Uh oh. All of this talk about online gambling has made the regulators in Nevada cranky. The Nevada Gaming Control Board is now telling licensed land-based casinos not to become involved in online gambling, at least for now.

Many land-based casino companies are believed to be talking with online casino businesses in an attempt to expand their reach in the gambling market. One such casino, Harrah’s Entertainment, has already opened its own online casino, though that casino does not currently accept American customers. If UIGEA is repealed or if the state of Nevada legalizes online gambling, that could change.

In the meantime, the NGCB is issuing a stern warning. Board member Randall Sayre called deals between licensed land-based casinos and unlicensed online casinos “inconsistent with the Nevada Gaming Control Act.” Well, he might be right. If there’s one thing that government regulators are knowledgeable on, it’s control.

He went on to say that such business relationships are not sound from “a state and federal perspective.” He says that even though there is no federal ban of online gambling. So much for that knowledgeable thing I was talking about. Sayre stated that the Nevada Gaming Control Board is currently investigating already established links between land-based casinos and online gambling companies.

Sayre and the rest of the folks at the NGCB seem to think that the industry can only be safe if it’s being regulated by the government. Certainly history has shown that the heavily regulated oil and banking industries have become much more secure since the government got involved. I mean, it’s not like we’ve had any recent crises with either of those sectors, right?

The truth is that there are already plenty of safe online casinos for USA players that are monitored, regulated and approved as safe by independent (non-government) online gambling authorities. Playing on those online casinos is also cheaper because they don’t pass on the cost of government licensing fees, taxes and the high employee wages and benefits required by the unions. If the NGCB really wants what’s best for the consumers, they should back off and let the casinos do their thing.

If there’s one thing the government knows how to do, it’s take money from others. Two different government agencies saw fit to fine the Palms Resort Casino and the casino had to pay a total of $100,000 in a settlement. And what did the casino do to get these fines? Well, nothing, except allow two tournaments to take place on their premises.

The Palms Resort Casino paid a $75,000 fine to the Nevada Gaming Commission and a $25,000 fine to the Nevada Gaming Control Board. This all came about after the state’s attorney general’s office received complains about two poker tournaments in 2007 that were held by third parties at the resort. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the tournaments did not register with the state’s gambling regulators prior to the events. The Palms Resort, by virtue of allowing the tournaments to take place on their property, is responsible for them, according to the NGC and NGCB.

Both tournaments came under fire for unpaid prizes. The United States Poker League hosted a tournament called the Poker Bowl. It was a team-based event that featured several famous professional poker players. After the tournament, however, the league found itself out of money and needed to sell off their assets. The tournament winners were never paid. The Palms, in a show of goodwill, stepped in and paid the $450,416 in prize money to the deserving players out of their own pocket, even though they were not the ones responsible for giving out the prizes. That, of course, wasn’t good enough for the government, who had to go to the trouble of investigating the claim. Therefore, they fined the Palms Resort Casino anyway.

The other complaint is about a tournament organized by Michael Eakman and Associates. The tournament was organized to benefit the Jewish Community Center of Southern Nevada. The tournament winnings did eventually get paid to the Community Center, but it took four months to do so. Again, this delay was caused by Michael Eakman and Associates, not the Palms Resort.

The Palms Resort Casino, despite being unfairly targeted by government bullies, did not fight the fines and paid them immediately upon notification. It was a big win for fans of bullying, greedy government agencies everywhere.