Keep Your Laws Off My Dice
A new column at Strike-the-Root:
It is not the role of the state to pick and choose which forms of economic interaction to recognize, or to shield people from their personal failings. There is no logical reason why it should be legal to bet on a horse race and not on a poker game, or to play the slot machines on a boat and not on land. Does buoyancy make a difference? The distinction is ludicrous. Government has no right to ban the voluntary, mutual exchange of money between consenting adults, or to then turn around and “allow” it as long as the state gets to keep a chunk of the winnings. All forms of gambling, as long as they are honest and voluntary, should be decriminalized and their taxation eased. Let us spin the roulette wheel, and let fate—not the government—decide whether we win or lose.
Posted on August 17, 2009, in Uncategorized and tagged casino, economic liberty, freedom, Gambling, horse racing, Illinois, riverboats, wager. Bookmark the permalink. 3 Comments.
I could not agree more…I feel the same way about medical Marijuana and everything else we have taken away from us in the “land of the free and the home of the Brave…It is still we the people…Right???
“It is not the role of the state to pick and choose which forms of economic interaction to recognize, or to shield people from their personal failings. “
I agree with the first part, but not necessarily the second. I can never get my libertarian streak in full swing because I think you need institutions in place to protect people from other people’s failings. Addictions affect more than the individual with the addiction, you can’t simply say let consenting adults do as they please in every aspect of life.
It’s true that addictions affect more than just the individual with the addiction, and I don’t think there is anything wrong with the person’s friends or family getting involved when their behavior becomes destructive. We are after all a society and not just a collection of atoms. I don’t think, in this instance specifically–gambling, it’s something the state needs to get involved in.