Gambiling

12 Pages 2936 Words

At first it may be a scratch of a lotto ticket, but eventually it could be stealing to support an addiction. Americans love to roll the dice, bet on the game, try their luck at lottery tickets, or even try to master video machines that spit out an occasional coin (Controlling Add. to Gambling). Gambling has become increasingly legitimate and socially acceptable in the United States. According to Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Weekly, with gambling being one of our fastest growing industries, it attracts more customers than baseball games or movies (Legalized Gambling Increases, Treatment Needs 1). The proliferation of gambling has entertained millions of people, but it has done so at a steep price.
To some people, it is only a game, but to many gambling is a serious addiction, becoming an uncontrollable behavior that can lead to financial and personal ruin. According to Economist Magazine, gambling addiction affects an estimated 3,000,000 Americans and statistics show that one out of every ten people who play the games will become a compulsive gambler. Gambling addictions have the same characteristics as other types of addictions, including mental preoccupation with the behavior, disregard for the negative consequences, loss of control, and progressive worsening of symptoms. In fact, these pathological gamblers tend to focus on the euphoric thrill of risking money in attempts to win more (Gambling on the Future). For some gamblers, a night of this entertainment is not dangerous, but the mark of the problem gambler is the progression from the five dollar table to the $50 table, from $1,000 bets to $100,000, and from gambling several hours a week to several hours a day. According to psychologist Robert Hunter, “The worst thing for a compulsive gambler is a big win to keep him in action” (Horn 34). Those obsessed with gambling, know the power that betting can hold over them. Arnie Wexler, a past gambler, now the executive direc...