Everyone's a Winner: Regulating, Not Prohibiting, Internet Gambling
![handle is hein.journals/swulr35 and id is 301 raw text is: EVERYONE'S A WINNER: REGULATING,
NOT PROHIBITING, INTERNET GAMBLING
I. INTRODUCTION
Everyone's a winner1 if Internet gambling is regulated. The United
States federal government, State governments, and all its citizens will win if
Internet gambling is regulated. Regulation means that the federal and State
governments gain revenue from this booming economic activity, and that
those people who wish to pursue Internet gambling can do so knowing that
the games are as safe as they are in any land-based casino. Considering the
recurring problem of the national debt, the United States must consider any
means by which tax revenue can be raised. Since websites that host Internet
gambling are located outside of the United States, in jurisdictions that either
tolerate or regulate Internet gambling, Congressional legislation prohibiting
Internet gambling would be ineffective.3 Internet gambling is a trans-
national activity and cannot simply be prohibited by domestic legislation.4
Even if legislative proscription could effectively eliminate Internet
gambling, regulation is still the preferred option. The proposed Internet
Gambling Funding Prohibition Act (IGFPA), Congress' most recent attempt
at prohibition, if passed, would prohibit the use of financial instruments for
1. A common refrain announced when all players beat the dealer, such as when the dealer
busts in blackjack. See Blackjack Rules, http://www.howto-play-blackjack.com/dealerrules.html
(last visited Oct. 20, 2005).
2. For an extended discussion on the development of the Internet, see ACLU v. Reno, 929
F. Supp. 824, 830-45 (E.D. Pa. 1996), af'd, 521 U.S. 844 (1997).
3. See, e.g., Antonia Z. Cowan, The Global Gaming Village: Interstate and Transnational
Gambling, 7 GAMING L. REV. 251-52 (2003).
4. In re MasterCard Int'l, Inc., Internet Gaming Litig., 132 F. Supp. 2d 468, 485 (E.D. La.
2001) (MasterCard 1) ([lit is undisputed that were [Internet gambling] declared illegal and
banned in the United States, the activity would continue in other parts of the world.), aff'd, 313
F.3d 257 (5th Cir. 2002) (MasterCard 11); H.R. REP. No. 108-51, pt. 1, at 12 (2003) (dissenting
view of Rep. Ron Paul); Thomas James Friedrich, Internet Casino Gambling: The Nightmare of
Lawmaking, Jurisdiction, Enforcement & The Dangers of Prohibition, 11 COMMLAW
CONSPECTUS 369, 382, 385 (2003).](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/swulr35&div=19&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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Everyone's a Winner: Regulating, Not Prohibiting, Internet Gambling
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