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Who gets your vote in 2012?
Home » Issues » Crime and Punishment
From the Left
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From the Right
Gambling Crime
The notion that gambling and crime are connected stems back to the time when organized crime oversaw the birth of the Las Vegas gaming economy. Since then many forms of wagering money on games, outcomes of sports games, and even such oddities as to whether or not the city of Belfast will have a white Christmas this year have taken place. It is uncertain why Republican lawmakers have taken such a negative view of gambling in general, and considering their usual hesitancy to make more laws rather than less, it is somewhat surprising that a ban on Internet gambling successfully made it to the President’s desk.
Of course, Republicans do realize that there are some serious negative societal impacts when it comes to gambling. Oftentimes criminal activity follows in the wake of gambling establishments, and lawmakers do not want neighborhoods to deteriorate to such an extent that entire communities are taken over why the gaming industry and regular folks are beginning to move out. One such example is the city of Blackhawk in Colorado, which turned from a quiet and bustling mountain town into a gambling hotbed devoid of other businesses and residents.
Yet Republican lawmakers will need to understand that a ban on anything will not likely result in there being none of that activity. Instead of elevating Internet wagering to a gambling crime, it would make sense to regulate the industry and protect consumers; instead of refusing to entertain the idea of gaming licenses by reputable establishments, it would make more sense to restrict them to specifically zoned venues that will leave neighborhoods residential in nature, and keep children far away from gaming parlors.
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