With the feds cracking down on banking institutions and poker sites last year, then suddenly reversing their stance on online poker this year, it’s clear that nobody really knows what to do with online poker. I feel like we are watching a bunch of monkeys in a barrel. Although it is not illegal to play online poker, the US government has made it increasingly difficult for citizens of the USA to play poker on the internet.
There are at least eight good reasons we need to hurry up and legalize online poker. It appears as though support for the prohibition of poker is dwindling and that we will eventually get what we want. We still have a few hurdles to overcome, but I think we will get there eventually.
8. Use our resources for something useful
We need to stop wasting manpower trying to enforce our antiquated gambling laws. The Department of Justice actually spends money and manpower on prosecuting the owners of poker sites and those who help process financial transactions. Individual poker players are not targeted (thankfully), but it’s still a waste of time and money.
Seriously, this is ridiculous. The United States has roughly 15,000 murders a year and an increasing threat coming from drug cartels south of the border. We really need to get our priorities right and stop wasting money trying to prevent US citizens from exercising their free will.
7. Prohibition doesn’t work
We have seen it time and time again: prohibition does not work. The alcohol prohibition of the 1920s and the drug prohibition of today did not and have not stopped anyone from getting what they want. Prohibitions do not work. Period.
We don’t need to get into a whole argument about the drug prohibition, but surely we can agree that online poker is a petty thing for a nationwide prohibition. Like the point above mentioned, we should have our eyes on more significant issues.
6. The online poker ban is hypocritical
Did you know that online lotteries and online horse racing betting are perfectly legal in the US? It doesn’t make sense to me that the government would allow two activities that are pure gambling, but try to block a game that has big elements of skill. Did you know that Bob Goodlatte, who helped write the UIGEA, receive nearly $40,000 in contributions from the horse racing industry?
Well, now you know. Nothing is as it seems in Washington. Bob Goodlatte, the man who argued so passionately against online poker in support of the UIGEA, made sure to add an exception for online horse race betting. It makes no sense to ban online poker but not online horse betting or online lotteries.
5. We live in a free country
Online poker should be legal as a matter of principle. The United States was formed to be a free country, not a country of millions of laws and a vast prison system. It is not the government’s job to legislate morality. Our government was set up to protect us from other people encroaching on our natural freedoms.
Even if you have a strong religious opposition to online poker, you should value free will. After all, it was God Himself who gave us free will. Why do you think the government should be responsible for taking that free will away? Who are you to impose your will on others?
4. Consumer protection
Legal and regulated online poker would make it a safer place for consumers. Online poker is always going to be there whether we want it or not. The only question is whether people will play at unregulated offshore poker sites or at poker sites here in the United States that are subject to the laws of our country.
Right now, consumers have little recourse if a poker site suddenly disappears with their money. There is no central authority to which consumers can complain. If online poker was legal here in the United States, it would be a much safer environment for poker players.
3. Help problem gamblers
One of the most common arguments I see about legalizing online poker is that it would make it too easy for gambling addicts to gamble. There are a couple of problems with this argument. First of all, online poker and online gambling will always exist no matter what. When there is demand for a product, someone will always be there to serve that demand.
If we had legal and regulated online poker, it would be easier to help problem gamblers. Poker legislation could require poker sites to identify signs of problem gambling and intervene. There could also be voluntary deposit limits, self-exclusion programs and trust funds for gambling addiction help programs. People with gambling issues can already gamble online right now, but they have nowhere to turn.
Secondly, several countries have already legalized online poker and online gambling without any problems. The most notable example of this is the UK. Several studies by the UK Gambling Commission have shown little or no increase in problem gambling since online gambling was legalized in the UK.
2. $2 Billion in Tax Revenue
It is estimated that legal online poker in the US could generate $2,000,000,000 or more per year in tax revenue for the US. Online poker is a huge industry and the US government is missing out on a big piece of action by banning online poker. With record deficits and a major spending problem in Washington, we need all the help we can get.
1. 10,000 New Jobs
It is also estimated that online poker in the US would lead to at least 10,000 new jobs in the industry. Once again, we need all the help we can get. Long term unemployment has been killing us here in the United States and we could use an extra 10,000 jobs.