Thursday, May 01, 2003

Gambling Continues to feed States' Coffers; Utah is among few exception Gambling continues to be an appealing source of revenue for states. Even new Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney ran on a platform of bringing in gambling to help state finances. Opponents argue that gambling tends to tax the poor. Only Hawaii, Tennessee and Utah have no form of gambling, although Tennessee is looking at a state lottery. [New York Times] reg Meanwhile, Congress continues to look at regulation of online gambling, and at ways to block its entry into states like Utah. During a hearing on the feasability of regulating such gambling, a representative of MGM Mirage said a resident of Utah could be blocked. It is difficult to see how such a blockage could apply to all online gambling, however, without severely compromising user privacy on the internet. Rep. Chris Cannon appears to support the legalization of internet gambling -- as long as Utah is prohibited from participating. [Casper Star-Tribune] 9:52:06 AM