Dr Yaron Brook of the Ayn Rand Institute said “the measure requiring financial institutions to block credit card and other payments to internet wagering businesses, is an infringement on our rights.”
“Gambling, when practiced responsibly, can be a totally legitimate form of entertainment. The government has no right to prohibit adults from doing it–on the Internet or anywhere else–and no right to prohibit businesses from offering gambling opportunities to potential customers.”
“Why do supporters of the law deny individuals the freedom to spend their hard-earned money on gambling? Because, they say, people will bet and lose more than they can afford. In other words, individuals are inherently incapable of making rational decisions, and thus it is the government\’s job to protect us from ourselves. This vicious, paternalistic idea has no place in a free society.”
Elsewhere, Congresswoman Shelley Berkley called the passing of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act a ridiculous abuse of power.
“What could be a greater invasion of privacy than government telling you cannot play Internet poker in your own house?” she said. “This was a breathtaking abuse of exercise of war power.”
Berkley also said there’s no reason why the United States should not tax and regulate the online gambling industry, even though supporters of the UIGE Act say it’s impossible to do.
“I believe we now have the software available to make sure than that we can figure out who’s 21 and above. We can regulate it, we can monitor it. There’s no reason at all to ban it,” she said.
The Nevada Congesswoman feels the that despite what the elected leadership decides, internet gambling will go on.
“Internet gaming is going to exist whether the United States Congress says it can or not,” she said.
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