By Samantha Williams
Gambling gives thrill and ego satisfaction that the winner is above the rest of others in the group. The prizes apart, it is the feeling of elation one experiences at the time of winning that kindles the spirit to indulge in gambling on innumerable varieties, sizes and specimens.
Gambling is a game of the mind and not physique. So by extending this criterion, if one is addicted to gambling, this addiction can not be compared with similar addictions like drugs or drinks, where there are chances of spoiling the physical well being of the person concerned. Prevention of such addictions can also be possible by a close watch, advices or medical treatment from repetition of indulgence in such addictions.
Whereas how and why a mental attitude to gamble and enjoy the thrill can be curbed? Starting from the raffles and lotteries of number games, where the winner is decided by pure chance without an iota or semblance of any mental skills, gambling for monitory gains has been going on in many parts of the world for hundreds of years together. The next irresistible step to conduct other plays of gambling, such as horse racing; playing cards; slot machines; roulette tables and so on sprang up and mushroomed to feed the ever-increasing desires of gambling folks in these countries. The funny part of it is Governments of these countries legalized such gambling dens, where people gathered in large numbers and trillions of dollars or euros changed hands every year. Las Vegas and exclusive Bingo halls of U.K. are examples to cite. If there are gamblers the world over in millions it can still be argued that there are more millions of people scattered in all the countries of the world we live, who do not indulge in any vices –if gambling is a vice at all. When these good citizens outnumber those gambling population, about whom the Governments enact rules and regulations to curb the activities, is it not silly – if you will pardon the expression? The sequential development of gambling outfits which attracted people by the millions was opening up gambling on the inevitable Internet.
Today, thanks to the Internet marketing, thousands of websites have been floated in U.K., U.S.A., Canada, Australia, Germany and other countries to offer countless varieties of online gambling avenues – casinos; bingo games; slot machines; video poker; blackjack; roulette and so on. The vastness of the Internet can be understood if only we get to know some 200 million visitors peep into the cyber-world from the nooks and corners of the real world everyday. While so, is it prudent to enact statues to curb online gambling activities, where only a fraction of this mammoth population take part in online gambling games mentioned above? But that is what is being tried by U.S.A., U.K. and Germany on the latest to restrict people from playing online gambling and financial institutions from carrying out transactions of money to these sites and banning the websites from operating. Simply put it is blissful ignorance of those in power that they can not hide the sun by the palm of their hand. Online gambling has come to stay, is running successfully and will reach dizzy heights sooner than later, in spite of these country-specific hurdles.
