It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see where our state governments are heading. Our governments are in holes so deep that they are exploring every single avenue for cash generation. They started with sin taxes. Raising cigarettes and alcohol taxes. Then came adding lottery. A form of gambling that was originally justified to the residents of their residents as a means to provide additional funding for schools. Of course that funding was soon misdirected back into the general funds. The latest steps have been to raise state taxes. My state, Illinois, has recently raised corporate taxes and personal taxes up another 50%. And yet most states are still in so much debt now states are trying to figure out a way to declare bankruptcy
Can you imagine the effects of a state declaring bankruptcy? Pensions canceled or reworked. Businesses not paid. It would be a financial disaster. A perfect time to bring up online gambling. The money raised by states would be incredible. When faced with a choice of having the state declare bankruptcy or approve online gambling, I think most would approve gambling. Most opponents take the approach of John Kindt from here at the University of Illinois.
“It’s the crack cocaine of gambling, putting it in every living room, on every school desk and work desk, and on every iPhone and BlackBerry,” said Kindt, a senior editor of the United States International Gambling Report, a 3,000-page collection released in 2009.He says the “Nintendo generation” is especially addiction prone. Studies estimate that about 4 percent of young people already are addicted to gambling and 8 to 12 percent are problem gamblers, twice the rate of older Americans.”
And yet our state started the process by legalizing online horse racing. Over the past 15 years, Illinois went from no gambling, to riverboat gambling, to casinos, to the recent slots in horse racing venues and more casinos all over the state. Then they added Internet horse racing in 2009. Next up, everything but sports gambling online. Although it’s not been brought up at the state capital, I think it’s inevitable, merely for the cash infusion to the sate. Millions if not billions, of dollars.
Some would say, why not marijuana. Marijuana is on it’s way as well. They legalize it now by calling it medical marijuana or dispensaries , but they too have become big business and various states are bringing in nice revenue from their change in laws. You wouldn’t think of Michigan as a big marijuana state but they saw how much money California was bringing in and now it’s a HUGE business.
The draw is cash. All ethical and financial repercussions seem to drop when money is involved. This is big money. Money that will be made from people doing something in their own homes. Governments seem to feel more at ease passing laws that allow people to do something in their own home. Online gambling will be here very soon. All it going to take is one state to make the move. Once they prove how much revenue can be made, other states will follow. Right now the bans are enabled by cutting off credit card processing but I see that changing soon. Either a state run gambling card with be created or they will loosen up the rules with Visa and Mastercard.
So get ready, it’s inevitable. My thesis is not based on anything but history. When people need money they do things they would rather not. The states would rather not have Internet gambling but the payout is just to big to ignore.
In florida I have seen the same things happen we had small casinos and now at all of the horse tracks there are slots, black jack and poker. Hopefully it will go online soon too and once it does I think it will be hard for the states to take it back.
I’ve noticed that we have become a nation of gamblers since we are no longer producing anything worthwhile. But this has been going on for some time. Whether it be tech stocks, housing, domain names, or whatever, everyone seems to want to make money by simply sitting in front of a computer and gambling on stuff. And current Federal monetary policy encourages this trend by providing essentially free money to speculators. Now the states and cities are getting involved – as is very well the case here in Illinois.
Of course, this trend, is an economic and social disaster. The only way to grow an economy is by working. Gambling just shifts money around. It doesn’t produce anything new.
I have to agree it’s all coming soon. Horse racing is first, you can even see by some of the domain names that have been bought. Horseracing.ca sold for 19k I believe, so it’s just the start for domain names.
Services like paymo will kick a in the future. CC’s will not even be in the picture if they don’t accept. Fee’s like paymo are high but they will come down and push cc out of the picture.
Will be interesting to see what happens though horse racing is def the first to come out of the block. I mean imagine betting and watching this on your tablet all at the same time. It will become bigger than anyone can imagine when you put these devices in front of people.
The government is becoming more and more addicted to gambling for revenues and it can only keep going up and up 🙂
All signs pointing to the coming end of a civilization.
I’m in Illinois too (part time) – thinking I may go ahead and move full time to the retirement place.
Online gambling was very possible just 4 or 5 years ago, most anywhere, and the gambling establishments were very creative in finding ways for you to get money to them. You can still play bingo (is that gambling?) online using some of these creative deposit methods. The problem THEN is – cashing out. (when you hit that jackpot) Used to be easy – and tax free!
Couldn’t agree more. Here in Alabama we have greyhound and horse racing simulcast, but if you drive over the state line to Mississippi about 75% of the tags at the casinos are AL and about 90% of the lottery for GA, TN, FL near the state lines are AL. BUT, we’ll be one of the last to capitalize because of the old school politicians and voting patterns.
Sounds like there may still be some money to be made in gambling domains if I’m hearing you right?
Don’t bet on it! The tide is turning away from wild speculation and gambling. Illinois casino revenues dropped again in December. They are now at a 10-year low. Even the stock market and housing markets are not attracting speculative interest like they once did.
BTW, Shane, Illinois does NOT have slots at horse-racing venues and has not approved the addition of any more casinos since the 10 casinos allowed by the 1990 Riverboat Gambling Act.
How else can states and counties survive when the goverment cannot bail them out?
Gambling revenues from other states have shown unbelievable revenues so it is at least the solution that they know will save them.
Want a domain that thousands will flock to?
GamblingStates.com