User talk:Gregoryramey

Gambling Addiction

Gambling has been a popular pass time for many years and has gained great popularity in Las Vegas, Nevada. Las Vegas has become one of the most visited cities and is now one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. There are many who would consider gambling to be one of their regular pass times, yet there are others who take it a step further. Not everyone can walk away from the slot machines after having spent their budgeted limit or won a satisfying amount. There are many who have gambled their way into quite a difficult situation, owing sometimes multiple thousands of dollars to the casino or in some cases, banks or businesses. This gambling addiction has taken its toll on many residents of Las Vegas. According to Bo Bernhard, author of “Treating Problem Gamblers in Las Vegas: Clinical Sociology and the Problem Gambling Center.” (2009) “Non-Profit Problem gambling centers are needed in Las Vegas to help those addicted to gambling deal with their problem and find help” (Bernhard)  Correlations have been found between gambling and crime according to a study done by the American Society of criminology. People fall into debt because of gambling and in desperation to get out of debt may steal or commit various other crimes to recover lost money. In other cities where gambling is legal, there are similar stories. A woman who got in over her head with gambling, got locked away for stealing 1.2 million dollars from a synagogue to support her gambling habit. She was seventy four years old. (www.oagaa.org) Another woman in a similar story incurred over eighty five thousand dollars of debt on fourteen credit cards with gambling in a local casino. She said “with all the lights and music and people, you could forget where you were at”. (www.oagaa.org) The casino does not consider whether or not you have the ability to exercise good judgment, so the only person standing between the gambler and potential financial disaster is the gambler him/herself. Help is available to those who need it and are willing to seek it out. More gambling addiction rehab centers need to be available to people who have fallen into the trap of gambling without the ability to restrain themselves. Also, There needs to be someone from the casino staff who is monitoring the activity in the casino to make sure that patterns are not being developed for repeat customers. Also, an effort to educate customers of the possible dangers of becoming too deeply engaged in the games would possibly prevent some gambling addiction from occurring. Perhaps an effort on the part of the casino staff to protect their customers would be ideal but really anyone who is willing to speak out can make a difference.

Work Cited Bernhard, Bo. "Treating Problem Gamblers in Las Vegas: Clinical Sociology and the Problem Gambling Center" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association, Atlanta Hilton Hotel, Atlanta, GA, Aug 16, 2003 . 2009-05-26 

The Oklahoma Assosiation for Gambling Addiction Awareness testimonials presented by the National Gambling Impact study report. www.oagaa.org/html/horror_stories.htm