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Letter to representatives
I'm sending this letter to all GA representatives who are co-sponsors of the prohibition bill. I hope the rest of you do something similar. Honestly I don't expect them to listen, knowing how people tend to be, but it's better than doing nothing. We should also consider newspaper letters to the editor.
The list of cosponsors can be found here: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquer...:+@eq+20060216 Scroll down to HR 4777 and click on the cosponsors link. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Representatives Gingrey and Kingston, I am writing to you today to voice my opposition to your support of the proposed Internet Gambling bill. While I certainly understand that gambling has historically been linked with crime and other problems, there are several reasons why it is inappropriate for internet gambling to be outlawed by the US government. I hope you take the time to read this and consider your support carefully. First, there are different forms of gambling with very different odds of winning for the player. For example, traditional "house" or casino games, where the player plays against the "house", are entirely different from poker, where players play against each other and pay the house a fee, or "rake". In house games, the odds of winning are set before the game even begins, and a player has no chance to be a long-term winner. However, in poker, the long-term chances of winning depend on the player's skill relative to the skill of his opponents. It is possible to be a long-term winner in poker, unlike house games. Second, from a philosophical perspective, an outlaw on gambling runs against the spirit of freedom that this country was founded upon. America is not the "Land of the Free" when its government begins telling you that you can't wager your own money on games of chance if you choose to. As long as a person's money is not being used to hurt another person, they should be allowed to spend it as they choose. Some would argue that gambling addicts hurt their children, which is true. However, there are already laws against child neglect and systems in place to deal with it. Additional laws against gambling only hurt those who gamble responsibly, since those persons with addiction problems will simply find a new avenue for their addiction. This bill would do nothing to protect children. Third, there are already obstacles in place that make it, if not difficult, then certainly not easy, to gamble online. The vast majority of US banks and credit card companies already refuse to fund accounts on gambling sites. Most poker players use an online bank, NETeller, to fund their poker accounts because it's one of the only ways to do it. Irresponsible gambling is most likely to hurt the poor, but the poor are the least likely to have the bank account funds and internet access necessary to fund a gambling account. The argument that internet gambling is a threat to the poor simply has no merit. Lastly, it is somewhat hypocritical for a Georgia representative to support prohibiting internet gambling while Georgia has an official state lottery. The Georgia state lottery is a much bigger threat to the poor in Georgia than internet gambling could ever be. First, it is easy to buy lottery tickets, since they can be purchased at any gas station and many other retailers. It is much more difficult to fund an internet gambling account. Second, the odds of winning in a lottery are millions-to-one, which are *astronomically* higher than in any casino game or poker. Gambling $1 at a time, a lottery player would almost never win anything, while a casino gambler or poker player would win at least several times in 100 bets, meaning that it would take much longer for the player to lose that $100. If Georgia representatives oppose internet gambling for the stated reasons, they should be even more opposed to their own state lottery. For a little over a year, I have played poker online, along with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Americans. I made a profit and this April I will pay every penny I owe in taxes to the state of Georgia and the US federal government. I encourage other poker players I know to do the same. The answer to solving gambling problems in the US is not to simply outlaw gambling. The answer is to make it completely legal, which would then make it possible for the government to oversee and regulate its activity. Casino and poker sites could report players' winnings to the government directly, making tax reporting much easier. It would also be easier for sites to prevent abuse, which most of them already do, by establishing deposit limits. In closing, I hope you will consider the arguments I have presented and realize that this issue is being misrepresented and that this bill will not accomplish its stated goals. I am glad to be a Georgia resident and hope that I can continue to be. Thank you very much for your time. Sincerely, |
#2
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Re: Letter to representatives
If you aren't from their district, the letter/email/fax will be forwarded along to the member who represents you.
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