For many, a couple days off at the end of the week is the perfect cure for what ails you. But what if you have Weekend Madness? In that case, the only cure is good tournament action at Online Vegas Casino.

I apologize for the terrible into and segue. I’m not on top of my game today. Anyway, starting Friday, September 24, Online Vegas is holding the Weekend Madness tournament. The slot tournament is played on the Bangkok Nights game and has an entry fee of $10. While that might seem a little steep, keep in mind that you’re playing for a share of a $30,000 prize pool in guaranteed money.

The great thing about playing an online slot set in Bangkok rather than visiting the Thai city yourself is that you don’t have to worry about being kidnapped and sold as a sex slave. You’re also considerably less likely be killed by drug runners, be scammed by local con artists, or get contract horrible diseases, though what you do in the privacy of your own home is none of my business.

The Weekend Madness tournament begins tomorrow at 10:00 PM and ands at 10:45 PM on Tuesday, September 28. The $10 entry fee earns you a stake of 325 credits. If you run out and want to continue playing, you can re-buy for an additional $10.

Bangkok Nights is an online slot based on the capital of Thailand. Instead of focusing on the human trafficking, drug trafficking or trafficking of copyrighted material (they love trafficking there), this game wisely focuses on the nightlife that makes the city a popular tourist destination. It feature symbols that portray the club night life and festivals.

To take part in the Weekend Madness slot tournament, visit Online Vegas Casino between Friday and the following Tuesday.

With parts of Canada opting to establish their own online casinos, it was only a matter of time before they started weeding out the competition. After all, governments don’t like competition from the private sector. Starting tomorrow, September 24, groups of online gambling sites will no longer allow Canadian customers to download and play their games.

Though more companies are likely to join the ban, so far only Paddy Power, bwin and Casino Club have stated that they will no longer allow Canadians to download and play their games. All three companies use software developed by Boss Media for their download casinos, but also have no-download streaming versions of their games that were developed by other companies. Interestingly, though the online gambling sites explained that Canadians can no longer download and play their games, there is nothing preventing those same customers from playing the no-download games. For that reason, the speculation is that the Canadian ban was decided by Boss Media.

But why would Boss Media make that call? Likely at the urging of the Canadian governments, specifically the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, the Atlantic Lottery Corporation and Loto-Quebec. To shed a little light on the move, Casino Club released a statement saying that due to new regulations by the aforementioned lottery corporations, “online gaming products in Canada are prohibited. Unfortunately we are required to add Canada to our list of excluded countries.”

If the Canadian lottery corporations are strong-arming companies into banning Canadian customers, you can bet that those three companies won’t be the only to release a similar statement. If you live in Canada, you may soon have no choice but to play on the province-run online casinos.

If there’s one thing that men like, it’s beer. It’s one of those things that is assumed and if a man doesn’t like it, people think he’s odd. In that way, beer is right up there with women, football and cars. Those things are often combined as well. Beer can help you get women, but it hurts you with cars. Football games are more fun when there’s beer, especially if you get there early and tailgate. Gambling may not rank as highly on the list as beer, football, women and cars, but it’s another quintessential male activity. Therefore, the new promotion at Casino Tropez is sure to excite many. They are giving away free beer for a year.

That’s right. In honor of Oktoberfest, the online casino offering players the opportunity to win free beer for one year. Millions of people are heading to Munich, Germany for Oktoberfest, but for those that can’t, getting free beer is the next best thing, right?

Players earn comp points, or loyalty points, for every wager they make at Casino Tropez. From September 23 through October 6, the online casino will keep track of players’ comp points and the player with the most comp points at the end of that time will win the grand prize: Free beer for a year.

The company’s vice president of marketing, Marc Kenigsberg, bragged about the brilliant promotional idea, saying that it is “a prize that keeps on giving, taking the fun and camaraderie of Oktoberfest and extending it throughout the entire year. Not only do the winning players get a wonderful prize, they also get to be part of Europe’s largest festival.”

