Internet Gambling: Prohibition v. Legalization

The Cato Institute is a non-profit public policy research foundation headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Institute is named for Cato's Letters, a series of libertarian pamphlets that helped lay the philosophical foundation for the American Revolution. In 1998, a generation ago in Internet time, they made a presentation to the National Gambling Impact study Commission. They indicated that law enforcement of a ban on Internet Gambling was futile because: (1) relentless technological innovation ensures that over-burdened agencies will "only fall farther and farther behind;" (2) all Internet gaming sites are outside the jurisdiction of any state and federal agency; (3) Internet's packet switching Cuisinarts each Internet message (funds flow, blind post, call, raise, or fold) into "discrete packets, which travel over various and unpredictable routes until received and reassembled at the message's destination;" (4) the Internet makes it easier to encrypt messages---easy to change addresses---easy to send and receive messages anonymously; (5) the "Internet relies on thousands of separate and wholly private service providers to carry out its deliveries; (6) "the Sixth Amendment of the constitutional Bill of Rights prohibits the criminal prosecution of those who remain overseas while operating Internet gaming sites;" (7) the trend toward Internet gambling has already started--"nine states (this is in 1998 mind you!) already allow their citizens to access professional gaming services at home via telecommunications devices;" and finally (8) consumer demand for Internet gambling and the states' demand for tax revenues will create enormous political pressure for legalization.