Gambling, An Attraction

by Jerry "Jet" Whittaker

February 18, 2006

It Is Gaining Popularity

Gambling is the wagering of money or other items of value on an uncertain event, dependent either wholly or in part on luck. Gambling has been appealing to the man basically for his desire for gain and the thrill of his uncertainty or risk. Gambling is a practice that has continued throughout human history and still continues to thrive around the world, both legally and illegally, as a lucrative industry with popular entertainment activity.

Modern gambling has increased rapidly in scope in the recent decades. In United States, where legal gambling generates more than $60 billion yearly, many cities and states have authorized and legalized casinos and other forms of gambling. In particular, many Native American tribes have taken benefit of newly acquired legal rights for opening casinos on reservations and have continued in expanding their operations. The gambling industry today is a job provider to hundreds of thousands of workers and it is also an important source of tax revenue where it flourishes. A few community and religious groups oppose gambling, as they are concerned that it would lead to crime, corruption, and other social ills. Legal gambling is subject to strict government regulation in many parts of the world, including minimum age requirements and in some cases, even the odds of winning in specific games or machines.

Some Forms Of Gambling

There are various types of legal and illegal gambling. The legal forms are run directly by government agencies, for the benefit of profit companies, and charitable organizations. Illegal types include bets placed with individuals (known as bookmakers) or even underground gambling services (including Internet gambling sites), as well as informal gambling among friends, such as sports pools or poker games.

Casinos – A Popular Form Of Gambling

Casino is one of the fastest growing forms of gambling attraction today. A casino is a gambling establishment where the players bet against the casino (also called house) in games of chance. These games may include poker, blackjack, keno, dice games such as craps, and mechanical devices like roulette wheels and slot machines. All casino games have a house edge, which means that casinos have better odds than the players. In the few games where players compete against each other, such as poker, the house edge generally consists of a small percentage taken from each pot. Since the early 2000s poker has soared in popularity, because of the widespread television coverage of main tournaments.
 

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