Wall Street Being Attacked As Gambling By Washington Lawmaker

Some people like to gamble on whether or not the New England Patriots will cover on a Sunday afternoon NFL game. Others prefer to do their betting on whether people can pay their mortgages or whether oil prices would go up and down, commonly known as derivatives.

Now, a Washington lawmaker is putting a voice behind what many believed to be true in the US for decades-gambling on the stock market is the same as gambling on a sports event. The lawmaker is Washington Senator Maria Cantwell, and she has plenty of support.

"She's going for the jugular," said Michael Greenberger, Law Professor at the University of Maryland, as reported by The News Tribune. Cantwell wants to use state gambling laws to regulate the US stock market.

"It's nothing else than betting," said Greenberger, "Las Vegas casinos were regulated, but betting on Wall Street wasn't." Cantwell could not agree more, and wants the legal gambling on Wall Street to become illegal.

Cantwell also believes the unregulated area of derivatives is what has caused the financial meltdown in the US, and she wants to ensure that it does not further hurt the economy in the country. Cantwell is attempting to overturn the 2000 law that keeps states from using gambling laws to stop the derivative market.

The Washington senator has become such an influential person in the area of Wall Street derivatives, that members of Wall Street have contacted her about a truce. They have offered to accept some regulations, but still want to keep thirty percent of the market unregulated.

That, to Cantwell, is an insult. She believes that all of Wall Street should be regulated and that stance has made her one of the leading opponents to the current system. She did not accept Wall Street's offer, and she also does not plan to stop until the derivatives are regulated.

November 29, 2009
Posted By Tom Jones
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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