Did you know that 40% of all problem gamblers started gambling before they were seventeen? Or that problem gambling causes the most suicides out of all the recognized addictions? Even with these facts, the most startling truth is that not one federal dollar, out of the billions collected in gambling taxes, has been spent to treat or help problem gamblers. Gambling is the activity or practice of playing at a game of chance for money or other stakes. Activities that are considered gambling are sports and race bets, lotteries, games like blackjack and poker, and casino games like slots and roulette. Bingo and raffles are technically gambling, but there are no major concerns about them, so they are not included here. Gambling has been legalized by many states, but just because it is does not make it right. Even though gambling is legal, it should not be because of its harmful economic, governmental, and social effects.
There are many detrimental economic effects of gambling, but there are two major ones: it siphons money from other industries, and states attempt to use lotteries to boost income. Gambling takes money from consumers that would otherwise be spent in an important industry or charity. Instead, it is essentially thrown away in hopes of getting rich quick. The removal of money from other industries often causes businesses to go bankrupt, therefore creating more unemployed people. You could argue that casinos create jobs, but those jobs do not make enough money to really support a family. The other economic problem that gambling creates is the use of lotteries. States typically use lotteries to make more money, but it is nowhere near as effective as other methods that are in use. The state makes 40% of the money that is put into lotteries, while they make 99% of the money that goes into taxes. Also, sources say that since the poor buy so many more lottery tickets than everyone else, the lotteries have become a tax on the poor and economically disadvantaged. The economic effects may be bad, but the governmental and social effects are far more hurtful.
There are a few different damaging effects that gambling has on the government, but they fall into two categories: the government’s role and illegal activity. The government’s role in gambling is not what it should be. Drugs and gambling are both known to be self-destructive, yet drugs are banned and gambling is legalized? To the people that are compulsive gamblers, gambling is a drug to them, so it should be illegal like all other drugs. The other poor role the government has in gambling is that the government gets a cut of the profits from it in the form of taxes. As it was mentioned earlier, the poor and lower-middle class gamble more, so it is essentially a tax on the poor. Illegal activity is another damaging governmental effect of gambling. Since betting on sports and races are legal, it has become far easier for organized crime to make money off of fixed sporting events and racing. From a sports standpoint, it makes “point-shaving” scandals a potentially larger issue, and can take away from the integrity of the game. Additionally, in areas where gambling is legalized, illegal gambling increases. Since people think it is okay to gamble, they now go to an illegal gambling location so that their winnings, if any, are not taxed by the government. The destructive governmental and economical effects of gambling are horrible, but the social effects are the worst of all.
The harmful social effects of gambling are it forces the poor to stay poor, compulsive gamblers bring massive problems, and gambling can ruin lives and families. Gambling at casinos and in lotteries have terrible odds of winning, but the poor, who desperately need the money, try time and time again in hopes of getting lucky to pull out of their economic problems. However, they rarely win, and the amount of money that they pour in forces them stay poor. Even if you are not poor and you start to gamble constantly, you will become poor very quickly. Another harmful social effect of gambling is the presence of compulsive gamblers. Compulsive, or problem, gamblers are people who are addicted to gambling. Gambling is a drug to them, and they cannot stop gambling, no matter the consequences. A study showed that most compulsive gamblers started during their teen years, and that they are in close to $80,000 in debt. Because of the staggering amount of debt they are in, they are a huge burden to their families. The last harmful social effect of gambling is it destroys families. The amount of debt that a compulsive gambler gets into puts way too much strain on the rest of the family to help him or her out of debt. If you are married to a compulsive gambler, it is like being married to a hard-core drug addict, they are forced to throw away money to satisfy their addiction. Unfortunately, sometimes the debt is too much, and the spouse will divorce, shattering the family. The social effects of gambling are the worst, but all the effects of gambling are awful.
Unfortunately for us, gambling is legal in almost every state, allowing these hurtful effects to exist. Even though gambling is legal, it should not be because of its harmful economic, governmental, and social effects. If you are considering gambling sometime, think about what you are supporting, and how it could ruin your life.

Now, I am not writing to urge that we re-legalize online gambling, a practice effectively banned in this country by the 2006 federal statute prohibiting banks and credit card issuers from cooperating. Legal consequences for unsanctioned gambling. Punishment ranges from jail time to fines, depending on how the state looks at illegal gambling operations. In Texas, for example, illegal gambling is a misdemeanor, subjecting you to up to around $1,000 in fines and potentially months (but not more than a year) in jail.

Gambling can take on many forms. It could be that people play the lottery or it could be that people can play in online casinos as well.
Whatever the means, gambling should be banned outright. There are so many reasons why you want this to be banned.
Look, there are already some states and countries that have deemed it illegal for people to gamble, but not legalizing this is not actually quite effective.

Outright banning all forms of gambling may be the way to go and in this article, I will cite some good reasons why gambling should definitely be banned.

It May Be Subject to Fraud

Gambling can be quite addictive and because people can get addicted to it, they will not hesitate to spend more and more money. This, in turn, will mean that the government can generate state taxes for use in infrastructure, healthcare, among many others.

Although that is seen on paper, it can actually be a cause for fraud and corruption since not all government agencies and politicians are scot-free.

Gambling Should Be Illegal

It May Result in Problem Gambling

Reasons Why Gambling Should Be Prohibited

In states where gambling is legal, it is found that it is just a leisure activity that people do to pass the time. However, there are people that actually make this as a living and it can lead to problem gambling.

Pathological gamblers are a league of their own which is why they get their own classification in the newest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or the DSM.

It Can Exploit the Underprivileged

When you ask casino owners about why they want to build a casino in a certain area, they will usually say positive things like employing the locals to work for them, having another means of increasing state taxes, and a host of other lies.

Sure, some casino owners would employ locals to work in their institution but the problem is that it actually exploits the poor. That is because they are usually underpaid and that is also the reason why casino owners would usually take their businesses offshore as opposed to operating in their native country.

It Sets Double Standards

There are some governments that would acquire some funding through state lotteries. But, legalizing gambling this way actually promotes gambling. The promise of fortunes and the fact that the uncertainty aspect is quite appealing makes people addicted to it.

You could think of it as a double-edged sword. For one, the money that can be acquired from state lotteries could be used to improve infrastructure and provide the vast majority of people with healthcare.

However, can you really tell if that is actually the case, knowing that corruption in government agencies is still prevalent to this day?