INTERNET GAMBLING |
INTERNET GAMBLING |
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I. Social Effects |
To Ban or to Regulate?Ban
The policy behind federal and state legislation banning internet gambling stems in part from the potential negative social effects (see Social Effects) and ties to organized crime (see Organized Crime). The effectiveness of proposed legislation, however, is highly questionable due to enforcement problems, including difficulties with offshore locations and the relative anonymity of the internet.
Regulate
Some argue that attempting to ban internet gambling causes more harm than good. An alternative to banning internet gambling is to allow it, subject to specific regulations. A regulatory body could potentially be created to oversee the operation of approved sites and police fraud. This approach would also reduce the problem of lost federal tax revenue, since strict reporting requirements could be implemented. By enacting criminal penalties for operating or gambling on unlicensed sites, a substantial portion of online gambling in the U.S. could be diverted to legal sites and benefit the U.S. economy. This would also subject the operators to the jurisdiction of U.S. courts. While this approach would not likely eliminate all offshore operations, it would give gamblers a legal alternative and would be perhaps a more feasible and beneficial form of regulation.
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