The New York Times published a great article a couple of days ago about an attorney who has been leading the efforts to get the U.S. ban on internet gambling removed through the legal channels of the World Trade Organization. It seems that while the U.S. talks a good game about free trade and the need for international rules to help keep markets fair and open, when it comes time to actually comply with these rules we just couldn’t be bothered:

The dispute stretches back to 2003, when Mr. Mendel first persuaded officials in Antigua and Barbuda, a tiny nation in the Caribbean with a population of around 70,000, to instigate a trade complaint against the United States, claiming its ban against Americans gambling over the Internet violated Antigua and Barbuda’s rights as a member of the W.T.O.

Antigua is best known to Americans for its pristine beaches and tourist attractions like historic English Harbor. But the dozens of online casinos based there are vital to the island’s economy, serving as its second-largest employer.

More than a few people in Washington initially dismissed as absurd the idea that the trade organization could claim jurisdiction over something as basic as a country’s own policies toward gambling. Various states and the federal government, after all, have been deeply engaged for decades in where and when to allow the operation of casinos, Indian gambling halls, racetracks, lotteries and the like.

But a W.T.O. panel ruled against the United States in 2004, and its appellate body upheld that decision one year later. In March, the organization upheld that ruling for a second time and declared Washington out of compliance with its rules.

As a U.S. citizen, I am really embarrassed by the hypcorisy displayed by our government on this issue. The article quotes international trade lawyer Lode Van Den Hende who sums up the situation very charitably, “the U.S. is not behaving as one would expect.”

“One day they’re out there saying how scandalous it is that China doesn’t respect W.T.O. decisions,” he said. “But then the next day there’s a dispute that doesn’t go their way and their attitude is: The decision is completely wrong, these judges don’t know what they’re doing, why should we comply?”

The article goes on to describe the pathetic defense offered up by Washington:

Washington responded to Antigua’s complaint by claiming it was within its rights to seek to block online gambling on moral grounds, just as any Muslim country would be within its rights under international trade agreements to ban the import of alcoholic beverages. The W.T.O. rejected this argument as inconsistent with American policy.

The general rule in the world of international trade agreements is that a country must treat foreign goods and services in the same manner as it treats domestic ones. The United States, the trade body found, permits online wagering through sites like Youbet.com, a publicly traded company that allows visitors to place bets at horse racing tracks around the globe.

And, of course, some form of casino gambling is legal in more than 30 states, and even local governments advertise gambling services when states encourage people to buy a lottery ticket.

“This isn’t a case of forcing gambling on a population that has decided they don’t like it,” Mr. Mendel said. “This is the world’s biggest consumer and exporter of gambling services trying to prohibit a small country from developing its economy by offering these same services. And we find that deeply hypocritical.”

One more interesting fact mentioned in the article relates to the type of damages being sought by the Plaintiffs in this case. Antigua has requested that as a result of the unfair trade practices of the U.S. that they be allowed to violate American intellectual property laws. Whether this means something like every Antiguan citizen gets a free copy the new 50 Cent album I don’t know. The possibilities of damages like this actually being awarded, however, give rise to some potentially very odd scenarios, some of which might be quite hilarious. I can just see Bush sending in the Marines to stop groups of poor Antiguan school children from passing around a shared copy of Microsoft Office. What a great photo opportunity that would be…