Protecting Our Long Proud Traditions and Values

I love law and order. And who doesn't? The US government is on the case as witnessed by this report, Arrest Made in Crackdown on Internet Betting, in the NYT.

In a sharp escalation of their crackdown on Internet gambling, United States prosecutors said yesterday that they were pressing charges against the chief executive of BetOnSports, a prominent Internet gambling company that is publicly traded in Britain, and against several other current and former company officers.

Federal authorities arrested the chief executive, David Carruthers, late Sunday as he was on layover at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport on his way from Britain to Costa Rica. In a hearing yesterday in Federal District Court in Fort Worth, he was charged with racketeering conspiracy for participating in an illegal gambling enterprise.

Also at the hearing, the court granted the governmentÂ’s request for a temporary restraining order preventing BetOnSports from accepting wagers from customers in the United States and requiring it to return money held in the accounts of American customers.

The traditional US brick and mortar gambling companies are the beneficiaries of this fine piece of law enforcement. Let's not forget state governments across the country who benefit from lottery ticket sales, off track betting parlors, race tracks, casinos, and other red blooded American activities. One wonders how quickly the Internet betting laws would change should the US companies and state governments lobby Congress for the opportunity to cash in on the lucrative action some foreign companies have done quite well with.

Well, we are protected. Now we can go back to less morally reprehensible activities such as buying lottery tickets at the corner convenience store. Thank you, Uncle Sam, for keeping our traditional gambling institutions and values safe.