10 ms·

Casinos enable gambling Addicts in the same way that legalized weed enables drug addicts.

by italian_donald 10y ago

humbleMouse 10y ago
I don't think that's a fair analogy at all. Care to expand on it?
- lujim 10y ago
  He probably would care to, but how much time would you care to spend listening to anecdotal bro science today?
- italian_donald 10y ago
  I was down voted to -3, so why should I expand anything? I should have know that the HN crowd loves its drugs and will not listen to facts and reason.
  - rconti 10y ago
    Well, for one, you chose a non-addictive drug, so that was a pretty silly move. But I know, it was easier to feel that you were a rebel fighting conventional wisdom than if you had said "cocaine" instead of weed.
  - pauloday 10y ago
    If you look around the threads here, dismissive once sentence replies are usually downvoted. You have to actually put "facts and reason" in your comment for us to listen to it.
kirykl 10y ago
Legal weed dealers cannot yet issue a special type of credit at their discretion, for which they can employ the DA as a collection agency
lujim 10y ago
I've read that the way gambling engages the dopaminergic system in gambling addicts is more akin to physical addictions like alcohol, tobacco, or opiates. So maybe a better analogy would be "in the same way freely available opiates would enable drug addicts". There often seems to be a sentiment of "Why congratulate a recovering alcoholic? I've never had a drinking problem so why isn't someone congratulating me." from those who have never experienced or been close to someone who is experiencing a never ending addictive loop. Generally this attitude comes from arrogance, inexperience, and youth.
- yarou 10y ago
  The vast majority of opiates, substituted amphetamines, and cocaine were available OTC for a myriad of ailments. Many Vietnam veterans were treated in hospitals with heroin, yet they didn't become addicted. What it boils down to is that the addict is unable to achieve homeostasis with their environment. Unfulfilling relationships (both romantic and platonic), financial burdens, lack of a job, lack of intimacy all contribute to addictive behavior. It's easy to blame a particular molecule for ruining someone's life. It's less easy to blame a system that turns men into machines.
  - lujim 10y ago
    Maybe, although I do believe that tons of good science has chimed in on the role of dopamine in the human brain. Give a smoker some chantix without alleviating their financial burdens or changing "the system" in any way and watch how long it takes them to want nothing to do with cigarettes. There is a complex biological process at work here that plenty of smart people spend their entire lives trying to understand.
    - tunap 10y ago
      Substituting one drug for another to treat a psychological or behavioral deficiency has been a popular prescription for a long time, and reciditivism has prevailed in a majority of cases, upwards of 90 percentile in alcohol and opiate abusers. JGI if you need sources, though those numbers are actively obfuscated to serve the practitioners, pharmas & lawmakers' self-interests; my knowledge comes from shared 1st hand experiences of acquaintances in ER, behavioral sciences & addiction treatment center personnel over the last 30 years. edit: spell checker changed psychological to something u related & I added how long I've known these people.

Casinos enable gambling Addicts in the same way that legalized weed enables drug addicts.

humbleMouse 10y ago

I don't think that's a fair analogy at all. Care to expand on it?

lujim 10y ago
He probably would care to, but how much time would you care to spend listening to anecdotal bro science today?
italian_donald 10y ago
I was down voted to -3, so why should I expand anything? I should have know that the HN crowd loves its drugs and will not listen to facts and reason.
- rconti 10y ago
  Well, for one, you chose a non-addictive drug, so that was a pretty silly move. But I know, it was easier to feel that you were a rebel fighting conventional wisdom than if you had said "cocaine" instead of weed.
- pauloday 10y ago
  If you look around the threads here, dismissive once sentence replies are usually downvoted. You have to actually put "facts and reason" in your comment for us to listen to it.

kirykl 10y ago

Legal weed dealers cannot yet issue a special type of credit at their discretion, for which they can employ the DA as a collection agency

lujim 10y ago

I've read that the way gambling engages the dopaminergic system in gambling addicts is more akin to physical addictions like alcohol, tobacco, or opiates. So maybe a better analogy would be "in the same way freely available opiates would enable drug addicts". There often seems to be a sentiment of "Why congratulate a recovering alcoholic? I've never had a drinking problem so why isn't someone congratulating me." from those who have never experienced or been close to someone who is experiencing a never ending addictive loop. Generally this attitude comes from arrogance, inexperience, and youth.

yarou 10y ago
The vast majority of opiates, substituted amphetamines, and cocaine were available OTC for a myriad of ailments. Many Vietnam veterans were treated in hospitals with heroin, yet they didn't become addicted. What it boils down to is that the addict is unable to achieve homeostasis with their environment. Unfulfilling relationships (both romantic and platonic), financial burdens, lack of a job, lack of intimacy all contribute to addictive behavior. It's easy to blame a particular molecule for ruining someone's life. It's less easy to blame a system that turns men into machines.
- lujim 10y ago
  Maybe, although I do believe that tons of good science has chimed in on the role of dopamine in the human brain. Give a smoker some chantix without alleviating their financial burdens or changing "the system" in any way and watch how long it takes them to want nothing to do with cigarettes. There is a complex biological process at work here that plenty of smart people spend their entire lives trying to understand.
  - tunap 10y ago
    Substituting one drug for another to treat a psychological or behavioral deficiency has been a popular prescription for a long time, and reciditivism has prevailed in a majority of cases, upwards of 90 percentile in alcohol and opiate abusers. JGI if you need sources, though those numbers are actively obfuscated to serve the practitioners, pharmas & lawmakers' self-interests; my knowledge comes from shared 1st hand experiences of acquaintances in ER, behavioral sciences & addiction treatment center personnel over the last 30 years. edit: spell checker changed psychological to something u related & I added how long I've known these people.