I have to ask, what is this? I am pleased that Senator Harry Reid is finally coming over to our side—even if it is because this is his way of returning the back scratch the Nevada gaming industry gave him to keep him in office. But the man is only looking at regulation for online poker.
Online poker is not the only casino game out there in the online industry. Yes, it might have the most face presence, but it is does not offer the benefits that online blackjack offers.
For one thing, online blackjack offers better odds than online poker. Online blackjack can be played one on one with dealer rather than having your play bogged down with other players.
While I am pleased to see a push in the direction of online gambling regulation for the United States, why could there not be a push for overall online gambling? Or at least all the casino games except for the sports betting.
The Nevada and Atlantic City brick and mortar casinos that would be eligible to apply for an online gambling license in the US have other games on their casino floors other than poker. In fact, online slots are also right up there on the top end of the online gambling cash cows. So why would Reid exclude online slots and online blackjack—two of the biggest draws to online gambling aside from online poker?
The answer I think is simple—this really is Reid’s way of paying back the Nevada gaming industry for backing him to beat Sharron Angle in the mid-term elections, which he narrowly won. I do not think that Reid is really on board for any online gambling regulation—hence why he was opposed to it for so long.
Look at it—he is against online gambling, then he gets backing to keep his office and all of a sudden he whips out a bill of online poker regulation. I think the man is only giving the minimum in online gambling regulation, hoping that online gambling regulation will not go beyond poker.
Hopefully Reid’s bill will only serve to open the door a crack, and hopefully other online games like online blackjack will also be allowed for regulation.