Casino And Gambling Guide

i think the indians/native americans have found a way to buy back their country

I think it shouldnt be allowed on Indian reservations. Aside from that, I dont have any moral issue with gambling… just with peoples motivations in doing so and the problems it causes them. The US has bigger issues than gambling.

It will provide tax dollars and If they would open up in Texas, I wouldn’t have to drive 2 1/2 hours to Lake Charles!

The casino is a great tool for investment capitalist to move money upwards of a billion dollars through the small gains market and into the hands of less fortunate caregivers who depend on the net income of state taxes to supply a demand for bigger market gains that put the bottom line price tag on your health care benefits.

Casino gambling provides employment and entertainment for millions of people. It raises significant tax dollars that can be spent on good causes.

Some claim that casinos create gambling addicts, which can lead to crime and other social issues.

But the bottom line is that in a free society the government should not be legislating morality, or trying to ‘protect’ citizens by creating a nanny state. If everything with the potential to be abused were banned we’d be living in a very weird country that certainly would not be free.

in our community, casino gambling has provided over 2000 jobs with excellent benefits. we went from having a very limited police department (literally, there was only one cop that patrolled the whole county at night and it’s a large county) to being able to hire 8 more cops paid for by the boat money. the first year, they got all new cop cars. all the volunteer fire departments get money for new equipment every year. all the schools in the county get a very large sum of money. the casino also pays for EVERY grade in EVERY school to attend some sort of arts function (ballet, orchestra concerts, plays, etc). all the roads have been improved and paved, even the very rural ones. those who say crime will increase, it didn’t here at all. i could list more, but i think you get the general idea.

as for the negative. there are just people that have that addiction. they will gamble away their rent because they think it’s their time to win.

Casino gambling is good entertainment if done responsibly either online or at land-based casinos. I do, however, think the U.S. Government is shooting themselves in the foot by making online gambling illegal.

There’s an apparent political agenda at work here and I wouldln’t be surprised if the land-based casinos are paying off politicians to keep online gaming illegal.

Countries like Antigua are already going after the U.S. for violation of international trade laws. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out. I believe online gambling will become legalized in the future. I guess we’ll see.

Gambling
Unknown to most, the term ‘gambling’ actually has many different meanings in regard to the cultural and historical context in which it is used.
Currently, in most Western societies, it has an economic definition, referring to “wagering money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods”.
Whereas According to the ‘Encarta Dictionary: English (U.K.)’, the basic definition it is “the practice of playing games of chance or betting in the hope of winning money”.
Another similar definition (extracted from Thesaurus: English (Australia)) is, “to bet a sum of money on the outcome of an event or competition”.
In most cases, the outcome of the wager would be evident within a short period of time.
Gambling used to be what a few unscrupulous people did with the aid of organized crime. But gambling is affecting nearly everyone as more and more states try to legalize various forms of gambling. One of them is Blackjack.
Blackjack
Blackjack is one of the most popular casino card games in the world.
I believe that the stable continuation of blackjack’s popularity is brought about by the high winning payout (3:2 for blackjacks).
Blackjack is very enjoyable due to its mix of chance with elements of skill, large varieties of possibilities and the publicity that surrounds card counting.
Legalized gambling

Legalized gambling exists in more than forty-seven states around the world.

The momentum seems to be on the side of those who want legalized gambling as a way to supplement state revenues. But these states and their citizens often ignore the costs that are associated with legalized gambling despite the enormous social and economic costs.
Bad Social Policy
Legalized gambling is bad social policy. During a recent research, it is shown that there are at least 12 million compulsive gamblers around the world, yet the promotion of gambling still exists. State sponsorship of gambling makes it harder, for compulsive gamblers to reform. It is stated that about 96 percent of those gamblers started gambling before the age of 14.

Thus, I understand that we should be concerned about the gambling policies that are being sent to youngsters around the world.

Economic cost

Legalized gambling (e.g. Blackjack) is promoted as good economic policy. Proponents argue that they are painless ways of increasing state revenue, and they can point to billions of dollars raised by state governments through various forms of legalized gambling.

