Is this the Turning of the Tide?

With a hand full of bills being discussed in Congress, presidential candidates endorsing altering the current legal situation, chief opponents of the practice leaving office, intensive lobbying by various groups on the US Capitol, dramatic progress in industry regulations overseas, especially in the UK, and most recently an editorial in one of the nation's most popular newspapers, there are positive signs that the tides are indeed changing.

Though the ban on online casino gambling is in place and seems to likely remain in place for the near future, perhaps for as long as the current administration sits in office, the groundwork is being laid for a change. This includes not only political maneuvers in Washington, but also a readying of public opinion, which brings us to the editorial published in Newsday this past week.

Stating right off the bat that it is "time to regulate Internet gambling," the eighth largest newspaper in the US has taken a clear stand on the issue. Referring to the case brought to the World Trade Organization by Antigua and Barbuda, which resulted in the WTO siding with the small twin-island nation, the editorial described it as the mouse that roared on Internet gambling.

The elephant in the story is, naturally, the US. If it were to comply with the WTO ruling, the once-largest online casino market will have to open up its borders to outside companies, such as any of the 30 plus located in Antigua and Barbuda, and regulate the industry, instead of passing laws that prohibit online wagering with offshore casinos.

It might require more effort and open up American companies to competition, but the US will have to - or so the editorial says, reflecting a large and growing voice heard across the US - replace the ban with regulation. A safe gaming environment that protects users from fraud and screens out minors, in the spirit of the bill introduced by Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), would not only be the right course to follow, but would even win the US government hefty income from taxes.

In a geopolitical analysis of the situation, the WTO is being tested for its ability to enforce its rulings on the "elephant," not only on the "mice" in the world. This might be a mediating factor, in fact, as the integrity of the US is on the line, for next time it engages in any trade talks.

In the meanwhile, the ban may remain in effect, but the groundwork is changing, the tides turning.