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More Online Gambling Ban Stuff


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I think it was on here a little bit ago, someone posted something about the state of washington saying that online gambling was a felony. Well, here is another news story about it... time to get your pen and paper or emails out and let the politicians that work for us know, that we are old and mature enough to deceide what to do with our own money. Also, might want to let Ebay know what you think of them as well.http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,198610,00.html

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I sent an e-mail to that jackass who is championing this bill and asked him very specific questions as to his motivation behind this bill. I basically asked him why, as adults, we need the government to protect us from ourselves, especially when Republicans are supposed to be all about the government staying OUT of our personal lives. Now, I don't want to create a political debate on conservativism vs. liberalism here, but let's just say that under this administration, this bill isn't out of line with their agenda.Throughout my letter I stated 3 times that I would like a reply to my note...To date, no reply. I guess as an adult American (who obviously needs the government to take care of them) he knows what is best for me so my concerns are not worthy of his time. Either that or he couldn't care less as I'm not in his voting district. Probably the 2nd one.

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that was an interesting little rant. makes total sense why ebay would get behind it after reading it. i think i may have to send them an email, even though i'm canadian.

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that's why i'll email. smarter then your average bear, i am.
Let me rephrase....They don't care about anything you have to say in any medium.Politics has nothing to do with what the people want.
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Let me rephrase....They don't care about anything you have to say in any medium.Politics has nothing to do with what the people want.
hmmm........ back to the drawing board i guess
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I am sending the following letter to eBay immediately. If you have an account with them, I would encourage you to do the same:TO: eBay Inc. 2145 Hamilton Avenue San Jose, CA 95125RE: My account/support of anti-gambling legislationI have had an eBay account for over five years, but at this time, I would like the account closed. I will never use eBay again due to your company’s support of anti-gaming legislation currently being pushed through congress. As an early adopter of using the internet for free trade, I would expect eBay to support the free enterprise system and the free choices of adults. Instead, eBay is attempting to use its position of power, which it gained through unregulated competition, to stifle competition and limit the choices of adults. I find such a stance deplorable. With the large number of internet and traditional stores I can choose from for my purchases, I see no reason to support a company such as yours which is helping to encourage the government to treat me like a child and remove my freedom of choice. Furthermore, I will continue to encourage others to boycott eBay and close their account with your company.My account ID is <xxxx>. Please close this account at this time.

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I am sending the following letter to eBay immediately. If you have an account with them, I would encourage you to do the same:TO: eBay Inc. 2145 Hamilton Avenue San Jose, CA 95125RE: My account/support of anti-gambling legislationI have had an eBay account for over five years, but at this time, I would like the account closed. I will never use eBay again due to your company’s support of anti-gaming legislation currently being pushed through congress. As an early adopter of using the internet for free trade, I would expect eBay to support the free enterprise system and the free choices of adults. Instead, eBay is attempting to use its position of power, which it gained through unregulated competition, to stifle competition and limit the choices of adults. I find such a stance deplorable. With the large number of internet and traditional stores I can choose from for my purchases, I see no reason to support a company such as yours which is helping to encourage the government to treat me like a child and remove my freedom of choice. Furthermore, I will continue to encourage others to boycott eBay and close their account with your company.My account ID is <xxxx>. Please close this account at this time.
great letter, I am also boycotting eBay.
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Suited_Up is right, the politicians could not care less about what any of us have to say.I've sent my representative numerous letters about this and I have recieved the very same form letter everytime. This isn't just true of my representatives, as almost everyone that has sent a congressman a letter on 2+2 has experienced the same problem.Edit: I just noticed the letter being sent to eBay, and I think it's kinda cool. I don't have an account personally, but if enough people could get together and boycott it, it could possibly create a ripple, or at least turn an eyebrow.

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I wrote my Congressman (Mike Rogers), and received a reply, which ended up in the trash shortly after I read it. His reasons for supporting a bill to ban Internet gambling were essentially twofold:1. It's already technically illegal, but impossible to enforce.2. It helps support terrorism.That's right, grandma. I'm breaking the law and I'm openly lobbying for increased terrorism.#2 made me sick to my stomach. As someone who has generally sided with Republicans for generally Libertarian ideals, I think they have moved further and further away from Libertarian ideals and now want to control our lives just as much (and sometimes more) than Socialist countries. Whatever happened to small government and getting the government out of peoples' lives? *sigh* That could be a whole nuther topic.Anyway, I'm sure that it's possible for terrorists and organized crime to launder money in this manner, but there are also a lot of other ways for them to launder money, and if the US clamps down and no one else does, is it really going to make a dent? I don't see how. #2 just seemed like an excuse.My solution is to simply understand that it's happening, and then treat it in much the same way that we treat trading stocks. Ask that the poker sites supply users with downloadable data regarding wins/losses/fees/etc. That's exactly what ETrade does, and they do it well. It's not hard. Since much of the poker business is from the US anyway, I'm sure that many of them would glad comply, since the users/players would in-turn demand it from them anyway. It's not exactly rocket science that we're dealing with, and it's already being done in the stock market. The difference is that stock traders get the added benefit of itemizing net losses, whereas gamblers do not*. The US government would likely make more money. Right now, it's so incredibly difficult to report poker winnings that many players think they're probably better off not saying anything unless they win big and find it impossible to hide.Or do like Great Britain, and actually make it legal and regulated. Again, it's not impossible.*Gamblers get no tax break if their losses exceed their winnings. Stock traders do.Edit: I appreciate the fact that my Congressman responds. I've corresponded with him on other issues as well, and I've always received a response. I have to give him credit for that.

