Topic: Should Gambling be Legal

Abstract

In this research paper we will discuss against the concept of legalization of gambling and how it can negatively effect the community. We will understand first what gambling is, and why it should not be made legalized. Gambling has had a convoluted legal history in the United States, with alternating periods of prohibition and government endorsement, usually at the state level. For the most part, before the 1960s, gambling was largely prohibited in the United States, with some exceptions. The current near-ubiquity of legal gambling in the United States is an outgrowth of the development of public-interest gaming, initially in the 1920s. In this model, gambling was legalized, but regulated and taxed by a state explicitly for public policy purposes: to combat illegal gambling, create jobs, and enhance state revenues. Today, 48 out of 50 states have some form of legal gambling.

According to proponents of legal gambling, gambling is simply a business like any other. With the legal imprimatur of state regulators, it is far removed from the days of illegal, crooked games and in many circles, is viewed as merely one form of entertainment among many others. Proponents of gambling argue that prohibiting gambling deprives citizens of choice and is usually the result of a puritanical attempt to compel good behavior. If people choose to gamble, they claim, there is nothing wrong with meeting that need, and it is entirely legitimate for both private companies and state governments to profit from gambling.

Those who oppose legal gambling, on the other hand, argue that gambling is of dubious ethical and economic value. It creates nothing, and is a parasitic, regressive form of taxation that deprives both individuals and communities of money that could be used for more lasting, worthwhile pursuits.

Introduction

Gambling is a paradoxical pastime: though it is possibly as old as humanity itself and is found in nearly every culture around the globe, it has been subject to criminal sanction for much of its history. In its broadest definition, gambling is the act of placing stakes on an unknown outcome with the possibility of gain. This includes betting on the outcome of contests between animals (horse racing, cockfighting) and humans (betting on team and individual sports); betting on lotteries; and betting on games of chance played with cards, dice, and other randomizing elements. Some of the best-known games fall into this latter category; poker, blackjack, and baccarat are played with cards, and craps with dice. Slot machines, which were originally mechanical but are now electronic devices that award prizes based on the random stopping of the reels, are another popular form of gambling. Today, many forms of gambling, most prominently poker and sports betting, can be accessed from the Internet.

There is often a distinction drawn between social gambling and mercantile or commercial gambling. Social gambling is conducted among individuals who bet against each other at similar odds. Poker is a classic social game. In mercantile or commercial gambling, players bet against “the house,” a professional gambler or organization ...