Almost in all countries of the world nowadays there is a tendency to revise their views on the sphere of gambling, including online casinos. And there are two aspects involved – positive and negative. On the one hand, profit of gambling industry in the countries, where it is legalized, is constantly growing and constitutes a considerable part of budget and increases the attractiveness of these countries for tourists. On the other hand, there is also a negative effect of increasing dependence on casino games in one’s free time, in online casinos at work and in mobile version of Internet casinos on the move.
The impact of casino gambling on learning processes and life in general
Numerous studies conducted to prove or disprove the detrimental effects on people’s lives show disappointing results.
Take Austria, for example, whose level of education is renowned not only in Europe, but all over the world. Austria has produced a large number of outstanding scientists. The key to the success of educational institutions in this country lies in the key principle of education – “freedom of learning”. In Austria’s universities students can independently choose both the academic disciplines, topics of coursework and diploma works, as well as the timing of examinations.
It is in this country, according to a recent study, the spending of residents on gambling by 30% more than the cost of education! The results showed that spending per person on gambling increased from 440 euros to 1020 euros over the last eight years, while education in the same period of time has not changed so significantly – from 440 to 670 euros. According to experts, there is no reason to worry about this, as the rising spending on gambling indicates only an increasing standard of living and income growth. But does this mean the change of priorities in the life of every gambler and the society in general?
For example, Asians spend about $14 billion a year on gambling. This list includes everything: casino games (both land and online casinos), betting on horse races, all kinds of lotteries rather common illegal betting. As projected, in 2010, their costs will already amount to 23 billion dollars.
It is noteworthy that in this country, the interest in gambling is formed on the level of worldview and mentality of the people. For the players of this region, playing in a casino is not just a way to make money, but also an attempt to test their luck and fortune. The implication is that everyone in Asia is a risk-taker, and if the number of gambling establishments increases, there could be a generalized addiction. The growing demand for gambling is largely influenced by a number of other factors: a developing economy, population growth (which is more typical of China), growth of tourist activity.
Australians can be counted among the most gamblers. An interesting fact is that the excitement for gambling increases with the age of the person. Based on the results of a sociological survey conducted among the residents of advanced age, 86% of them spend 6 hours a day on various games of chance. The most passionate gamblers are considered women 55-59 years old, because they devote nearly 25 hours to the game every week. It is curious and that in not very rich areas of Victoria, the distribution of slot machines among the population exceeds twice the similar indicator of the rich areas.
The good news is that only one percent of those surveyed have an uncontrollable gambling addiction and are completely unable to control themselves while playing online casinos. But one in five, at times, spends the money they were planning to spend on gambling to pay rent or buy food. About 330,000 Australians have an addiction to gambling, losing about $7,000 at the same time. The total loss of Australians to all kinds of gambling in the last year amounted to 10 billion dollars, which is about 3 percent of their income. This figure has doubled over the past twenty years and is one and a half times more than the cost of Australians for electricity, fuel and gas.
Is it worth trying your luck in gambling?
In general the casino and sports betting market has been growing rapidly in recent years, while the lotteries are losing popularity – in 2009 their share decreased by a third. Now the new forms of gambling – online betting – and slot machines in various online casinos are attracting the most attention. Statistics also show that more than 50% of all money spent on gambling is spent on sports betting and slots.
This whole picture is known to the authorities of different states. But the advantage of gambling for them lies in the fact that it is a good source of both for the state budget and the area of employment, as well as for tourism. A striking example is the Chinese city of Macao, which once legalized casinos, thereby turning these institutions into a major source of revenue for the authorities.
This is where about 10 million tourists visiting the city with the main purpose – to play and win, not all of their savings are left in the gambling establishments and to a large extent are spent on related services. It is this fact that the city authorities take advantage of. The main condition for the construction of the current casinos is their full scale, providing for the presence in the entertainment center of everyone’s favorite stores, restaurants, cinemas and exhibitions.
In order to trace in more detail the impact of gambling on people, numerous studies are unfolding in many countries.
Authorities have even organized excursions to worldwide entertainment centers such as Las Vegas and Atlantic City to make a final determination on this controversial issue. Often proponents of online casinos and other forms of gambling argue that people who have an affinity for the game acquire it from birth along with their genes. And the legalization of casinos will only help bring these problems to the surface. Certainly, it is better to find out about your addiction ahead of time and take some action than to live out of control.
It’s wise to admit that most states’ policy of containment is futile, and sometimes even leads to the exact opposite result. The most important thing in this case is strict adherence to the terms of the agreement and a guarantee of fair play on the part of gambling establishment owners. Restrictive policies implement, along with the violation of the freedom of players and others, a derisive policy toward the idea of personal responsibility, which can hardly be called an acceptable method of maintaining the moral health of the nation.
It cannot be argued that gambling is necessarily morally good simply because it is natural to human nature. And when gambling as a way of earning money is a defamatory human characteristic, it is up to philosophers or priests to provide moral education and a solution to the problem. For the most part, however, it is a matter of each individual’s conscience.
