WTO says US' gambling laws illegal

[dArKeR]

ROLL THE DICE: Antigua and Barbuda successfully argued that US policy prohibiting gambling online violates the World Trade Organization's regulations

NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE , NEW YORK
Saturday, Mar 27, 2004,Page 12

The WTO, in its first decision on an Internet-related dispute, has ignited a political, cultural and legal tinderbox by ruling that the US policy prohibiting online gambling violates its obligations under international trade law.

The ruling, issued by a WTO panel on Wednesday, is being hailed by operators of online casinos based overseas as a major victory that could force America to liberalize laws outlawing their business.

But the George W. Bush administration vowed to appeal the decision, and several members of Congress said they would rather have an international trade war or withdraw from future rounds of the WTO than have American social policy dictated from abroad.

"It's appalling," said Republican Representative Bob Goodlatte. "It cannot be allowed to stand that another nation can impose its values on the US and make it a trade issue."

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/worldbiz/archives/2004/03/27/2003107987

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!

"It cannot be allowed to stand that another nation can impose its values on the US and make it a trade issue."

uh right Bobby! That's what other nations have been telling us! Anything you do to UNDO this will UNDO agreements OTHERS make with us so HAVE AT IT!

[madrchsod]

2. i`ll second that

hahahahahahahahaha- "serves you right to suffer"-hahahahahahaha

[Kenneth ken]

3. yep, except

it isn't really other nations, but corporations imposing their "values" on nations, states, counties, cities.

Funny how that was such a good idea when they only thought of US based corporations imposing their will on others, but it's a bad idea when non-US-based corporations want to impose their will.

Did they really think selling themselves to corporations would leave them in control of corporations? Idiots, if they did.

:mad:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

10. Exactly

but humorous that those same corporations forced this upon themselves with policy they hawked.

[Kenneth ken]

12. I don't think the corps would mind

at all if all national, state, local laws regarding business of any sort were all declared null and void. I know at some level the CEOs etc. worry about being the gobbled-up instead of being the gobbler, but if a corp is big enough to be worth gobbling up, it seems the execs always get lavish buyouts. so worst-case is a loss of face and prestige; which is bad for the power-monger set, but that's nothing compared to how corporate mergers affect real people.

[mobuto]

4. Did Bill Bennett

file an amicus brief on behalf of Antigua and Barbuda? If not, why not?

[R Hickey]

13. Bill Bennet is too busy gambling away the lunch money of schoolgirls

Last night on PBS's "NOW" show, they reported that Bush was syphoning off millions in public school funds and handing the money out to his political-hack friends.

The embezzled school money was split up between Bush's political supporters in order to promote vouchers for private schools. Bill Bennett got twelve million tax dollars that had been earmarked for public schools.

Bill Bennett's compulsive gambling problem is well known. How much of this school money did he gamble away? How much went back into Bush's re-election war-chest? Who's counting?

I wouldn't mind so much if Bush and his cronies weren't stealing the money directly from under-privliged school children. But I suppose Mr. "Book of Virtues" Bennet needs the children's money to pay his gambling debts.

[Sandpiper]

5. Anti gambling laws are a holdover from Puritan days

and have no place in modern society.

[progressivebydesign]

6. Too many people have destroyed or lost lives from gambling compulsions..

I have NO problem with the laws. I've known too many people who have destroyed their lives, and those of their families through legalized gambling.. not to mention the ones that committed suicide because of it. Until we deal with help for the compulsive gamblers, it shouldn't be allowed to expand. Of course, like alcoholism, and drug addiction, and smoking, there will never be any REAL help for the addicted.. only laws to punish them, and corporations to sell them the goods.

[Sandpiper]

9. I'm sorry

But the War on Drugs mentality just doesn't sway me. Millions of people gamble every day in the United States and live perfectly normal, happy lives.

As with any other so-called vice, if you don't like gambling, you're perfectly free not to engage in it.

[Voltaire99]

8. Gambling funded early America

True enough r.e. puritanism.

Interestingly, despite our vicious puritan legacy, lotteries begun in the colonies and continued after independence helped raise public treasuries in early American before the wide adoption of taxation.

That doesn't mean it's to be desired, of course.

Today, government-operated gambling puts the state in the position of a sophisticated con artist, shaking down the least educated and the least economically mobile for the monies that our politicians are too timid to demand from the very rich.

You don't need to be a Holy Roller to hate state-run gambling. It's regressive social policy that perpetuates inequality.

[Voltaire99]

7. A big steaming cup of Bob Goodlatte

"It's appalling," said Republican Representative Bob Goodlatte. "It cannot be allowed to stand that another nation can impose its values on the US and make it a trade issue."

The empire is not used to being told what to do by mere clients and colonies!

It's gratifying, of course, to see swine like Goodlatte throwing fits. But it's terrifying to imagine the chaos into which they'll throw the planet if they don't get their way.

. . .several members of Congress said they would rather have an international trade war or withdraw from future rounds of the WTO than have American social policy dictated from abroad.

We really need to put grown-ups in charge of our government. Nuclear-armed crybabies promising world-destabilizing temper tantrums are a menace to the species.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

11. That is the greatest quote! Spot on!

We really need to put grown-ups in charge of our government. Nuclear-armed crybabies promising world-destabilizing temper tantrums are a menace to the species.

[arcos]

14. dupe... link to thread from last night...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x445564

[Moderator]

15. Locking

continue at the above thread