Jon Kyl Proves Once Again He’s a Hypocrite
Miami, Florida--05/
In speaking about the Mafia bust, Kyl claimed that the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) makes gambling online illegal. Of course, this is not the case. Perhaps the idiot isn’t capable of reading his own bill. nesses from circumventing our existing federal and state gambling laws. Said Kyl, “Online gambling is already illegal under existing federal and state laws. The UIGEA simply provides the legal mechanisms necessary for authorities to enforce those laws.” Load of crap. There are no federal laws that prohibit gambling on line. Just because Kyl wants it doesn’t make it so.
One of the fastest-growing forms of online gambling is poker. Some online poker operators are lobbying Congress to exempt online poker from the UIGEA. They say it deserves an exemption because poker is a game of skill and an American tradition. “There are several reasons why Congress should reject this claim,” moans Kyl. “Exempting online poker would undermine state gambling laws, making it much more difficult, if not impossible, for states to enforce their laws against gambling on online poker, and would override any policy decisions made by state legislatures.”
“Online poker is currently the most addictive form of gambling activity among American youth,” Kyl cries. “The National Annenberg Risk Survey of Youth (ages 14 to 22) over the last few years has identified rising trends in poker and Internet gambling as significant and worrisome.” How about surveys on how much youth spends for the biggest rip off, the state lottery? Any kid, of any age, can walk into a 7-11 and buy a lottery ticket. According to Kyl, “The research finds that online poker players are more likely to exhibit problem gambling symptoms than other types of gamblers and over half of young people who gamble on the Internet weekly display signs of problem gambling.” I would suggest that if any kid exhibits gambling symptoms, it would be from the lottery. Lottery tickets are all multi-colored and have happy graphics geared for youthful attention. Ads for the lottery offer unbelievable expectations and easy riches. Lottery supporters claim that the money gained by it goes to the education of our youth, except the money always seems to get sidetracked for politicians’
It takes a special kind of scoundrel to claim to help kids by banning online gambling but then encourage the same kids to buy lottery tickets.
According to Arizona Office of Problem Gambling's Youth Survey of 2006, 92.4% have never gambled on the Internet, while 69.4% have never played the lottery. If Arizona youth is more addicted to the lottery than online gambling, then why not eliminate the lottery?
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