Can you believe this? :sadwave:
From today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
No bluffing: State trying to pull plug on online gambling
State officials today told 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.
By PAUL WALSH, Star Tribune
Last update: April 29, 2009 - 12:07 PM
Nice
Wow its not like we are facing a 6.4 billion budget shortfall or anything. The government needs to get out of peoples homes and fix their ? read more own problems
The state is cracking down on online gambling, which the state says is illegal in Minnesota.
A division of the state Department of Public Safety that enforces gambling and alcohol laws said today that it has instructed 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers (ISPs) to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.
"We are putting site operators and Minnesota online gamblers on notice and in advance," says John Willems, director of the state's Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division. "State residents with online escrow accounts should be aware that access to their accounts may be jeopardized and their funds in peril."
Willems said the state is acting even though he has no idea how much Internet wagering is going on in Minnesota.
"It's hard to know that," he said, because of its illegal nature. "I can't tell you if it's one [Minnesotan gambling online] or 500,000. My only concern is that it's unlawful."
He did say he has anecdotal evidence that Internet gambling "is fairly large" in Minnesota, noting that Canterbury Park in Shakopee has said that its casino-style games have been hurt. "Also, I've had people call me and say they've lost $20,000; can I help them? I can't."
Written notices from Willems' division were served Monday to:
AT&T Internet Services, San Antonio; Charter Communications, St. Louis; Comcast Cable, Moorestown, N.J.; Direct TV, Los Angeles; Dish Network, Englewood., Colo.; Embarq and Sprint/Nextel, both of Overland Park, Kan.; Frontier Communications, Stamford, Conn.; Qwest, Denver; Verizon Wireless, Bedminster, N.J.; and Wildblue Communications, Greenwood Village, Colo.
In mounting its challenge, Minnesota is citing a 1961 federal law that gives states the authority to control illegal gambling.
Minnesota now joins at least one other state that has taken on Internet gambling, according to a national trade group that favors legalization of online betting in the United States.
Kentucky is trying to seize the domain certificates of 141 online betting operations, effectively shutting them down in that state, said Joe Brennan, chairman of the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association. However, his association won a stay in court that temporarily blocks the seizure effort while Kentucky takes its case to the state Supreme Court.
In New Jersey last year, a federal judge determined that the association failed to show sufficient cause to order her to block enforcement of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, passed by Congress in 2006. That act doesn't specifically block Internet betting but bars U.S. financial institutions from handling transactions involving online gambling.
Brennan said his association's mission is to promote online wagering that is regulated and taxed.
"The people want this," Brennan said. "What people are doing in the privacy of their own home should be protected. The combination of technology and consumer demand is outstripping our laws."
Brennan said Minnesota is one of nine states that have laws against online betting. The others, he said, are: Illinois, Indiana, Washington, Louisiana, Oregon, Michigan, Nevada and South Dakota.
However, Willems said, "I don't have a law that authorizes it, so it's illegal."
As for why online wagering is illegal in the first place, Willems said, "That's a policy question, and that's a good question."
Brennan said operations that handle online wagers are concentrated in the United Kingdom, Costa Rica and handful of Caribbean nations. These locations are seen as tax havens and offer the necessary licensing and regulation, he said.
Brennan said that Internet gambling falls roughly along these preferences: 40 percent poker, 40 percent sporting events and 20 percent other casino-style games.
From today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune:
No bluffing: State trying to pull plug on online gambling
State officials today told 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.
By PAUL WALSH, Star Tribune
Last update: April 29, 2009 - 12:07 PM
Nice
Wow its not like we are facing a 6.4 billion budget shortfall or anything. The government needs to get out of peoples homes and fix their ? read more own problems
The state is cracking down on online gambling, which the state says is illegal in Minnesota.
A division of the state Department of Public Safety that enforces gambling and alcohol laws said today that it has instructed 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers (ISPs) to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.
"We are putting site operators and Minnesota online gamblers on notice and in advance," says John Willems, director of the state's Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division. "State residents with online escrow accounts should be aware that access to their accounts may be jeopardized and their funds in peril."
Willems said the state is acting even though he has no idea how much Internet wagering is going on in Minnesota.
"It's hard to know that," he said, because of its illegal nature. "I can't tell you if it's one [Minnesotan gambling online] or 500,000. My only concern is that it's unlawful."
He did say he has anecdotal evidence that Internet gambling "is fairly large" in Minnesota, noting that Canterbury Park in Shakopee has said that its casino-style games have been hurt. "Also, I've had people call me and say they've lost $20,000; can I help them? I can't."
Written notices from Willems' division were served Monday to:
AT&T Internet Services, San Antonio; Charter Communications, St. Louis; Comcast Cable, Moorestown, N.J.; Direct TV, Los Angeles; Dish Network, Englewood., Colo.; Embarq and Sprint/Nextel, both of Overland Park, Kan.; Frontier Communications, Stamford, Conn.; Qwest, Denver; Verizon Wireless, Bedminster, N.J.; and Wildblue Communications, Greenwood Village, Colo.
In mounting its challenge, Minnesota is citing a 1961 federal law that gives states the authority to control illegal gambling.
Minnesota now joins at least one other state that has taken on Internet gambling, according to a national trade group that favors legalization of online betting in the United States.
Kentucky is trying to seize the domain certificates of 141 online betting operations, effectively shutting them down in that state, said Joe Brennan, chairman of the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association. However, his association won a stay in court that temporarily blocks the seizure effort while Kentucky takes its case to the state Supreme Court.
In New Jersey last year, a federal judge determined that the association failed to show sufficient cause to order her to block enforcement of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, passed by Congress in 2006. That act doesn't specifically block Internet betting but bars U.S. financial institutions from handling transactions involving online gambling.
Brennan said his association's mission is to promote online wagering that is regulated and taxed.
"The people want this," Brennan said. "What people are doing in the privacy of their own home should be protected. The combination of technology and consumer demand is outstripping our laws."
Brennan said Minnesota is one of nine states that have laws against online betting. The others, he said, are: Illinois, Indiana, Washington, Louisiana, Oregon, Michigan, Nevada and South Dakota.
However, Willems said, "I don't have a law that authorizes it, so it's illegal."
As for why online wagering is illegal in the first place, Willems said, "That's a policy question, and that's a good question."
Brennan said operations that handle online wagers are concentrated in the United Kingdom, Costa Rica and handful of Caribbean nations. These locations are seen as tax havens and offer the necessary licensing and regulation, he said.
Brennan said that Internet gambling falls roughly along these preferences: 40 percent poker, 40 percent sporting events and 20 percent other casino-style games.
