distract the public"

- gay marriage

7/20/2006 4:46:12 PM

I think he referenced that with "harassment of faggots"

Good to see someone bttt this though, does the libertarian party actually promote the elimination of fiat currency? I didn't see anything on it on their platform, but you know how vague those things can be.

7/20/2006 4:52:40 PM

yyyyyyyyyyeah. remind me again why online gambling is a horrible thing? And I say this as a conservative...

7/20/2006 6:02:43 PM

Maybe once all the old politicians die off the new crowd will understand the futility of legistlating behavior on the internet. You cant do it.

Ban the card transfers, and people will do bank transfers, ban the bank transfers and people will continue to sue to overturn that or just find ways around it. All this will do is waste enforcement resources on an issue the average american does not give two shits about.

I have never gambled online, I also could not give a shit if people do or not. As far as I am concerned you have to be pretty fucking stupid to get addicted to gambling and piss away all of your money. At least people who piss away their money on substances have a substance to blame for it, gambling addicts can only blame shear stupidity.

7/20/2006 6:10:46 PM

yeah, i think the GOP will eventually make a hard shift to the libertarian side, but i don't know when.

ideologically, i think this is retarded. practically...well...i own stock in Shuffle Master, so maybe curtailing online gambling will give a boost to the live and in person variety.

Quote :

"P.S. I'm going to go trade some options, now."

that's more my kind of gambling.

7/20/2006 7:57:12 PM

i mean, what is the logic? What's the logic behind "you can't make a credit card payment to such and such web site?" It's pretty fucking stupid.

7/20/2006 7:59:38 PM

reminds me of the govt and it's fight against marijuana

7/21/2006 3:30:57 PM

i thought it was funny at the beginning of the "War on Terror" those commercials tried to tie drugs to terrorists. They quit showing those commercials i guess.

7/21/2006 3:37:31 PM

TUBES

7/21/2006 7:09:45 PM

"Everytime you go all in.....the terrorists win!!!!"

7/22/2006 4:55:01 AM

Quote :

"yeah, i think the GOP will eventually make a hard shift to the libertarian side, but i don't know when"

the sooner the better

the religious right of the GOP seems to be a major drawback for many would be voters

I still can't make up my mind if I am gonna vote libertarian or conservative next go round

7/22/2006 2:25:01 PM

Quote :

"the religious right of the GOP seems to beis a major drawback for many would be voters"

7/22/2006 3:07:18 PM