Lawyer Blasts Barney Frank Bill
We here at Gambling911.com have been singing the praises of Congressman Barney Frank for weeks and continued to do so following his disclosure of a new bill whose goal it was to legalize online gambling in the US.
Sounds great? Interestingly enough the reaction within the Internet gambling industry has been mixed.
We received the following response to our article on Barney Frank from a concerned reader who just happens to be an attorney.
First I must repeat that I am a big fan of yours. But I am a trained lawyer (Harvard law) and I do crazy things like read through entire bills for fun. Well I read the Frank Bill. In case you haven't seen it, here it is: http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/financialsvcs_dem/21frank_004_xml_(2).pdf Not just the highlights that the politicians want you to swallow, the whole damn thing. 26 pages of legislation is an awful lot to "repeal" one little law. Which of course, this does not. It is a lie. Frank's bill doesn't repeal a thing.
I read your article entitled: The Barney Frank Plan: Who Wins, Who Loses. What you are missing in your discussion of competition is the fact that the US government would be the sole determinator as to who get a license. Red Bull and Snapple didn't have to jump through legislative hoops to put their product on the market.
Also, although he continually says so in typical politician double-speak, his bill does not repeal a thing. Read it. No where does the word repeal appear. His is simply an amendment, an addition, more legislation not less. HE SIMPLY TACKED IT ON TO THE END OF THE UIGEA, he isn't repealing anything. He is merely trying to add legislative strings to the industry. It is the same trick the politicians used to get the Patriot Act passed, when there was nothing patriotic about it at all. They call it one thing so it sounds good, and expect that no one will read it and they get everyone to vote for it just because of what they call it.
The mere fact that he is falsely claiming it is a repeal should send up bright red flags. The UIGEA never made anything illegal that wasn't illegal already. So the fact that he is claiming that his act will create an exemption to the ban on online gambling is patently false. There is no ban on online gambling. The UIGEA did NOT ban online gaming. It only makes it illegal to fund illegal gaming. (And no one knows what the hell is truly illegal in the online arena).
This move by Frank is tricky politician talk. This is a scam. A con. Since the UIGEA may or may not have any teeth, he saw a way to sink his fangs into the gaming industry. First they pass the UIGEA, and get everyone running scared. Then they present this bill as a way to calm your fears. But all this does is put more restrictions on the industry. It is is a way to get the competition out of the market and put all of the power over the industry into the hands of a US Government agency. Also, forcing companies in other countries to agree to American jurisdiction is pure bullying, and in my opinion goes against the WTO ruling. (But I may be wrong about that, not my area of expertise).
I totally agree with you. Competition is good for an industry. Any industry. But licensing requirements limit competitive access to an industry. Any industry. Why do you think medical costs and legal costs are so high? What if that shiny new license costs ten million dollars in donations to actually make it through the committee? Still think the little guy could enter the market? Besides, what if MGM.com pays that person in the licensing department 20 million to keep the competition out? Don't think things like that happen here? Try getting a liquor license in NY city. And don't forget to pay fifteen bucks for that rum and coke either.
When the government gets involved we all pay and they get rich. Plus, I am tired of liars. So this really ticks me off.
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Originally published to Gambling911.com April 30, 2007 5:05 am ET
