Interesting lead segment tonight on 60 Minutes about the huge internet gambling industry. There is a political split in the U.S. with some officials believing that internet gambling should be regulated and taxed since it is inevitably going to occur. The other side are concerned about the addictive potential and want to keep it an illegal activity.

60 Minutes reported that the overwhelming majority of bets occurring around the world are generated from the United States, but that offshore gaming is second to the UK. The UK is not subject to US gaming laws and they have overtaken the rest of the world as the #1 provider of internet gambling sites.

Interestingly, many of the land-based casinos in the U.S are for legalization of internet gambling and those they interviewed said that they could double their annual revenue in the first year alone.

One obvious concern is the potential for financial loss particularly with young people. Youth (even young adults) are more subject to impulsivity and often do not fully appreciate the value of money. 60 Minutes showed how one teen used his father's credit card losing $100 in 10 minutes playing roulette on the internet. Reminded me of these sex lines where kids would call and talk for 90 minutes on their parents telephone. A co-worker of mine had her niece visit for 2 days. A month later she received the monthly telephone bill with about $1200 worth of sex line charges from the niece's visit.