Understanding the legalization of poker in the US

The legalization of online poker in the United States has always been a sensitive subject for the government and the congress. Truth be told, many politicians that have originally spoken against the legalization of online gambling came to see the error of their ways particularly when faced with the crisis that entailed coming up with the 1.5 trillion dollars to cover the debt of the United States. However, from a broad perspective, there are few reasons to keep online casinos and online poker tournaments outside the law, considering that estimates reveal that the budget of this industry revolve around the sum of 6 billion dollars per year.

It is fair to note that the recent arguments between the sustainers of poker legalization within the territory of the United States associated with the fraud charges against a few of the major operators seem to drastically affect the outcome. In essence, in case you are not familiar with the public scandal, major online gaming casinos among which we will list Full Tilt, Poker Stars and Absolute Poker were charged with millions of dollars in fraud. Furthermore, these online casinos have also been accused several other grave offenses against the United States.

As a consequence to these allegations, the leadership members of the Poker Players Alliance began to separate themselves from the aforementioned online casinos. However, since the actions PPA was essentially funded by the fraudulent online companies, the advocates of the online poker legalization have now found themselves in a difficult position. Having established the grounds on which the decision that will either keep online poker among the illicit activities or regulate it, let us analyze the general opinion of the facts. In these circumstances, it does not come as a surprise that many diehard sustainers of the poker legalization proposition would change their mind.

However, from an objective point of view, legalizing this illicit activity would actually be beneficial for both the poker community and the government. While it might sound contradictory permitting fraudulent organizations to operate within the letter of the law, the truth is that making them legal will also provide the legal system the ability to leverage their actions. In essence, legal online poker entails that the casinos will undergo regular verifications, pay taxes on their income and so on. Moreover, clients that consider they have been double-crossed would be able to file complaints and sue the online casinos, which is more than you could say about shadow organizations that operate in the gray area of the law.

The American government needs to wake up and smell the coffee, meaning that they should realize there will always be people who want to play online poker. The poker community is unlikely to give up their favorite competitive or leisure activity because it is against the law. At best, enforcing the laws that mandate online casinos illegal would just determine diehard players to move into countries with a more forgiving legal system. Both these options hold not benefits for the country or the government of the United States.

In closing, the commission appointed by president Obama to come up with a feasible solution to America’s overwhelming debt situation unanimously agreed that online poker should become a legal form of gambling. While it is fair to prosecute the leadership board of the fraudulent casinos, the blame should not be shifted towards online poker itself. Moreover, these scandals should come as a wakeup call for those who believe that keeping this sport outside the legal system can entail any benefits for the financial system, which is currently among the worst shapes it has seen for a long time.

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