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Most Recent Online Casino News
Gambling Not to be Taken Lightly
The column "Gambling bug isn’t so bad, if you
keep it in check" (Feb. 3) seems to miss the true nature of gambling
problems. I am concerned that the article’s light touch may perpetuate
the common and destructive myth that compulsive gambling is a moral
failing and one can eliminate the problem with no help from others, just
by using willpower.
Janerico’s advice is to keep one’s gambling "in check." However,
compulsive gambling is an addiction, like alcoholism or drug addiction.
People in the throes of an addiction cannot "will" the addiction away
any more than a cancer patient can "will" their disease away. If not
treated properly, problem gambling can completely control and destroy a
person’s life. Do we tell recovering alcoholics they should be able to
drink but to keep their drinking "in check?" When we see someone
struggling to stay sober, do we tell them they’re not trying hard enough
or that they are weak? To quote from the Gamblers Anonymous Web site (www.gamblersanonymous.org/qna.html),
"The first bet to a problem gambler is like the first small drink to an
alcoholic. Sooner or later he or she falls back into the same old
destructive pattern."
Experts in the field will tell you that addictions are very complex
and have their own symptomatology, psychological and physical
components, and specific treatments and prognoses (see @health.com, at
www.athealth.com/Consumer/newsletter/FPN_4_7.html). Both genetic and
environmental factors play a role in their development. Addictions often
mask other underlying problems such as emotional insecurity or mental
illness.
Read the
entire article at: TownOnline.com
2004 Online Casino News Archive
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