23 Mar 2006
It is estimated that over twelve million players from the United States enjoy online gambling. This is despite the fact that online casinos are not legally allowed to operate from the United States and most of the gambling is done via casinos operating outside the borders of the country. However, gamblers might soon find themselves without their favorite pastime as a bill that aims to ban online gambling by US citizens past its first hurdle.
The US House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services recently approved a bill that could ultimately ban the use of credit cards, checks and electronic fund transfer services for online gambling. Although online gambling is banned in the United States, players have managed to overcome this hurdle by wagering at sites operating from the Caribbean and other off-shore locations. If the new bill, pushed by Jim Leach, manages to pass five different stages, US citizens may find themselves blocked from gambling from every direction.
This is not the first bill proposal that aims to ban gambling in the United States. Gambling is a very controversial topic in the country, both at a social level and most certainly at a political one. Time will tell whether the anti-gambling lobby succeeds to ban online wagering altogether.