Of course, you only enjoy the fun and camaraderie if you supply fun and camaraderie. Casino Tropez won’t provide that, only the beer. So it’s not quite like Oktoberfest, where showing up will put you in the middle of fun and camaraderie. My suggestion is to throw lots of parties rather than enjoying your free beer alone at home.

To take part in the promotion and have a chance at winning free beer for a year, visit Casino Tropez and earn as many comp points as you can from September 23 until October 6.

It was not long ago that seemingly every online gambling news source reported that UIGEA was likely to be repealed this year. They touted accomplishments like Barney Frank’s bill passing the House Financial Services Committee. Meanwhile, I was one of the few people telling you not to hold your breath, that in the limited time left before mid-term elections, it was unlikely that a Congress that is concerned now more with elections than in passing legislation would floor such a controversial bill. Now it seems that Barney Frank agrees with me.

Representative Frank recently told Capitol Hill that he does not believe his online gambling legislation will be discussed on the floor before the mid-term elections. He also does not believe it will be discussed during the lame-duck session. Traditionally, Congress does not pass any major legislation during the lame-duck session because doing so would likely go against the will of the American people, who voted the people out for a reason. Still, some members of Congress have hinted that major controversial legislation such as a climate change bill could reach a vote due to lame ducks having no more fear of losing their job.

Aside from lame-duck legislation, the other dirty trick that could get Frank’s bill passed would be to tack it onto another larger bill, such as a jobs bill or a tax-cut bill. UIGEA was itself tacked onto the SAFE Port Act in 2006 as an amendment and the best chance bill that would repeal UIGEA has is likely to do the same.

Yet even if that happens and Frank’s bill passes the House in 2010, there is still a much bigger problem: the Senate. The closest thing the Senate has to a comparable bill has little support and is also not scheduled for debate. In order for UIGEA to be repealed in 2010, the bill would have to pass the House and then the Senate and if the two bills are different, which is almost guaranteed, it would then have to be combined by a Conference Committee and passed again. It would then have to go to President Obama and signed into law. All of that before the new congressional session in January.

It is for that reason that I think 2011 is the best chance we have for repealing UIGEA. Though Frank may no longer be Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee anymore (and may not even still be in office), Congress should be full of moderate Democrats and Tea Party Republicans that lean toward small-government libertarianism. If that happens, both sides should be able to agree that the government shouldn’t be banning online gambling.

Though the kids have gone back to school and the classrooms and board rooms are more crowded than the beach, summer promotions are still going on at Villento Casino. There are a couple good September promotions going on right now as well as the continuing big Summer Safari tournament.

One promotion that I like regards everyone’s favorite social media site to mock: Twitter. Yes, I make fun of Twitter, too, but I also use it to network. Villento Casino uses it to keep customers and affiliates informed about their promotions. They want all of their customers to follow them on Twitter. As a reward, players who follow them and then send a confirmation email to the casino can win part of a $5,000 prize pool. The random drawing from eligible customers will be in two days, September 23.

Thursday, September 23 also marks the end of the Triple Play Triple Pay promotion, which is a casino promotion open to all Silver, Gold and Platinum level customers at the VIP Club. During this promotion, players who use specific games will earn triple loyalty points. The selected games includes Alley Cats, Arctic Fortune, Bearly Fishing, CashOccino and Beach Babes.

The biggest tournament of the summer, though, doesn’t end until November 7. That is the Summer Safari tournament, which ends a while after the summer does, though in Africa it seems like summer lasts a little longer than it does most places.

The Summer Safari tournament has exciting weekly promotions where players compete against each other for a spot atop the leader board. At the end of the tournament, ten lucky players will win tickets for an African safari and other players will win boring cash prizes. The promotion for this week is the Safari Summer Platinum Streak, where six layers will win a Platinum membership status and all of the benefits of that status for a full year.

