[homedog]

ok, everyone who wants online gambling regulated please raise your hand



seeing none, that brings us to the crux of the problem

who wants the U.S. govt to regulate it? Certainly not the bookmakers. They know they will be subject to all kinds of fees, regulations, and taxes. Certainly not the players either. There is nothing like the government throwing a nice little tax wedge in there to kill the profitability on both sides of the counter.

If the U.S. government gets involved, say goodbye to reduced juice. Say goodbye to deposit bonuses. Say goodbye to free deposits and withdrawals. Just not going to be possible anymore. Just not gonna happen with govt taking 30% or more from everyone involved.

And what's the trade-off? To avoid prosecution? I am not going to be prosecuted for placing bets so I really don't give a shit about legal action. For financial safety? Maybe a decent reason but I have been betting offshore for 10 years and have yet to be stiffed one cent. Yes, some of that is definitely luck since some books going under really couldn't be forseen, but nonetheless that is not really that compelling of a reason for me to want the government to come in and muck everything up.

I would not be surprised if one of the first steps in regulation was to create databases of every bet placed, for tax purposes and to identify "problem gamblers". Actually, the first act would be implementing a "sin tax" on winnings. Are these the things we really want to be pushing for? Because the govt is going to have a heavy hand if they get involved.

A U.S.-government regulated environment is not really a great situation and I'm not sure that's what we should be advocating. The industry was in quite good shape before the Carruthers arrest. We should be trying to get UIGEA repealed and that's probably the most government action we should be hoping for. Keeping lawmakers out of the industry is likely in everyone's best interest.

Finally a voice of reason. I was wondering when/if anyone would bring this up. I was beginning to think that I was the only one that was against regulation.