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2. It helps support terrorism.[...]Anyway, I'm sure that it's possible for terrorists and organized crime to launder money in this manner, but there are also a lot of other ways for them to launder money, and if the US clamps down and no one else does, is it really going to make a dent? I don't see how. #2 just seemed like an excuse.
The stupid thing about this argument is that the only way it could possibly support terrorism is if it's illegal. If running an online gaming site were legal, then reputable, non-terrorist companies would run online gaming sites. Customers would flock to names they trust and people who they could sue. If you have, say, $10,000 to put on a site, would you rather put it with one who can take the money and run without recourse, or with one that is subject to the laws of where you live?So by making it illegal, congress is actually *encouraging* terrorists and other irreputable operators to set up gaming sites. Just like with the Insane War on Drugs, it can be dangerous and violent *because* there are no legal means to settle disputes.(So far, the online poker world has been lucky to be run by honest and reputable companies, for the most part, but that should tell congress something, too, about information flow and free markets.)
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It's already technically illegal, but impossible to enforce.
Rogers apparently hasn't seen how the UK runs things. It's helped their tax flow tremendously since they regulated it. The government is just being lazy towards the issue, just like they are towards the issue of health care.
2. It helps support terrorism.
So when a terrorist chases a flush draw and gets there, does that mean the terrorists have won?Ridiculous. You know what supports terrorism? Self-righteous douches like this guy who decide to focus their primary political energies on non-urgent political social issues like gay marriage and online gaming. I can tell you the main reason why Goodnow his pushing this bill hard. Here's his agenda:LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!LOOK AT ME!Pretty much the only reason why policitians do what they do. 99% of them just champion causes that they'll use to advance themselves later in their career.
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I am sending the following letter to eBay immediately. If you have an account with them, I would encourage you to do the same:
There are many reasons why I think this is pointless/silly. not counting the fact that they will just ignore you.1) PayPal changed its policy regarding online gambling MANY years ago. To use them while they had this policy in affect, and then to suddenly ban them when some random guy writes an article about it, is idiotic. Chances are that YOU opened your account after they already had this ban in place.2) It is the legislation/PatriotAct that is the problem, not PayPal. Even if I think online gambling should be legal, I have no problem with PayPal abiding by U.S. law and wanting their service to be used only for certain transactions and not others. Its their business and should be run as they see is the most profitable.3) Many U.S. credit card companies also ban online gambling transactions. You might want to start banning them too. In fact, you might want to just ban your entire country and move somewhere else. Write a letter to the president, banning him, his entire organization and everyone who lives under rule by that organization.4) Not really a reason, but a side note....PayPal, sucks! I am glad they went away and made room for Neteller, which is by far superior. PayPal is incredibly insecure and anyone who trusts keeping money with them is making a mistake(easy to hack into). The only advantage of PayPal is that absolutely ANYONE can open an account making it convenient for accepting random online payments. Neteller, on the other hand, is more secure(albeit still hackable) and they monitor for suspicious activity, verify your identity, etc. If PayPal started allowing internet gambling, I would still use Neteller.I would like to see someone(maybe Google) create a more secure online payment system and completely outdate PayPal, but I would be ok if they left the online gambling business to offshore companies, like Neteller. I mean, I would prefer if everyone supported online gambling sites, but I understand their position.Save your letters for the politicians(who will also ignore you), since these companies are just abiding by the law.
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1) PayPal changed its policy regarding online gambling MANY years ago. To use them while they had this policy in affect, and then to suddenly ban them when some random guy writes an article about it, is idiotic. Chances are that YOU opened your account after they already had this ban in place.2) It is the legislation/PatriotAct that is the problem, not PayPal. Even if I think online gambling should be legal, I have no problem with PayPal abiding by U.S. law and wanting their service to be used only for certain transactions and not others. Its their business and should be run as they see is the most profitable.[...]
It is not their decision to not allow money to go to gambling sites that bothers me. They are a free company, and may do whatever they want in regard to gaining/alienating customers. My complaint with them is that they are using their wealth to influence political processes for personal gain. The problem is their support of the online gaming ban, not their decision to not be part of that business. It is immoral of them to attempt to limit voluntary transactions between consenting adults. They, of all companies, should know that. What on earth does eBay stand for if not free trade?
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Hi,Even though I am Canadian, I feel that this new legislation is extremely unjust. As a neighbor to the United States I often feel sorry for the millions of people who are living in a country run by idiot puppets who do what the opportunistic assholes tell them to . But without going on a political rant I would just like to post my email that I just sent to eBay. Petoria's email to eBay was well written so I used his/her letter and simply altered it to reflect my opinion and circumstance. Anyways, I think the more people who copy, paste, alter, and send this type of letter to eBay, the better. "I have had an eBay account for over 2 years, but at this time, I am seriously thinking of closing my account. I am deciding to boycott e-bay for the time being due to your company’s support of anti-gaming legislation currently being pushed through congress in the United States. Even though I am Canadian I strongly feel that eBay is abusing its corporate powers in openly and publicly supporting the anti-gaming legislation proposed by congressman Goodlatte.As an early adopter of using the internet for free trade, I would expect eBay to support the free enterprise system and the free choices of adults. Instead, eBay is attempting to use its position of power, which it gained through unregulated competition, to stifle competition and limit the choices of adults in the United States. I find such a stance deplorable. With the large number of internet and traditional stores I can choose from for my purchases, I see no reason to support a company such as yours which is helping to encourage the government to treat my neighbors in the United States like children and remove there freedom of choice. Furthermore, I will continue to encourage others to boycott eBay until such support is publicly revoked.J Kennedy - Iqaluit, Canada"

