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Legalize Sports Gambling

I'm going to state the obvious, a lot of people bet on sports. Some do it legally (horse racing, dog tracks, Vegas sportsbooks). Most do it "illegally" (offshore books, bookies, person to person). We've all heard or seen the popular evidence of this by now, $2billion is wagered on the super bowl every year (at best a directional number), the Derby's handle is bigger than the GDP of most third world nations and the first two days of the NCAA tournament almost makes Vegas burst at the seams. But look closer at the take on any given day (say Tuesday) at Saratoga, Keeneland, Belmont, Santa Anita, etc. and you get the full perspective on how big the sports betting industry is, through the prism of just one legal sport which frankly the general public doesn't care about. Why is it so big, I have my opinions; it's fun, competitive, and filled with immediate monetary risk/reward scenarios, everything that makes the human race tick tied up in a nice neat bow. But the why isn't important, it's this, how is sports gambling not legal?

I understand all the apocalyptic scenarios, they are well documented. Allow people the opportunity to bet at will and addicition will be rampant is the favorite, followed closely by the possibility of tainting the games, especially college, through a Donaghy type scandal. It's all a load of crap. No single study has ever supported the case that legalizing gambling will entice larger volumes and increase addicition. Certainly no reasonable minded person should believe that taking something out of the shadows and making it legal/regulated (and taxed) would make that something more likely to be abused or tainted. So what is it? Simple, it's dirty? That's right, it's considered "sub-standard" activity. Not soliciting prostitution or petty crime level "sub-standard", more like watching porn on the internet. In the right crowds you'll talk about either, and in some you'll even captivate the audience, but in most situations you'd rather say your kid is juvenile delinquent than admit to wagering on a game.

So how do we change this? First, you start small. Allow Atlantic City casinos to commission sportsbooks and make them, and Vegas books, accessible in person and through phone/on-line accounts. Set minimums, regulate activity and offer that ridiculous "gambling problem?, call 1-800" caveat at the bottom of every advertisement. (It must be working on slots, craps, blackjack, roulette, pai gow, etc. because those are still legal, and they require absolutely no skill whatsoever). Once the initial media and public backlash settles down, open it up to competition. Allow private enterprise into the equation, regulate and tax the hell out of them as well. If gamblers always lose their shirts, then the margins will be high enough for the "house" to pay the premiums. The competition will be good for the gambler too, it might even break down the 10% universal vig that we all have come to hate. Offer me a 10% upfront match on my investment and 5% vig and you've got a patron for life.

Ultimately, I don't have much hope. Legislating on morality is how most politicians get re-elected. That's why in 2009 we're still debating a gay couples right to get married and a woman's right to choose while the financial regulatory system was an ignored powder keg. Why, because people understand gay marriage and abortion and can take a side, most have no clue about how the financial system works so they can't have an opinion. You win elections by swaying public opinion, so you focus on hot button, but relatively low impact type issues and you give yourself a better chance to win. It's backward, but true. Unfortunately, sports gambling falls into that "hot button/low impact" category and until public opinon gets swayed enough (or NJ runs out of all other revenue streams) it will stay in the shadows. Big, multi-billion dollar shadows.