The nation’s most respected consumer advocate, Ralph Nader, speaks powerfully about how government-sanctioned gambling lowers our standard of living and exploits and defrauds citizens.
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Maryland faces millions in costs after paying more for slot devices than expected
When Maryland voted to legalize slot machines, officials opted to acquire the games of chance themselves so that the state would be responsible for the integrity of the gambling. This however is causing more problems than expected. Maryland, being one of the few states where slot machines are purchased by the state, is now facing tens of millions of dollars in costs that will cut into proceeds for years to come.
Maryland faces millions in costs after paying more for slot devices than expected
Lotteries seeking ways to sell lottery tickets at ATM machines
State lotteries are constantly looking for new ways to get citizens to lose more money more frequently. Below is a Request for Proposals issued by the Minnesota Lottery to review methods to sell lottery tickets at ATM machines.
Lotteries seeking ways to sell lottery tickets at ATM machines
Frequent video gamers have brain differences, study finds
Young teens who were frequent video gamers had more gray matter in the rewards center of the brain than peers who didn’t play video games as much — suggesting that gaming may be correlated to changes in the brain as much as addictions are. This characteristic is precisely why casino owners are aiming to promote internet gambling and target those who are already prone to addiction.
Caesars casinos skips out on local property tax burden in Missouri
University research outlines the dangers of slot machines
The Carleton University Gambling Laboratory, a think-tank deciphering what makes gamblers keep coming back, says slot machines are nearly four times more addictive than regular card tables. Head researcher, Prof. Michael Wohl, said that’s because players can sit for long periods of time in a relatively low-stress situation and can cash in their winnings without leaving their seats. It’s also due to grave misconceptions about how slot machines work.
“A lot of people think that every time you spin a slot machine you’re getting closer and closer to a win,” Dr. Wohl explains. But that’s simply not the case, he says. He describes them as a mixed bag of marbles. Within it, there’s one “jackpot” marble combined with hundreds of losses. When you play a machine, one of those losses falls out of the bag. But what many people don’t understand is before your very next spin, that dud marble goes right back into the bag. The odds of winning or losing are always exactly the same.”
According to the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse, 80% of problem gamblers in Ontario cite slot machines as their problem. The largest percentage are seniors and low-income earners.
Gambling Nation: A Democracy of Risk for Risk’s Sake
Below is a compelling, hard-hitting column by Esquire’s Charlie Pierce about what it means to turn America into a casino republic, declaring “The United States of America is now nothing more than a place where you gamble.”
Turning gamers into gamblers
Popular, long-running online game Runescape is being widely criticised for encouraging youngsters to gamble..Australian gamer, parent and former gambling addict Jakob Gamertsfelder is a veteran Runescape player but is now one of many actively protesting about the game’s new direction – what he describes as “an online casino aimed at children”. Most of the complaints are directed at Squeal of Fortune, which was added early this year and allows players to “buy spins” to a virtual wheel of fortune to win prizes. Jakob says Squeal of Fortune is “marketing aimed at habituating and incentivising gambling, directly aimed at kids”. “My motivation comes not just from the good memories of spending time with my kids in Runescape but also from remembering what it feels like to be caught up in a gambling addiction, which I was for some years.” Last year a gambling industry veteran urged sports betting agencies to target video gamers, while a study suggested teenager game players had brains “like gambling addicts”. Meanwhile, research in 2009 suggested teenagers who regularly play video games are more likely to develop anti-social behaviour that can lead to problem gambling.
Jakob Gamertsfelder is particularly angry that Runescape’s new owners Jagex changed the terms and conditions of Runescape around the same time as launching Squeal of Fortune. The changes ensure the company is not liable if a player uses someone else’s credit card. He says this seems to have been done because Jagex expects kids to use their parent’s cards without permission. “The timing indicates the intent,” Jakob says. “It annoys the crap out of me that Jagex does something this malicious and then fobs off responsibility to parents.”
Online lottery sales, meant to draw in younger gamblers, draw opposition
Lotteries tell the public “people are gambling anyway” but there is no question that lotteries are actively targeting and creating new gamblers to get them to lose their money. In this story, the Maine Lottery Director describes the strategy: “While our lottery revenue generation is doing reasonably well, our consumer or customer head count participation is flat to slightly down….the lottery needs to bolster sales to the “Generation Y” segment of the population, 18-to 30-year-olds that embrace the Internet.”
Online lottery sales, meant to draw in younger gamblers, draw opposition
In-play betting ads ‘encourage children to gamble’
Various gambling bodies have been recently reprimanded by the Advertising Standards Authority for encouraging children to gamble. In this article the issue in England is highlighted with various advertisements centered around ‘in-play’ betting, targeting the younger demographic.