Here's a real shocker for you: The majority of U.S. citizens opposed the ban
on online casino gambling. Who would have thought, right? Well, considering the
current state of online gambling in this democratic country, the majority
sentiment of the constituents basically means poop. All I can say is that I hope
those American's who do oppose the ban are speaking up about it.
Although the stakes are not at all the same, take the case of Darfur as an
example. Only until a campaign was started in which mass media was used to refer
to the Beijing Olympics as the "Genocide Olympics" did China miraculously revert
its defiant position of supporting the Sudanese government in its crimes against
humanity. Here's a more recent one: Not until the Writers Guild of America began
posting YouTube video clips about the money greedy CEO's behind telecom giants
like Viacom, and citizens began mailing pencils to head execs to show support
for the writers on strike, did the studio's open their doors for bargaining
talks.
What I am saying is that the more the people show their dissension for an
unjust and corruptive prohibition of online gambling, the more U.S. politicians
will wake up to the fact that they could lose their jobs if they don't make
their constituents happy. The only problem is that many of those who support
online gambling regulation are not passionate enough about the issue to take the
time to write their Senators.
A great example of making waves are the videos being published at the
Gambling Portal Webmasters Association (GPWA). Also, the Poker Players Alliance
has been successfully active at engaging the U.S. Congress. In fact, the PPA
Chairman, Alfonse D'Amato (who happens to be a former Senator with some lobbying
power of his own), predicts online poker will be regulated within the next
eighteen months. As for online casino gambling, there is more uncertainty.
The PPA's latest activities involve giving testimony at upcoming House
Judiciary Committee Hearings (moderated by Congressman John Conyers), where it
is expected that attention to the above mentioned survey (showing 2 to 1
Americans oppose the online gambling ban) will be given, among other things.