2 ms·
People like to gamble, and with some modest controls it can be fun and healthy. Gambling is highly regulated because once upon a time it was associated with sle
by tlb 17y ago
People like to gamble, and with some modest controls it can be fun and healthy. Gambling is highly regulated because once upon a time it was associated with sleazy bookies and loansharks that caused a lot of collateral damage in society. But now it's mainly a question of regulatory capture. Las Vegas is hugely profitable because it has a near-monopoly on gambling in the the US, and they're "encouraging" the regulators to protect society from any of their upstart competitors. The right answer is to simply deregulate gambling. But obviously the incumbents, the regulators, and the senators from Nevada are going to fight against it.
- gojomo 17y agoHistorically, I don't think it was necessarily the sleaziness of the industry that led to regulations as much as a moral judgement against it. (Traditionally, that religious doctrine frowned upon it; with a modern sheen, that it preys on common cognitive biases in a way that impoverishes individuals and communities.) With states running lotteries and so much gambling easy to access via short trips, online services, or underground venues and personal relationships, I'd agree the lingering restrictions are usually due to regulatory capture protecting gambling-industry incumbents, with an occasional assist from morally-motivated anti-gambling crusaders.