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Comments on ‘German court rules internet gambling ban an 'impossibility'’

Real politik ruling opens door for Bwin

Published Tuesday 6th November 2007 19:46 GMT

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Tax breaks for non-gamblers 

By Darren Starr
Posted Wednesday 7th November 2007 08:56 GMT
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As far as I'm concerned, people gambling away their wellfare checks is fine with me. But I'm thouroughly p---ed that I'm expected to support their habits.

When will I get my money back from them? While I understand that not all gamblers are on welfare or social disability plans, I am willing to speculate that a large percentage (anything over 1% is a large percentage in my mind) of people on welfare or social disability are in fact gamblers.

Why don't I get tax breaks for not gambling. It just seems fair. I don't condone paying for their gambling. It would be like putting myself on welfare and asking for an increase in my welfare checks to cover my drinking and smoking habits.

If these people have enough money to spend on gambling, the welfare service is paying them too much and I'm paying the government too much tax money for them. Hell, I paid over 100,000 euro last year in taxes, I wonder how much of it went into gambling :(

@Darren: 

By Spleen
Posted Wednesday 7th November 2007 11:25 GMT

Presumably you want tax breaks for not smoking, drinking, being obese, etc as well? A society that believes in giving all its citizens a subsistence income, or providing free healthcare, can't then try to stop people using its services in ways they disapprove of - not without a bureaucracy so huge it would cost far more than any money saved.

You could, of course, argue for a cut in benefits and a commensurate cut in income tax, which would achieve the same thing, but for some reason people seeing their fellow humans dying in the streets is a vote-loser.

Is that a troll I hear? 

By Chris Cheale
Posted Wednesday 7th November 2007 13:28 GMT

I presume that's a troll, humans are _generally_ brighter.

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