Anti-gambling amendment fails to be attached to Justice Department spending bill. Jon Kyl wants to stop internet gambling because it's "the crack cocaine of gambling," and therefore especially dangerous for children. So he wants to block credit cards and banks from accepting on-line gambling charges. Because lots of kids have credit cards and checking accounts.

The amendment further confuses me, because last I heard, credit cards reject gambling transactions from the United States. And most off-shore gambling sites use an intermediary to handle banking transactions. And I believe these intermediaries, such as Neteller, service other "vice" sites besides gambling (i.e. porn). So while I would speculate gambling is 95%+ of Neteller's business, I think there is enough plausible deniability regarding transactions with them, that I don't know you could cut off all bank ties with them. It's a distinction between vices which is reminiscent of Homer's line, when asked, after a car accident, what type of establishment this Moe's was from which he was coming home. If a bank ever denies your Neteller transaction, just remember Homer's response, and when asked why you were transferring $100 to a business identified as "Paradise," explain in as blase a voice as you can manage,"It's a pornography website! I was purchasing pornography." How can they argue with that.

In any event, I guess I should be glad it's unregulated. Once the government takes their cut, the rakes will no doubt go up.