Here are some articles exposing the problem:
“Pokies pocket record profit from gamblers”
“Queensland forced into rethink by $1.86b pokie splurge”
“Rivers of gold from pokie palaces.” This article states:
The State Government offers little public feedback on the industry for fear of an anti-gambling backlash. This may be because it gets a staggering $10.5 million a week, or $550 million a year, from the machines.
<<Here in Illinois, the governor recently signed a bill allowing video poker machines in the state. A lot of municipalities are setting up their own restrictions on the system, even though it means they won't get revenue from the machines. I am totally opposed to them -- from what I've read, they are like "crack" for the brain.>>
Like drug addicts, those who are obsessed with pokies are liars, cheats and thieves. That’s what they do to families, businesses and employers. They lie about where the money is going, cheat on how they get their money, and steal to pay for the habit.
The Queensland premier who introduced poker machines to our state in 1992, this year stated that pokies were a “scourge.” See this article, “Wayne Goss regrets bringing poker machines to Queensland.” According to this article, in 2008-09, the Qld. government was expected to earn $578million from gaming machine taxes.
Below is an article I wrote last year for a local newspaper.
Sincerely, Spencer
By Spencer Gear
Australia has a love affair with gambling. Almost 21% percent of the world’s pokies are in Australia.[1] For most people, gambling is a pleasurable activity. Sadly for some, it has become an addiction that they cannot tame.
Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, has stated, "I hate poker machines and I know something of their impact on families."[2]
Gambling devours their savings and hopes at an astonishing rate. About 80% of Australians gamble, but 40% of these play at least once a week. The majority of them gamble responsibly.
However it is estimated that about 2% of the population, about 330,000 Australians, have severe or moderate problem gambling habits and about 140,000 have severe problems. Of that number, for "about 70 per cent, their major activity is poker machines."[3]
Australians spend more on gambling than they do on food. In the financial year 2006-2007, we spent almost $91.5 million on food. That's about $4350 each for the year according to Bureau of Statistics figures.
However, in the previous year, 2005-06, gaming industry figures show that adults spent $148 million on gambling. That's an average of $9491 each spent on gambling, which includes figures from tourists.[4] That is, we spend 61% more on gambling than we did on food.
How much of this gambling money goes to the venue? "The average actual gaming 'profit' (before tax) is about a tenth of turnover."[5]
For those with a gambling addiction, families suffer the shame of losing their assets, being evicted from housing, and empty food cupboards. Marriages break up. Back in 1999, the Productivity Commission estimated that there are about 1600 gambling-related divorces and 1600 gambling-related separations in Australia annually. [6]
Work, health and emotional issues are sometimes impacted badly by gambling.
One estimate was that for each person who engages in excessive gambling, 5-10 other people around them are affected.[7]
Gambling is an addiction for some that is difficult to tame.
Please don't under estimate the impact of gambling on suicide thinking and action – especially for the older generation. A recent USA study found that for adults over age 55 who had been gambling an average of 17 years before they sought self-exclusion (banning oneself) from gaming venues, they had a greater risk of suicide. The research indicated that nearly 14 percent of older adults surveyed sought help because they wanted to prevent themselves from committing suicide.[8]
One of the researchers, Lia Nower, said that "this is particularly troubling because, irrespective of age, problem gamblers have reported rates of suicidal ideation and/or attempts as high as six times those found in the general population."[9]
What can you do to help yourself with taming a gambling addiction? What can you as a family member do to limit the damage done by gambling in your family?
Spencer Gear, Lifeline service manager, MA (couns. psych.).
[1] "Russell Crowe rallies against gambling," China Daily, 2008-01-03, available from: http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/showbiz/2008-01/03/content_6368802.htm [cited 15 November 2008]. This article is in Appendix A
[2] Ibid.
[3] Maxine McKew, 19 July 1999, 7.30 Report, ABC television Australia, "Productivity Commission exposes poker machine culture," available from: http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/stories/s37514.htm [15 November 2008].
[4] Peter Jean , June 11, 2008, "Australians spend more on gambling than on food," Herald Sun¸ available from: http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23844130-662,00.html [15 November 2008].