To take part in any of those promotions, visit Villento Casino.

In the same way that businesses have to pay off the Mafia for “protection” in order to operate, Sportingbet just reached a deal with the U.S. federal government. With the feds shaking them down, the online betting site did the only thing that would make the harassment stop: They paid for protection.

Sportingbet, a company based in the U.K., reached a non-prosecution agreement with the United States government. As part of the agreement, the company agreed to forfeit $33 million to the authorities, supposedly as penance for their American online gambling operations that took place between 1998 and 2006. Of course, there was no American ban on online gambling during that time period and there still is no federal law against it, though the passing of UIGEA in 2006 acts as a de facto ban.

So here’s how it worked. The government accused Sportingbet of violating a law that didn’t exist and if they wanted to avoid prosecution and maybe even be able to obtain a license if the U.S. decides to regulate the industry, they would have to pay up to the tune of $33 million. Relatively speaking, Sportingbet got off light. PartyGaming, the only other online gambling company to reach a non-prosecution deal with the feds, had to pay $105 million. Under the deal, Sportingbet agreed to pay $15 million by September 30 of this year, $12 million by the same date in 2011 and $6 million by 2012.

A lot of people think the United States will eventually legalize and regulate online gambling, though it’s doubtful that it will happen this year. If that happens, it’s likely that those who agree to pay off these government thugs will have first dibs at overseas licenses. In that way, perhaps Sportingbet and PartyGaming are making business decisions that will turn out profitable in the long term. However, in the short term, it’s hard to get past the bad taste that caving in to the mob leaves in your mouth. For those two companies, I hope it’s worth it.

I’ve always been a fan of rewarding good behavior, using positive reinforcement to encourage behavior that you want to be repeated. I use it when training the dog how to sit, come and heel. I use it with servers, valets and anyone else who you normally tip to get good service. I use it with girlfriends so they have no doubt about what makes me happy. I think that online casinos should use positive reinforcement as well. If they want you to do something, then they should reward that behavior that they want to encourage. It seems that Rich Reels Casino feels the same way, based on their current casino promotions.

Right now, Rich Reels is holding a Double Spin Double Win promotion. During this promotion, any time you play certain games, the casino will reward you by giving you double loyalty points. The selected games in this promotion are online slots Queen of the Jungle, Rainbow’s End, Scoop the Cash, Scrooge, Soccer Safari, Sterling Silver and Voila. The Scrooge slot is an odd game to include, since that is a game you associate with Christmas, but I guess there’s no reason you can’t play the game other times of the year. This promotion began today, September 20, and ends on Thursday, September 23. To be eligible for double loyalty points, you must be a Silver, Gold or Platinum member.

Rich Reels is also running a $5,000 Twitter Mania contest. The online casino wants you to follow them on Twitter, which makes sense. Most businesses want customers to follow their Twitter accounts. What makes this different is that the casino might reward you for doing so. If you follow them on Twitter (@RichReelsCasino), you could win a share of $5,000. Not only that, but by following Rich Reels on Twitter, it will be easy to stay informed about any promotion they tweet about. To be eligible, all you have to do is follow Rich Reels on Twitter and then send them an email confirmation. On Thursday, September 23, the casino will randomly draw winners from the eligible group and inform them via email.

Taking part in these promotions is easy. All you have to do is play online slots that you would probably play anyway or click the “follow” button on Twitter. For more details, visit Rich Reels Casino.

SEGA’s short-lived experiment with online gambling is coming to an end. Less than a year ago, SEGA Corporation launched SEGA Casino and SEGA Poker, two online gambling sites meant to cash in on the popularity of online gambling and the marketability of the video game company’s characters and brands. There was much excitement over getting to play online slots featuring Virtua Fighter, House of the Dead, Sonic the Hedgehog and more. But now all of that is ending.

