The Dubious Immorality of Online Gambling
The recent back-door legislation which outlawed online gambling in the USA has been championed as a moral cause. This is in direct opposition to a Gallup Poll taken earlier this year which found that 60 percent of adults believe gambling is morally acceptable. Chief sponsor Jim Leach (R-Iowa) has called it one of the most important pieces of family legislation ever considered by lawmakers. Although by his own admission, gambling is not prohibited by either the Bible or the Quran, he sees a pastoral function in the new law, in that it will protect the rapidly-eroding values of family life. Others see more of a self-promoting political function in the legislation, believing it was intended to gain support from the religious right for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist if he decides to run for president in 2008. Gambling in itself is not inherently immoral. Many people enjoy a flutter, spending a small proportion of their leisure money on their chosen sport, whether it be poker, football or horse racing. At this level, it is little more than an innocent pastime. It can, of course, become an addiction which then has serious consequences. When money earmarked for family welfare is wasted on gambling then it does becomes immoral. But it is no more so than any other activity which diverts money from its intended course. And if gambling is so immoral, why is Las Vegas still allowed to flourish? One argument would be that it’s too easy to bet online. The convenience of online gambling is undoubted – that’s part of its attraction. But that convenience lends itself to unparalleled transparency. As all transactions are conducted through credit cards, it’s relatively easy to see who’s betting what and where. It is thus much easier for the industry to monitor activity and set session limits - on how long people play, and how much they lose. Any number of arguments could be proposed and countered. But the truth is that this is not about morality. If it was, the hardcore pornography that floods the internet from the USA would have been targeted years ago. Not to mention the illegal piracy market which costs legitimate business millions each year. This is really a battle between the established land-based US casino industry and the offshore online market. Given that most online casinos are listed on the UK stock exchange, it’s no wonder the UK is government now pushing for standardised legislation which will essentially give them control over the future of the industry. The British view is that gambling is a legitimate business and while there are potential problems associated with online gaming, it is better all round for it to be regulated by government. The US stance on online gambling is a smokescreen. The real reason the legislation was passed was to give control of US gambling back to the established land-based casinos. But the UK and EU will not change their attitudes towards gambling, so the online gambling industry will continue to grow. Given time, US gamblers will find a way round this dubious legislation, even if it means opening accounts with offshore banks. Which leads to a very interesting two horse race. The established US casinos, with the implicit consent of their moralising government, will soon launch their own online sites in a bid to take back control of their industry. In the meantime, the UK and EU based casinos will do all they can to entice those US players into defecting. Who comes out on top is a matter for debate. What isn’t is the fact that this ill-conceived and hypocritical piece of legislation will one day be overturned and consigned to the rubbish bin of history where it undoubtedly belongs. Andy Follin is a dedicated leisure gambler and author of a gambler's advice site. He is also an ardent opponent of hypocrisy, especially that which hides behind the banners of religion and morality. |
Other Football Betting Articles
How To Place A Bet Online Placing a bet for the first time online can be a little scary. Each gambling web site is set up a little different. Most will ask a person to register before placing a bet on any sports or playing in any of the card games. Registration is usually free and is used to maintain accurate records of who is gambling online and how many times a day or ...Extra Features of Great Online Casinos Wondering what really sets a great online casino apart from the rest? It's all about attention to details! Great online casinos offer extra services and features that make them stand out from the crowd. Here are some extras you might see offered when you're looking for an online casino:LIVE CHAT: Live chat between players can add an extra ...Learn to Play Blackjack – Basics For Success So you want to play blackjack?It’s a great game, and exciting, and you can win money as consistently if you play blackjack with the correct methods and attitude.First you have to understand the game, and then we will show you some basic tips to play blackjack that will help you play and win so lets get started.Blackjack Rule ...Online Football Betting Secrets: How to Spot an Upset Sports Betting on the NFL and college football is a national pastime. Every week millions of dollars are bet on the home town favorites with local bookies. People bet even more money with online sports book agencies. Even the major news services publish all the betting stats. If you're going to bet money on games, you might as well be as informe ...Spread Betting Basics Spread betting is a complicated venture; the statement is nothing but a popular misconception. Proponents of this form consider it to be real easy, once the new player has understood the concept. It enables you to win or loose money depending on how close off or far you are in your betting. Spread betting can be an exciting way to win or loose m ...Online Poker Tips Avid online poker players are always looking for ways to improve their game. If you are one of the many who enjoy online poker, you may be looking for online poker tips to help you win bigger and more often. There are various places to find information about how to play online poker, however weeding through all those places to find the best onli ...