The Arcanum they often try to hide from the public is the other side of the coin to legalized gambling.
The economic costs that gamblers themselves incur are significant. Consider the issue of uncollected debts. The average compulsive gambler has debts exceeding $80,000. And this figure highly overshot other social costs that surface (e.g. family neglect, theft, and involvement in organized crime)
Evidences show that legalized gambling often hurts those who are poor and disadvantaged -
New York lottery agent stated, “Seventy percent of those who buy my tickets are poor, black, or Hispanic.”
National Bureau of Economic Research “shows that the poor bet a much larger share of their income.”
Studies also indicate that gambling increases when economic times are uncertain and people are concerned about their future.
Once they win anything, they’re hooked.
Thus, I am taught that gambling actually depresses businesses because it diverts money that could have been spent in the capital economy, contradicting the usual “stimulate economy”.
Money that could be invested, loaned, and recycled through the economy is instead risked in a legalized gambling scheme.
Gambling siphons off a lot of money from the economy.
Its deleterious side is further reflection when the following research found out that more money is wagered on gambling than is spent on elementary and secondary education around the world ($286 billion versus $213 billion in 1990).
Social impact
Harsh reality is often blanketed. So does the social impact of gambling. It is always unknown to the citizens who decide to participate in legalized gambling. But later these costs show up in the shattered lives of individuals and their families.
Psychologist Julian Taber warns, “No one knows the social costs of gambling or how many players will become addicted…the states are experimenting with the minds of the people on a massive scale.”
Families are torn apart by strife, divorce, and bankruptcy. There is no doubt of the destructive effect of gambling on the family life. The corrosive effects of gambling attack both the rich and poor families with equal vigor.
Bad Governmental Policy
Legalized gambling is also bad governmental policy. Government should promote public virtue not seduce its citizens to gamble in state-sponsored vice. Government is supposed to be a minister of God according to Romans 13, but its moral stance is compromised when it enters into a gambling enterprise.
An important issue is the, upraise of corrupting influence that legalized gambling is having on societies.
First, legalized gambling can have a very corrupting influence on state government. In the last few years there have been numerous reports of corruption and fraud.
Second, there is the corrupting influence on the citizens themselves. Gambling breeds greed.
A person is seven times more likely to be killed by lightning than he is to win a million dollars in a state lottery.
The irony appears when every year; people bet large amounts of money in state lotteries because they hope they will win the jackpot. Gambling establishments produce ads that appeal to people’s greed in order to entice them to risk even more than they can afford.
I realized of the negative areas in gambling and thus believe that societies should be promoting positive social values like diligence and integrity rather than negative ones like greed and avarice.

Biblical Perspective on Gambling
Gambling can be defined as “risking money in an attempt to multiply the money on something that is against the odds.” The Bible does not specifically condemn gambling, betting, or the lottery. The Bible does warn us, however, to stay away from the love of money. Scripture also encourages us to stay away from attempts to “get rich quick”. Gambling most definitely is focused on the love of money and undeniably tempts people with the promise of quick and easy riches.

1 Timothy 6:10 tells us, “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

Hebrews 13:5 declares, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

Matthew 6:24 proclaims, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

There is contrast between the Bible and gambling.

The Bible emphasizes the sovereignty of God (Matt. 10:29-30), while gambling is based upon chance. The Bible admonishes us to work creatively and for the benefit of others (Eph. 4:28), while gambling fosters a “something for nothing” attitude. The Bible condemns materialism , while gambling promotes it.
Gambling breeds a form of covetousness. The Tenth Commandment (Exodus 20) admonishes us not to covet. Coveting, greed, and selfishness are the base emotions that entice us to gamble. Legalized gambling becomes an institutionalized form of greed.
In Colossians 3:23-24 the Apostle Paul says, Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
And in 2 Thessalonians 3:7,10, he says, For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example….For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat.

“Gambling’s get-rich-quick” appeal appears to mock capitalism’s core values: Disciplined work habits, thrift, prudence, adherence to routine, and the relationship between effort and reward.”

Gambling corrupts these values and replaces them with greed and selfishness. Rather than depending upon hard work, gamblers depend instead upon luck and chance.
As mentioned, gambling destroys families. Gambling is a major cause of family neglect. Many of the social costs associated with gambling come from its mindset. As people get caught up in a gambling frenzy, they begin to neglect their families.
Money spent on lottery tickets or at horse tracks is frequently not risk capital but is income that should be spent on family needs.
Legalized gambling undercuts government’s role and subverts the moral fabric of society through greed and selfishness promoted by a state-sponsored vice.
Conclusion
Therefore I conclude that gambling is bad social policy;
It is bad economic policy to certain extend;
And it is bad governmental policy.
Moreover, it undermines the moral foundations of society and invites corruption in government.
As a Christian, I support the stands against society’s attempts to legalize gambling.