Let 'em play
Easley should allow Nourish fundraiser to continue
By: Editorial Board
Issue date: 3/26/08 Section: Opinion
If you think your March Madness bracket pool is legal in North Carolina, don't bet on it.
According to N.C. law, any sort of gambling is illegal and is a Class 2 misdemeanor, regardless of whether it is for profit.
Nourish International, a nonprofit with the goal of reducing poverty and hunger in less-developed countries, found this out the hard way last week when it had to cancel its annual Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament.
The group is applying to Gov. Mike Easley for an exemption from the gambling law, which would allow them to hold the tournament.
Easley should grant them the exemption, as it is ridiculous to put the Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament in the same category as other forms of gambling, such as slot machines and video poker.
The tournament was expected to bring in about $25,000 in revenue, a major part of the group's budget. That revenue was going to be used to fund service projects run by Nourish, which is now forced to find an alternative source of money.
Its various projects include building a water system in Peru and starting a microfinance initiative in Honduras.
"This is a really strong hit," Nourish International assistant director and former Daily Tar Heel columnist James Dillard said. "Some things are going to get shorted."
Even though we disagree with the state's blanket ban on gambling, we can understand the rationale behind it. Gambling can lead to problems like addiction and organized crime, which can be difficult problems to reverse once started.
However, to deny a charity the right to hold a poker tournament to raise money for its organization simply makes no sense.
Some forms of gambling are certainly bad, but it is hard to see how the Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament could be anything but good.
As a once-a-year event that raises money for a charity, it won't create any of the problems normally associated with gambling. If the state is worried about people becoming gambling addicts, it should worry more about its own state-run lottery than it should a charity poker tournament.
Indeed, it seems hypocritical for the state to have a law against all forms of gambling when North Carolina has a state-run lottery that milked its residents for more than $885 million in 2007.
There doesn't appear to be a fundamental difference between a lottery that raises money for education and a poker tournament that raises money to help fight poverty in other countries. In fact, it could be argued that the lottery is actually worse than the poker tournament since it is more likely to sap money from poor people.
The state's law on gambling undoubtedly needs to be changed, but until then, Easley should grant an exemption for Nourish's Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament. If he doesn't, then he should take a hard look at his state's own lottery.
According to N.C. law, any sort of gambling is illegal and is a Class 2 misdemeanor, regardless of whether it is for profit.
Nourish International, a nonprofit with the goal of reducing poverty and hunger in less-developed countries, found this out the hard way last week when it had to cancel its annual Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament.
The group is applying to Gov. Mike Easley for an exemption from the gambling law, which would allow them to hold the tournament.
Easley should grant them the exemption, as it is ridiculous to put the Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament in the same category as other forms of gambling, such as slot machines and video poker.
The tournament was expected to bring in about $25,000 in revenue, a major part of the group's budget. That revenue was going to be used to fund service projects run by Nourish, which is now forced to find an alternative source of money.
Its various projects include building a water system in Peru and starting a microfinance initiative in Honduras.
"This is a really strong hit," Nourish International assistant director and former Daily Tar Heel columnist James Dillard said. "Some things are going to get shorted."
Even though we disagree with the state's blanket ban on gambling, we can understand the rationale behind it. Gambling can lead to problems like addiction and organized crime, which can be difficult problems to reverse once started.
However, to deny a charity the right to hold a poker tournament to raise money for its organization simply makes no sense.
Some forms of gambling are certainly bad, but it is hard to see how the Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament could be anything but good.
As a once-a-year event that raises money for a charity, it won't create any of the problems normally associated with gambling. If the state is worried about people becoming gambling addicts, it should worry more about its own state-run lottery than it should a charity poker tournament.
Indeed, it seems hypocritical for the state to have a law against all forms of gambling when North Carolina has a state-run lottery that milked its residents for more than $885 million in 2007.
There doesn't appear to be a fundamental difference between a lottery that raises money for education and a poker tournament that raises money to help fight poverty in other countries. In fact, it could be argued that the lottery is actually worse than the poker tournament since it is more likely to sap money from poor people.
The state's law on gambling undoubtedly needs to be changed, but until then, Easley should grant an exemption for Nourish's Hold 'Em For Hunger poker tournament. If he doesn't, then he should take a hard look at his state's own lottery.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
John
posted 3/26/08 @ 7:07 PM EST
You say According to N.C. law, any sort of gambling is illegal. I can relate to this because every where you turn gambling is being boycotted. If a person wants to gamble then I say let them. (Continued…)
Tom VanAntwerp
posted 3/27/08 @ 11:20 AM EST
I love how most of the points you made are exactly the same points I made in a letter I wrote to the DTH last Friday. But regardless of my paranoia at being potentially ripped-off by a lazy editorial board, these are good points that need to be made to the General Assembly and the governor. (Continued…)
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