#51 Kansas Jayhawks Preview Spring practices are in the books and fall camps will be here before you know it so that means getting an early jump on the 2006 NCAA football season. Knowing the teams now will save you time in August and Matt Fargo is here to help you get a grasp of what to expect this upcoming year. We go from worst to first in this 2006 College Football Prev ...Premiership Season Preview 2006/07 - Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham HotspurOdds: 80/1Last Five Seasons 2005/06 - 5 (Premiership), 2004/05 - 9 (Premiership), 2003/04 - 14 (Premiership), 2002/03 - 10 (Premiership), 2001/02 - 9 (Premiership).2005/06 Cup Progress FA Cup Third Round vs Leicester City (a) - lost 3-2. Carling Cup Second Round vs Grimsby Town (a) - lost 1-0 ...NFC West 2006 Previews and Projections NFC Western Division:1) Seattle: These Seahawks better watch their collective backs because the past five straight Super Bowl losers have followed up their SB loss with a losing season. The Hawks had a very average draft with CB Kelly Jennings topping their list with the 31st overall draft pick. The loss of all world LG Steve Hutchinson w ...Internet Card Room II The world of online poker grows by leaps and bounds each day. You may want to get in on all the fun by joining an internet card room. These rooms are available no matter what time of day or night you choose to play. There are rooms with different themes and many different variations of play. An internet card room can give you many hours of virtu ...Why You Should Play Heads Up Texas Holdem There is no better way to poker than by participating in a good game of one on one. The game can be as exciting as the adrenaline rushes you find in tournaments but your odds of winning are much better.If you are new to the game, or a seasoned professional who hasn’t paid much attention to “heads up, there are some great advantages to par ...Popular Poker Games: Texas Hold'em, Limit vs No Limit Texas Hold`em is the most popular poker game being enjoyed today and there are two distinct forms of Texas Hold`em that people are playing, No Limit Hold`em and Limit Hold`em. No Limit Hold`em is the type of poker you are likely to see on television, but many players who are just getting started in poker like to get their feet wet with the Limit ...Choosing Your Type of Online Gambling Website When you hear the words "online gambling," chances of you think of casinos and games like poker, Blackjack and slot machines. But there are lots of different types of online gambling websites. When you're ready to choose one, make sure you pick one that fits your needs.ONLINE CASINO: Online casinos are, basically, the counterparts of real ...Online Poker Room Poker is fast becoming one of the most popular games in the country. Many of the people who have caught on to the fun of this fun and challenging game are spending time in an online poker room. You may wonder why these people choose to play online instead of starting up a real live game with their friends and family. Well, there are many great b ...How To Play Let It Ride Poker I know about Let It Ride Poker from a relative of mine. Actually my cousin seems to be addicted to it and this is why I'm quite worried about him. Despite the fact that he has made quite some money on his Let It Ride, I still have a bad feeling about it. Every gambler should know that luck is only a matter of time. You cannot be lucky all the ti ...Stag Weekend in Budapest - the Thrill of Horse Racing Budapest, with its perfect blend of eastern and western cultures, is the best locale for a stag weekend. Referred to as the “Paris of the East”, this stag weekend venue will provide you with all that you can ask for - beautiful landscapes and undulating hills on one side, and shops, restaurants, markets and exciting nightlife on the other. The P ...Football Betting Analysis: Tampa Bay Over Philly and Denver Over Browns Sports Betting on the NFL and college football is a national pastime. Every week millions of dollars are bet on the home town favorites with local bookies. People bet even more money with online sports book agencies. Even the major news services publish all the betting stats. If you're going to bet money on games, you might as well be as informe ...Poker Cheats: Beware of Pot Clipping and The Stacked Deck Poker cheats come in all shapes and sizes, from the business professional to the much loved grandmother. Poker cheaters are also always coming up with new and innovative ways to try and cheat players out of their money.One of the ways cheaters try to win is with a move