A simple idea for increased government revenue...ONLINE POKER!!

Legalize online poker.  The end.  Nothing can fix our national debt problem overnight, but the prohibition of online poker isn't helping either.  The actual numbers are huge, $30 billion dollars were gambled last year, 2.5 million players alone just in the US.  The biggest website and the only one I will support, Poker Stars, had $1.4 billion in total revenue last year, with over $500 million in reported profits.  The total gaming revenue for Las Vegas' 23 strip casinos was $4.68 billion, with the average casino earning just $203 million.  The average casino total revenue was $526 million, and that's including food, beverage, and rooms. 

Clearly online poker is more lucrative than the best casinos Las Vegas has to offer, and common sense would tell me it's only been targeted because someone wasn't getting their "fair share".  I would like to have hope, because of the bill Rep Joe Barton has proposed to legalize online poker, but there has been a bill proposed every year since 2007.  As far as I can tell, no bill has actually hit the floor for a vote.  Even so, the bill the Rep Barton is proposing falls far short of actually legalizing online poker.  Sometimes, something is better than nothing, but I don't think this is one of those times.  As I understand it, the bill states only American players would be allowed to play against other American players.  Also any state would be able to opt out, so likely not all 50 states would even be involved.  Anyone who has spent more than 10 hours playing online poker, would know some of the worst players come from overseas, more specifically Russia(and drunken Aussies). 

So as Congress argues over the debt limit and banning light bulbs, here's one bill they should just pass through without thinking twice, better known as the Nancy Pelosi process.