We, as Americans, have a great sense of pride in our heritage and our forefathers; but some of the first settlers to this country, the Puritans, held ideals on morality that in 2006 are no longer practical or rational.

They wore funny hats and burnt people at the stake because they were “witches.”

One such example of our Puritanical underwear showing above our national pants is our belief that gambling is inherently evil and should be illegal.

We will contend that gambling is a vice — like smoking, drinking or watching obnoxious amounts of reality television — but if we are going to point fingers at and punish gamblers then perhaps we need to punish those with other vices.

Should we make smoking a cigarette illegal because it leads to cancer and emphysema?

Should a person caught drinking a beer be sentenced to community service or jail?

What about those who commit adultery? Should we bring back the scarlet letter?

Or perhaps, instead of completely turning the clocks back to 1660 and putting buckles on our shoes and hats, we should instead promote legislation that legalizes gambling for responsible parties above the age of 18; because even online gambling that operates overseas is illegal in North Carolina. A fact few people know.

Gambling can be destructive, but under the same state government regulation as say our liquor distribution, it could be enjoyed like a pleasant drink every now and again.

On top of forcing people to commit a victimless crime by placing their bets on their favorite sports teams illegally, the government could instead operate their own form of online gambling that could help keep compulsive gamblers from placing bets, as well as keep track of money that is won for tax purposes.

We, as North Carolinians, have taken the first step to making money from a lottery which will help fund our public schools, but in order to move North Carolina from the bottom of the list of public schools to the top, we need every penny we can get.

North Carolina needs to lose some of the Puritanical ideals that are holding us back from keeping up with the rest of the country. Morals are all fine and good, but when considering the payoffs for allowing people a small vice, we should really get off our high horse.