called clipping the pot. This sleight of hand cheat does not involve m ...Winning at Roulette – The Easy Way James Bond is not only famous for his Vodka Martini, but also for his betting and winning at Roulette, James made it look simple and winning at roulette is, but you need to know the right way to bet and its not the way James did it!James always bets on two ‘dozen’ (two columns of 12 numbers each, or a chance to win with one of his 24 numb ...Football Betting To Win The only way to guarantee a sure-fire win for yourself when gambling is if you could place a bet on a 100% certainty carrying a 100% commitment of being paid when you win. Let’s face it though - that scenario will never arise in your entire lifetime!Now, before we discuss “betting to win” in more detail, let’s begin by examining what a “ ...Free Online Poker There’s hype all over the place about poker. It seems everyone and his or her mother is getting into the game. If you’re among the millions joining in on this growing trend, you may want to consider playing free online poker. This gives you the option of playing the exact poker game you want at a time that’s convenient for you. Free online poker ...Theory of a "Trick" The necessary condition for using the theory of a “trick” is that players are to have insufficient information about each other. In this case the “trick” consists in guessing the intentions of the adversary on condition of hiding one’s own intentions: a positive “trick” and a negative “trick”. The tactics of every player is to be very flexible, ...Penn State/Notre Dame Saturday Showdown Notre Dame got past their first test of the season, but it was a scare. This has many wondering if the 8 point cushion the Nittany Lions are getting is a must for bettors to take. Although it is apparent that Notre Dame’s defense has some holes, you can bet that their offense will be much sharper this week and it is no secret that the Irish are ...Randomness, Probabilities and Odds The probability of a favorable result out of all chances can be expressed in the following way: the probability (р) equals to the total number of favorable results (f), divided on the total number of such chances (t), or pf/t. However, this is true only for cases, when the situation is based on net randomness and all results are equiprobab ...Tips For Betting NFL Games Online Are you an NFL junkie? Do you like betting on your favorite team? Then you should try NFL betting online. There are numerous sports books available online for you to choose from accepting wagers from all over the world. Just like many other ventures the advent of the internet has led to an explosion in the both the popularity and the numbers of ...Casino Games History or How People Have Learnt to Count Cards; Part 2 Thorp's Era.If you don’t know, now we are living in 43th year of Thorp’s era. This person had such a great influence on the blackjack and all the gambling industry, that I seriously consider that he is worth of setting up a monument while alive, by the way at the casino’s expense.Being a young scientist, Edward O. Thorp regularly r ...Popularity of Online Gambling Online gambling has become very popular over the last few years. Since many people cannot afford to travel to states where betting is allowed, people have joined internet betting sites. It is an easy alternative to phone betting and gambling in person. Joining a gambling site is a good way to meet other people who have similar interests. There a ...The Casino Consultant Saves the Day Can you imagine a better job then being a casino consultant? For a person who is caught up in the ever growing fascination with gambling and related gaming then this type of job is as good if not better then being right there in the pit. The dealer deals and the cashier makes change but when you’re in the consulting business you have your hands ...Easy Money Management Strategy The buzzwords "money management" is thrown around left and right in the gambling world. Look around for advice on money management and you will find everything from grossly incomplete articles to full blown strategies for brilliant mathematicians. Today, I will share a quick and easy money management strategy that you can use each time you gambl ...Las Vegas "Whales" What Las Vegas jargon names "whales" is in fact the creme of the high rollers species. They are a handful of people that in some opinions don't exceed 500 individuals in the world. Las Vegas hoteliers are nuts about them; some claim four or five of those whales bet much more than the rest of the thousands customers they receive daily. No wonder ...Fixed Odds Strategy - Why Hedge when you can Gain an 'Edge'? Is there any point in having a fixed odds strategy? Is it really possible to gain a betting ‘edge’ over the bookmaker? After all it is widely recognised that the odds set are unfair and only serve to increase the over-round. Although it is a formidable task, the answer to both questions, is yes! To do so it is necessary to locate ‘value’ in ...Five Roulette Tips to Dramatically Increase Your Profits! Roulette is the third most popular casino game worldwide, after slots and video poker.Why is it so popular? Well it is fun, exciting, easy to play, and has certain glamour attached to it, thanks to James Bond!The fact that it is so simple to play means that many players just play roulette without thinking about how to maximize th ...
|