<<I don't suppose any of this filthy lucre [from poker machines] will go to pay for free health care or unemployment benefits....>>
<< Lotteries at least make you wait three or four days before you find out whether you've won or thrown your money down the toilet, and few people are likely to drop several hundred or more dollars in an hour's time buying lottery tickets. >>
<<That's why I'm glad to see a lot of communities going ahead and banning them before the law goes into effect Jan. 1. Our governor seems to think it's an easy way to generate revenue for our cash-strapped state, but at what cost?>>
<<What does the Bible say about gambling, if anything? >>
We do have a “National Alcohol Strategy: 2006-2009,” which states that:
In Australia, the annual cost to the community of alcohol-related social problems was estimated to be $7.6 billion ($5.5 billion tangible) in 1998-99. The greatest costs are borne by workplaces as a result of reductions in the size and capacity of the workforce and worker absenteeism due to alcohol-related issues (see Figure 1). These costs are partly offset by the net government revenue from alcohol related taxes, which is estimated to be $5.5 billion in 2004/05 (DSICA 2005). The alcohol industry is also a significant contributor to the broader Australian economy, contributing $18.3 billion in 2004-05, and directly employing 36,000 people and indirectly contributing to the employment of 205,000 people in pubs, taverns and bars (DSICA 2005).
See: “Shock alcohol ads don’t work.”
Does the Bible condemn gambling?[1]
The Bible indicates that gambling is incompatible with Christianity. Some, for example, may feel that gambling simply fills an economic need. But Jesus taught us to pray, Give us today our bread for this day. How could a person greedily gamble for money and then pray this? Or how could he follow the exhortation: Keep on, then, seeking first the kingdom and his righteousness, and all these other things [material necessities] will be added to you? (Matthew 6:11, 33).
The Bible further advises: Let your manner of life be free of the love of money, while you are content with the present things (Hebrews 13:5). The gambler often is anything but content. In fact, he is greedy, and the Bible says that greedy persons will not inherit God's kingdom (1 Corinthians 6:9,10).
True, some argue that they gamble not for money but for excitement. The Bible roundly condemns, however, those who sidestep godly principles and become lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God. (2 Timothy 3:4, 5) Further, Jesus said: "You must love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:39). How can a person love his neighbor while trying to take away his neighbor's money? How can gambling be harmonized with the fundamental principle, There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving? (Acts 20:35).
Not to be overlooked is the fact that gamblers often invoke the god of Good Luck, something the Bible clearly condemns(Isaiah 65:11).
Finally, consider the corrupting influence gambling has on a Christian's useful habits (1 Corinthians 15:33). The Christian way of life involves hard work and thrift (Ephesians 4:28). Jesus himself showed he was not wasteful when, after the miraculous multiplication of the loaves and the fishes, he gave orders that the leftovers were not to be wasted. (John 6:12, 13) But rather than following in Jesus' footsteps, the gambler is more akin to the prodigal son in Jesus' parable, who squandered his property by living a debauched life (Luke 15:13).
Numbers 26:52-56 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying ... the land shall be divided by lot.
Joshua 14:2 By lot was their inheritance, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.
Joshua 18:6 Ye shall therefore describe the land into seven parts, and bring the description hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God.
Joshua 19:51 These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, divided for an inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the LORD.
Joshua 21:8 And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with their suburbs, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.
1 Chr.26:13-14 And they cast lots, as well the small as the great, according to the house of their fathers, for every gate. And the lot eastward fell to Shelemiah. Then for Zechariah his son, a wise counsellor, they cast lots; and his lot came out northward.
Nehemiah 10:34 And we cast the lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God.
Acts 1:23-26 And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen.... And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
Note that all of the above passages deal with discerning God's will through random chance, not "gambling" in the sense of using chance or "luck" to win or lose money.
[1] WikiAnswers.com, available from: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_the_Bible_condemn_gambling [cited 23 August 2009].
<<Just curious, as I didn't think it did, but noticed a lot of Christians here seem to be very against gambling, yet I didn't think the Bible even mentioned such. Of course, I realize it can be interpreted to mean it's against gambling or just about anything else.>>
