I have been reading my morning dose of news when I came across ZDNet reporting that a new law against gambling was passed in Greece. Law Number 3037, enacted at the end of July, explicitly forbids electronic games with ‘electronic mechanisms and software’ from public and private places, and people have already been fined tens of thousands of euros for playing or owning games.
It also transpires that the true meaning of the wording of the law means that anybody carrying an electronic game – even if it is just on a mobile phone – could face a hefty fine or lengthy jail sentence! According to the Greek newspaper Kathimerini,
“The police will be responsible for catching offenders, who will face fines of 5,000 to 75,000 euros (US$4,967 to US$74,506) and imprisonment of one to 12 months. The blanket ban was decided in February after the government admitted it was incapable of distinguishing innocuous video games from illegal gambling machines.”
One online report said that even watching a film on DVD – many of which contain promotional games linked to the movie – had resulted in an arrest and a 10,000-euro (US$9,934) fine.
Internet cafes are allowed to continue to operate, providing all gaming is prohibited: if a client is found to be running any sort of game, including online chess, the café owner will be fined and the place closed. The law applies equally to visitors from abroad:
“If you know these things are banned, you should not bring them in”
said the commercial attaché at the Greek Embassy in London – who declined to give her name.
Now, so many words spring to mind – most of them not suitable for a ‘family’ blog. I will restrain myself and focus my disbelief and fury on one point – the government imposes a blanket ban on games (electronic in this case presumably because it has already banned the other kind) because it is incapable of distinguishing innocuous video games from illegal gambling machines! Not only have governments been preventing people from all sort of activities, now they can’t even be bothered to find out what exactly it is they don’t want us to do! Somebody wake me up, please, I must be having a nightmare…
Well it is a good thing we are not a ‘family’ blog then
Well, as the National Recreation Association says ‘…if the government outlaws games, only outlaws will have games…”
What’s next – music?
For a somewhat parallel situation, see Reason online
This is the sort of thing that is just aching for mass civil disobedience. What could the government do if 100,000 people descended on Athens for a one-day Gameboy Marathon?
Certainly under English law, enforceability is key to a law’s standing. The consent of the governed is essential. Mass civil disobedience killed the Poll Tax. It will probably kill this law, even in Greece’s stunted little pseudo-democracy.
I know that this latest antigambling Greek law sounds ridiculous. However your judgements are very superficial based on the fact that you are insufficiently informed. To someone with a balanced knowledge of the issue you sound like idiots… so try not to embarrass yourselves.
Explaining why Greece is a backward country would be very helpful to those with no information about it. I suppose that
+Ireland is a more advanced country… Oh! You know what? Why don222t we all start a religion based war to justify our
+political independence? Hmmm! It sounds like the middle east to me! How is it that someone who comes from a
+nationalist driven country can have a negative opinion about anything at all. I will keep on wondering…
Although his post was lost during the 2.2 to 2.5.1 MT upgrade, I’ve reposted it manually so I can respond to a very basic Statist error in his comment.
Like so many he equates PEOPLE == THE STATE. The Greek Statists have chosen to act in a backwards and foolish manner, more so than many of the other rather idiotic states in the EU. They have chosen to outlaw computer gaming fer crissakes? What kind of complete moron does it take to do that? I know, the same sort that arrrests Plane Spotters!
For a country that puts itself forth as a major tourist destination, the STATE of Greece is certainly acting in a manner aimed at undermining the livelihood of the PEOPLE of Greece.
Northern Ireland does have idiotic problems. They were, however, mostly carried out by individual idiots, not the STATE.
For those actions the UK STATE itself was responsible, Third World is not quite the description I would use.
I will stand by it. The Government of Greece are a bunch of idiots who are out to wreck the countries economy.
If you were a modern tourist or businessperson, would you risk going there when you aren’t even sure if your laptop, cell phone, or palmtop have built in games? Would you tell your kids they can’t connect to the net from Greece and continue the on line role playing game they’ve been at for months? If you were a high tech entrepreneur, would you risk your company setting up there when you know every self respect techie is going to play Quake the instant you aren’t looking?
I hope Greeks like yourself (I assume you are) tell your government to go sit on a bayonet and rotate vigorously.