Dispatches from the Creation Wars

Internet News reports:

With little more than 20 working days left before the November mid-term elections, the Senate faces a crowded agenda including 13 different funding bills to keep the government functioning when its new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1…

In its first session Tuesday since the August recess, Frist prioritized the appropriation bills, judicial nominee confirmations and halting Internet gambling as his top issues.

“Internet gambling threatens our families by bringing addictive behavior right into our living rooms,” Frist said in floor remarks.

Except for internet gambling on horse races and state lotteries, of course, despite the fact that easy access to lotteries is considered one of the most common gambling addictions. The House already passed this ridiculous bill. The good news is that in the earlier session, they couldn’t get a vote to bring it to the floor in the Senate. But that’s not stopping them now:

The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (H.R. 4411) specifically exempts online horse racing and state lotteries from the legislation.

“We tried to get it done [Senate passage of the bill] before the recess but were unable to get unanimous consent to bring the bill up,” Karen Weyforth, a spokesperson for Frist’s office, told internetnews.com.

To make room on the jammed Senate calendar, Weyforth said Frist hopes to bring up the bill for a vote “with very little debate” by limiting the time available for floor discussion of the legislation.

Great idea. Let’s take away people’s rights and extend governmental authority, and let’s not even debate it, just slide it in under the door.

Comments

#1 Ginger Yellow
September 7, 2006

Internet gambling threatens our families by bringing addictive behavior right into our living rooms,” Frist said in floor remarks.

I look forward to Frist’s bill banning ashtrays.
#2 Bob
September 7, 2006

Internet gambling has allowed to me spend more time with my family. Now I don’t have to go down to the neighborhood pub to drink and meet my bookie.
#3 Stogoe
September 7, 2006

So much black market shenanigans could be wiped out immediately by legalizing and regulating the industries. Prohibition didn’t work. I can’t grasp why anyone thinks that plugging your ears and shouting LALALALALALALA gets rid of the problem.
#4 Irrational Entity
September 7, 2006

In related news, another Brit, Peter Dicks, has been detained for running a gambling website in the United Kingdom, which is accessible by Americans. We should all feel safer with this threat eliminated, but I would feel even better if municipalities could crack down on internet firework sales.
#5 Ereshkigal
September 7, 2006

Wanna bet that Senator Doctor Mister Frist will next eliminate television access to Wall Street, Dow Jones, and commodities markets everywhere?
#6 Kele
September 7, 2006

Does the House never not pass anything? It seems all of these ludicrous bills come from them and the Senate has to stop it.
#7 Ron
September 7, 2006

just an excuse of course for setting up a system for banning selected content. Ah guvment, dont ya love it!
#8 Bill Monroe
February 3, 2007

For the best article on this subject, read “Unintended Consequences of a Monetary Control Scheme” by a U.S. lawyer and gambling writer named Mark Schopper, who wrote the book on Internet Gambling. The article is available on the Internet for free, just search for it by its title. He predicted this would happen in 2001, and the genius of his article is he also predicted the consequences, which will be devastating to the banking system because of e-cash, which money launderers will love. The U.S. Government is so ill informed it is scarry.