We are closer to legalized and regulated online poker in the United States. I believe this legislation is essential. Even for non-poker player Legislation can provide many benefits, and should be supported.
Although it is still difficult to play Online Poker in the United States of America, some countries have passed legislation much quicker. All countries around the globe can enjoy the freedom to play Poker from their homes, in a legal and regulated market. This freedom is not available in the United States. You can still play poker online from the United States. However, it is not safe or legal. This was evident on Black Friday. There are fewer sites that accept US players. Because of state laws in certain states, some of the Poker sites still accepting US players were forced to ban players from those states.
Online Poker regulation and legalization could be a welcome revenue stream in light of the current US Debt Crisis. Over the next ten years, it is estimated that Online Poker regulation could generate $42 billion in additional revenue for the Federal Budget. Additionally, it would provide additional revenue streams for states. Even though the Department of Justice has cracked down on Online Poker, US citizens continue to play the game. I prefer that those revenue streams stay in the United States and not a foreign country.
The United States is currently in the most difficult economic period since the Great Depression. Millions of Americans remain unemployed. Black Friday’s crackdown on Internet slot joker388 Poker only increased the number of Americans who are unemployed. Many Americans earned their living playing online poker professionally. Poker Affiliates, Poker News Sites and Poker Coaching/Training Sites employed thousands more Americans. These players cannot make the same living as in the US Online Poker environment. The sites that still accept US players have smaller player pools, and offer lower stakes than the Sites that were seized after Black Friday. The legislation would allow these Americans to get their jobs back and also bring offshore Poker Sites onto American soil, creating thousands of jobs such as Customer Service Positions (Marketing Positions), Technology Positions (Programming and Networking Positions) ….
Some might argue that legalizing Online Poker could open the doors to problem Gamblers or Underage Gamblers. Under Government Regulation, it would be the exact opposite. These off-shore Poker Sites are currently used to help us police problem gamblers and underage gambling. Can we trust these offshore sites to protect our best interests? Even if they wanted to catch all Problem Gamblers and underage Gamblers, the current Off Shore sites are not able to do so. A good Federal Legislation would establish various detection methods to deter Underage Gamblers.
The United States has been the world leader in Freedom. It is time to go back to freedom and allow US Poker Players to enjoy a legal, safe and regulated Poker Market. There are currently multiple bills that legalize and regulate online poker at the state level. A Federal Bill is also available. We, the citizens of the United States, need to contact our Congressmen to let them know we support Freedom and that we are for legalized, regulated, and safe online poker for many reasons, including those listed above.
