Online+Gambling

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 * Recently** due to the grand technological innovation of the internet many things once physical are now suspended in cyberspace, one of these things is gambling. Online gambling exists in many forms which will be discussed throughout this page. The present forms which are most recognized are: Online Poker, Online Casinos, and Online Sports Betting.

=Online Poker=

This exists in the form of online poker rooms. Users download software from different websites such as [|PokerStars] or [|ParadisePoker] and install it on their computers. Once this has been completed users create an account, upload money via e-payment systems (such as Paypal or Firepay) and begin to gamble. The games offered are typically Texas Holdem, Omaha, Seven Card Stud, and other variations of poker. Users here play against one another and cash out when they want. However, there is usually a fee that you have to pay to cash out your money, depending on what method that you use.

=Online Casino=



There are many different types of online casinos which offer many games that are conventionally played through real casinos. These games include Blackjack, Roulette, Craps, slots, and many others. Users play against the house against odds and hope to recieve winnings and a chance to cash out huge.

=Online Sports Betting=

There are quite a few online organizations which will allow you to place bets on various different sporting events. A very noticeable online organization is [|Pro*Line] which takes bets and places them according to odds. A relatively new way of betting is something known as the bet exchange, which places users betting against each other in relation to sporting events.

=Online vs. Reality=

One of the biggest issues that arise when gambling online is security, however that does not just include money. Many of the e-payment systems use the SSL to insure the security for their customers and all of the online poker sites continually update their security for their customers. However another security that is most often overlooked is that of fairness. Are the cards dealt fairly or not? For the poker players out there the phrase “cash out curse” is something that scares them. Many people believe that once you cash out from a poker site, or withdraw large amounts of money, the poker site punishes you by giving and a run of bad hands. A way to get back at you for withdrawing money. Though this is just a myth there are a few sites that ease their users by receiving what is called Independent Third Party shuffling. The specific site that uses this technique is Paradise Poker. It provides a signed document stating that the dealing on their site, for all of their games, is done fairly and that every card has an equal chance of being selected. By doing this the site shows that they cards are dealt at random and proves, for their site at least, that the cash out curse is just a myth.

If you go to a casino, sit at a table and play poker you are more likely to believe that the cards are dealt at random. The fact that you can touch your cards and actually see someone dealing them is more satisfying. Does this mean that there are some poker sites that are not random? If you ask a poker player that has ever lost money online, they will tell you yes. So while being able to sit in your favorite chair and play for millions in your home is much more convenient, playing at a real table takes away all of those insecurities you may have about online poker.

=The Legality of Online Gambling=

Online gambling is a contested topic in reference to legality. In some countries in the Caribbean Sea and United Kingdom online gambling is legal and regulated. However, in such countries like the United States it is not. There is no law actively prohibiting online gambling yet there are no states which are currently issuing online gambling licenses.

The real problem with legality rises with governments such as Antigua and Barbuda which issue licenses for internet gambling. By doing this people from the U.S.A. or elsewhere can get licenses and setup online casinos which of course can be accessed be persons residing in the U.S.A or anywhere else for that matter. In combating this problem the United States has impeded online gambling by making it illegal in certain states. Ultimately, it cannot stop online gambling due to jurisdiction issues over the internet as well as the inherent freedom of the internet in how it allows people to access whatever they want.

There have however been attempts to regulate online gambling in the United States. The first of its kind was seen in February 2005. The North Dakota House of Representatives passed a bill to legalize and regulate online poker and online poker card room operators in the State. Testifying before the State Senate, the CEO of one online card room, Paradise Poker, pledged to relocate to the state if the bill became law. However, the measure was defeated by the State Senate in March 2005.

=Social Issues with Gambling=

It is known fact that gambling creates a strong of social issues upon society. Gambling has created pathological gamblers whom in their extreme addiction have ruined their lives and others around them. Specifically gambling destroys marriages, undermines work ethic, increases crime, motivates suicide, destroys financial security of families and is the source of many other social issues. With the alarming increase use in online gambling as well as the institutions which support it - it appears that our social issues will increase. Perhaps one of the largest concerns is how gambling affects children and teenagers. Studies have illustrated that two-thirds of teens have gambled in the past year. "In a survey of 12,000 Louisiana adolescents, one-quarter reported playing video poker, 17 percent had gambled on slot machines, and one in ten had bet on horse or dog racing. The fact that gambling is increasing at a exponential rate and the known fat of social disorders associated with gambling it should make society worry with the increasing popularity of Online Gambling,

=Bibliography=

Dobson. "Family.org." __CitizenLink__. 01 Apr. 1999. 25 Feb. 2006 .
 * Work Cited:**

"Online Gambling." __Wikipedia__. 19 Feb. 2006. 25 Feb. 2006 <[|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_gambling#Online_casinos]>. "Independent Third Party shuffling." __Paradise Poker__. 27 June 2005. 26 Feb. 2006 
 * Reference:**

"Pokerstars," FlopTurnRiver. <[|source]> "Poker Hand," LuckCasino. <[|source]> "Casino on Net,"Online-Casino-Guide. <[|source]>
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