Wagers Of Sin

[zengrifter]

WAGERS OF SIN

The New Yorker
Posted 2006-09-18

It’s fall, and an American’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of betting on the N.F.L. It is, of course, illegal to bet on sports in the U.S., unless you’re in Nevada, but in the past five years many Americans have started using the Internet to bet with bookmakers in countries that permit sports betting. This has turned online sports betting into a huge industry; last year, Americans placed an estimated six billion dollars in online bets. But two months ago F.B.I. agents arrested David Carruthers, the C.E.O. of the British bookmaker Betonsports.com, while he was changing planes in Texas, and, after he was charged with racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud, the company announced that it would no longer do business with American bettors. Two weeks ago, police arrested the chairman of another British bookmaker, Sportingbet.com, when he touched down in New York. And in July the House of Representatives passed a bill explicitly banning online gambling and prohibiting American banks from sending their customers’ money to bookmakers. Suddenly, the local candy-store bookie is starting to look a lot better.

The members of Congress behind the House bill framed it as a sensible response to a “mushrooming epidemic” of underage gambling and a burgeoning “national-security problem” (since some Internet bookies are allegedly terrorist fronts). But it’s really just the latest chapter in America’s love-hate relationship with gambling. ...

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