FL Has Increase in Calls at Gamblers Anonymous Hotline
Friday, November 5th, 2010People who are against legalizing gambling believe that one of the biggest problems is going to be a rise in crime and corruption. They believe that gambling will inevitably bring in money laundering and addictions too. This is not proven, but there could be some validity to the argument. There has been a recent surge in problems that governments are facing as a result of gambling debates. Florida is the latest state to make headlines regarding the issue. Gamblers Anonymous reported that it has had an increase in calls throughout the last few months and many of them are centered on lottery addictions. The state of Florida holds a weekly lottery and now is pushing to create more options. This past week, the state created the Lucky Lines lottery. This is a game that is instant too so gamblers can buy their ticket or tickets and then have the clerk check them for winners immediately. The top win for the game is $3 million and the tickets are highly affordable—the most expensive costing just $5 to play.
The affordability of the new game is one of the things Gamblers Anonymous operators are questioning. It makes it highly likely that gamblers will want in since the game costs so little, but comes with such a huge potential payout. Gamblers are going to find it difficult to say no to that kind of win. They are saying that the state is setting up the communities for even more addictions to arise. Studies have shown that there are two major games that are addictive. They are the lottery and slots. Both games take on the top slots at the list because they are so affordable but have big returns. If a game costs $50 to get in on, most residents will think twice, or so studies have shown. If a game costs just $1 to $5, they are much more likely to take a shot at the big payout win. It’s an emotional decision for people and that is what can cause people to go overboard. Plus if the gaming time is short, people have no time to experience buyer’s remorse. Rather they buy the ticket and immediately get the results. It is so quick that mentally people have a hard time even remembering gambling. Overall Florida is now going to have to rethink its gambling plans and namely its new lottery. Though it sounds like a great option, it could be putting residents in danger of falling into more addictions themselves.