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Hi,Even though I am Canadian, I feel that this new legislation is extremely unjust. As a neighbor to the United States I often feel sorry for the millions of people who are living in a country run by idiot puppets who do what the opportunistic assholes tell them to . But without going on a political rant I would just like to post my email that I just sent to eBay. Petoria's email to eBay was well written so I used his/her letter and simply altered it to reflect my opinion and circumstance. Anyways, I think the more people who copy, paste, alter, and send this type of letter to eBay, the better. "I have had an eBay account for over 2 years, but at this time, I am seriously thinking of closing my account. I am deciding to boycott e-bay for the time being due to your company’s support of anti-gaming legislation currently being pushed through congress in the United States. Even though I am Canadian I strongly feel that eBay is abusing its corporate powers in openly and publicly supporting the anti-gaming legislation proposed by congressman Goodlatte.As an early adopter of using the internet for free trade, I would expect eBay to support the free enterprise system and the free choices of adults. Instead, eBay is attempting to use its position of power, which it gained through unregulated competition, to stifle competition and limit the choices of adults in the United States. I find such a stance deplorable. With the large number of internet and traditional stores I can choose from for my purchases, I see no reason to support a company such as yours which is helping to encourage the government to treat my neighbors in the United States like children and remove there freedom of choice. Furthermore, I will continue to encourage others to boycott eBay until such support is publicly revoked.J Kennedy - Iqaluit, Canada"
thats actually good. i will copy/paste that myself.
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"One of the first things eBay did after acquiring PayPal was to reconcile with Spitzer and the Justice Department. eBay paid a $10 million fine and promised to bar PayPal's customers from using the service for online gaming." From ThisI used PayPal to buy Poker Tracker and PokerAce Hud last month. I'm pretty sure these applications can only be used on online poker sites. Nice Job eBay/PayPal.I don't think I ever really cared about the government until they started interfering with my personal life. What's going on in Washington (state and DC) is pretty disgusting. Poker is so much more rigged than state lotteries. LOL. I guess the only reasonable thing to do is boycott eBay and move to Canada.

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... Petoria's email to eBay was well written so I used his/her letter and simply altered it to reflect my opinion and circumstance...
Hey, that was mine.... and I want credit, dammit :club: Actually, I did want to say that for anyone else who wants to send a version of the letter, you (WhiteTiger) made a change that I wish I had included, and that is to be more specific about which bill this was in reference to. If you add the specific name of the bill, I think the letter would be much more effective. You were more specific than me, and I think the bill name would be even better.Also, any personalization you can do would help, because if it looks too much like a form letter it goes in the "special interest form letter" pile.
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My complaint with them is that they are using their wealth to influence political processes for personal gain.
True, I missed that on my first scan of the article linked since it mainly talked about PayPal. They have absolutely no reason to go out of their way to be anti-gambling. Their business has nothing even to do with gambling. Funny.EBAY sucks...please someone create a better online marketplace that doesnt rape you with fees.
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