On March 28th, 2006, Senate Bill 6613 was signed into law by Governor Christine Gregoire, making extra sure that internet gambling stays illegal in Washington state. The law took effect on June 7th, and makes it a felony to “transmit or receive gambling information” over the internet.
Thanks to the vague wording of the legislation, it may now be illegal for a WA-based web site to even link to a gambling site. One online casino review site (integritycasinoguide.com) has gone offline rather than risk potential jail time.
Indeed, because Mark++ is hosted in WA, it’s possible that the context-sensitive advertisements you will undoubtedly see associated with this blog post are illegal.
Linkage:
- A Seattle Times piece on the subject
- Washington Votes Page about Senate Bill 6613.
- The Washington State
HypocrisyGambling Commission - Poker Stars, which I’m told is an great online gambling site you should totally visit
- Some related legislation that WA officials might want to read
I guess Google has taken this to heart. Despite all of the gambling references in the article, these are the ads I see:
Santa Claus Letter
Looking to find santa letters? Visit our
santa letters guide.
Storytime with Santa
Santa reads Christmas stories to your
child on DVD
..and 5 other Santa/Christmas-related ads. It must be some sort of inside joke within Google.. :-)
That’s funny Jonathan, I see mostly Washington-related ads. Things like “Washington State Tax” or “WA Property Auction”.
I’ve seen the Santa ads you mention however, and I always assumed it was because of my family name: Santa?