Religious Group Director Calls For Online Gambling Regulations

Many Catholic religious groups are against any forms of gambling. For ACCORD, it is no different, but the Irish bishop's agency has at least acknowledged that the lack of regulation is causing more people to become addicted.

The group, which counsels couples with troubled marriages, has done research that leads them to believe that without Internet gambling regulations, the industry is simply too dangerous for the average person.

While the data suggests that it is the Internet in general that is causing marital problems, Farrelly went a step further with his own opinion, claiming specifically that it was online gambling that was the problem. He claimed that it leads to trouble at home because there is a lack of oversight.

"The media image created by the gambling industry is that Internet gambling is engaged by smart, competent card sharks who pit their wits against each other," said Farrelly in a statement, "However, the reality in the counseling room is of a marriage scourged by addiction, mistrust, and major financial loss."

Farrelly did not give his opinion on how the industry can be regulated, but it is clear from his statement that online gambling is in need of regulation.

Many countries have ignored the fact that the industry exists, and it has caused millions of people to wonder into online casinos with no protection from their governments. It is only in the past five years that government has started to accept the need for their involvement.

In the US, that involvement was to criminalize Internet gambling back in a 2006 law. That law, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, has been a disaster, however, and the new administration in the country is working on reversing the law while legalizing and regulating Internet gambling.

July 1, 2009
Posted By Larry Rutherford
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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