It's a less than zero-sum, non-productive activity that damages people's finances. The institutions that enable gambling receive the majority of the upside, wh

It's a less than zero-sum, non-productive activity that damages people's finances. The institutions that enable gambling receive the majority of the upside, while society receives all the negative externalities of people not being able to pay their bills, digging themselves into holes, not able to participate in the real economy. The institutions enabling this use dark patterns and addictiveness to fuel a cycle of dependence. I am also of the libertarian ideology that we should mostly let people do whatever they want so long as it doesn't hurt others. But lately I've been starting to think there are some habits (gambling) and some drugs (fentanyl) that are impossible to use responsibility and that destroy individuals and degrade society. I think gambling should be regulated and taxed. This should not be such a lucrative or desirable industry to target. At least gambling in the stock market, housing market, etc. is actually tied to real securities and derivatives. Betting on sports is useless. It pads the wallets of the gambling marketplaces and decreases the fitness, mental health, and security of the losers.