SEGA Casino and SEGA Poker are both shutting down soon, though no specific date has been given. The casino is now telling all customers to withdraw their money. On the websites, there is a message from the company that says “We are no longer accepting registration/deposits” and that existing customers should withdraw their funds. Any funds not withdrawn by the customer will be “atomatically credited back to your deposit method.”

Both SEGA online gambling sites are licensed and regulated by the government of Alderney, a member of the Channel Islands and a British Crown dependency. There was much fanfare when the SEGA casinos launched, with some even thinking that it would revolutionize the industry. After all, a company that made a name for itself by making popular arcade games and console video games could surely make online gambling a more fun experience. At least, that’s what the fans said. Now, with the casinos closing their doors, no one knows what to think. No reason was given for shutting down the websites, though it’s most likely that they simply weren’t profitable enough for SEGA’s liking.

With SEGA Casino and SEGA Poker closing, this may be a bad omen for those looking forward to a Nintento Casino (which, as far as I know, has not been rumored, but why not start one now?).

Their name is Spin Palace for a reason…Actually, to be honest, I don’t know what that reason is. The online casino is based in the Republic of Malta, which doesn’t have a monarchy. They are a parliamentary republic, having gained independence from the UK crown in 1964. Whatever their reasons are, the Spin Palace Casino is holding a royal promotion, where they reward any players who play games with a royal theme.

To me, rewarding players for playing royal-themed games seems a little too close to favoring those who remain loyal to the crown, which isn’t exactly a popular thing to do in countries liberated from royal rule. Maybe I’m reading too much into this. In any case, throughout the month of September, players will earn double loyalty points on any games that involve royalty. That includes online slots like King Cashalot, Queen of the Jungle and Celtic Crown.

King Cashalot is a progressive slot with a medieval knightly theme. It features a king, brave knights, damsels in distress, dragon slaying and more. The Queen of the Jungle slot is set in the jungles of Africa, where a human queen is served by monkeys and other jungle animals. For some reason, it reminds me of the scene from Return of the Jedi where C-3PO was being worshiped by the Ewoks. Celtic Crown, as you might imagine, is a slot with a theme of Irish royalty. It is another medieval theme, featuring knights, kings and more.

Members of Spin Palace Casino earn loyalty points for every wager they make on a game. Sometimes they earn extra points, like in tournaments and promotions like this one. Once a player has earned enough loyalty points, they can be redeemed for casino credits or a deposit match bonus.

To take part in the royalty promotion and earn double points on all royal-themed games, visit Spin Palace Casino.

All year long China’s oppressive communist government has been cracking down on gambling, both online and offline. Now they are taking an extra step by redefining what and who they can punish. According to Xinhua News, China’s state-run newspaper, a new document released jointly by the Supreme People’s Court, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate and the Ministry of Public Security redefines internet gambling in an attempt to avoid any ambiguity.

The new law defines those who are guilty of “establishing or running a gambling house” and allows the red government to sentence the guilty parties to up to 10 years in prison as well as levy stiff fines. Under the new law, you are guilty of establishing or running a gambling house if you establish a gambling website in mainland China, establish a gambling website overseas that serves Chinese customers, establish a gambling website and provide it to others to organize gambling, act as an agent for the gambling website and take bets or share profits with gambling websites.

That last one is the biggest change. Under the new law, any business partner of online gambling websites could potentially be violating Chinese criminal law. I’m pretty sure if I ever visited China I could be arrested under this new law, which is one of many reasons I never plan to visit China.

Though the law is new, the crackdown on online gambling is not. Though never a fan of freedom, this year China decided to place a new emphasis on making sure people are not able to spend their own money on casino games, so they have gone after sports betting and online gambling operations with a new vigor.

Since beginning the new crackdown in January, China has arrested or detained more than 7,360 people and frozen nearly 1 billion yuan (equal to $148 million USD). The Ministry of Public Security states that they have dealt with 1,364 cases involving online gambling and broken up more than 130 “gangs” connected to offshore online gambling companies.