by Rick Lowe
As often happens, legislators in most countries sneak legislation through on the tail end of bills with little warning or discussion and this happened recently in the US when Congress banned credit card transactions over internet gaming websites.
According to Mark Thornton economics teacher at Auburn University, "The bill was added to port security legislation at the last minute giving no one the chance to read it and little political opportunity for Congress to amend it or vote against it."
By protecting all other gaming organisations from the competition of online gambling businesses gamblers will find ways to circumvent the law and will now end up doing business with less reputable gaming websites that will continue to operate from the shadows.
The point that governments seem to miss is the fact that people who wish to gamble, either online or not, will do so, and there is little they can do to prevent it.
But of course governments care for the people and wouldn't want their citizen's to harm themselves by gambling online. Right?
Read more about the subject here at Mises.org.
Anthony Hall of iPinions Journal has an intersting perspective in this article for Caribbean Net News.
