Gambling
Casinos, State lottery, Gambling Online
Should there be gambling such as casinos, state lottery, and gambling online? The question is a moral question as well as an economic one. The government, the state, led by the federal government as well as states have been trying to stop online gambling for years. Actually since the beginning of the internet. The state has not been able to stop it. They drove it off shore to foreign countries. The US has laws against online gambling when it comes to operators of gambling. The state doesn't give a license to operate online like casinos are given a license and regulated. Those gambling on the net have not been stopped even after numerous attempts to stop gamblers.
There are online sites that attempt to equal gambling by letting players of games win prizes and money for playing but it's not gambling because it's free to play. Then there are games of skill. It's been long viewed that games of skill are not gambling. There have been all kinds of tournaments for games and sports like tennis, golf and chess where the player pays an entrance fee and can win money if they win the tournament. The problem with online gambling is obvious to many but with freedom comes personal responsibility. If someone wants to harm themselves, lose money gambling or spend their money foolishly there is only so much you can do to stop them. Actually you can't stop them. And one mans foolishness is another's enjoyment. Does ice fishing, freezing in the winter on a frozen lake sound foolish to you? It is to me, but I understand people like it and things I like I'm sure others would call foolish.
Gambling is liked by so many. For those of us that wouldn't bet much money if any at all know that the odds of winning aren't good. My fascination with gambling is to see if there is a way to win. It's not the thrill of winning money but the pursuit of finding a way to so called "beat the odds" if at all possible. One of the few ways to win at gambling is to find a game or play where there is some skill involved. This is the fascination of gambling for those that play the horses or bet on sports teams. They look at the match up, look at the statistics and use their knowledge of the game to bet according to what they believe will happen and the outcome of the game. This type of gambling obviously has some skill involved and there are some that actually win because of their knowledge of the game. But it isn't viewed as a game of skill because the gambler themselves aren't playing the game. Poker is a game of skill that the player actually plays. Online poker has become huge and has many gambling sites but they are off shore of the US and not regulated by US states that usually regulate casinos. They do say they have others that regulate them to make sure they are legitimate but to what degree is unknown.
States have run the lottery for years and added different ways to play including scratch off cards and picking numbers to be drawn. The states use their winnings for all kinds of programs and most people except for the few win a huge amount. Gamblers that play the lottery are told they are helping schools or other noble causes.
Churches run gambling in the form of bingo as well as Indian reservations to raise money. Bingo has many followers made up of gamblers that are senior citizens. They like having something to do at night, to go out and be with people. They take their gambling very serious. They have benefits beyond the potential win. This type of gambler loses but enjoys it.
So should gambling be legal? Should there be an attempt to try to stop online gambling? In the era of an open internet and borders that seem to be blending between states and now countries it's near impossible to stop. Gambling is huge and comes in so many forms, for all kinds of gamblers. The benefits are numerous as well as harmful to many, but gamblers want to play for what ever reason they like to gamble and they pick the game of their choice. The gambler will ultimately choose if they gamble or not.
