Why is Gambling Illegal? Rough Guide to Causes and Locations of Gambling Prohibition
Gambling refers to any form of gambling where participants deposit money with the hopes of winning a prize. It includes any gamble involving a wager of money and the chance of a gamble’s successful outcome. Some forms of gambling involve wagers on chance, chance of winning, chance of losing, or another objective element of chance, while others include wagers on chance or on skill, or wagers on chance or skill. Many forms of gambling may involve both types of wagers. For example, casinos generally offer slot machines, where bets are made on chance or skill, and roulette wheels, where bets are made on chance or skill.
Gambling of any form is illegal in most countries, both for residents and non-residents. The specific laws are decided by national governments. Some countries outlaw gambling on the basis of not only whether gambling is legal, but also where it is legal, how, and with what regulations. For example, in England and Wales, gambling is prohibited in gaming machines (often called slot machines, or pay per spin machines), bingo halls, the majority of bingo shops, and bookmakers. The term “bingo hall” covers all gambling activities permitted by law in bingo halls, including cash Bingo and all other betting activities.
Today, several forms of electronic gaming are legal in the UK, including fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs), commonly known as “crack cocaine” terminals, which allow players to bet thousands of pounds at a time. They are one of the most addictive forms of gambling, causing over 20,000 casualties per year in the UK, with about £200m in losses to UK gamblers.
Gambling activities in England and Wales are now mostly prohibited in private clubs (i.e., clubs in which participants must be invited by an existing member), casino-type casinos (e.g., casinos at racecourses), and online betting. Most forms of gambling that are legal in the UK are restricted in terms of number of machines allowed per venue, and different types of gambling games are allowed to be offered at different venues.
While most gambling laws on this site are based on law from different countries, the laws on this site can help explain the specific reasons why gambling is illegal in certain countries and areas. This applies mainly to the gambling activity of conducting and taking part in gaming activities of any type, but is expanded to cover several other types of gambling activities (e.g., the lottery, sweepstakes, raffles, lotteries, lottery ticket sales, horse racing, card games, casino games, and gambling tournaments). The increment of legal regulation of gambling activities in some countries has led to numerous cases of organized criminal activity, money laundering, fraud, and corruption.
Why Gambling is Illegal
Here are the 10 main reasons why gambling is illegal in most countries.
Gambling is sinful. (By definition, a sin is a wrong or bad act).
Gambling is considered immoral, illegal, and improper by virtually every religion. It is forbidden in all the major religions of the world, including the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic religions. Some religions prohibit gambling in specific gambling games, and most restrict gambling to private activities with one’s family or close friends. Such restrictions also exist in more than a few minority religious groups.
In recent years, some people have associated betting on sports with gambling, when in fact the two are not linked. For instance, betting on football (soccer) matches is legal in many countries, but betting on horse racing is illegal. Some religious groups, such as Mormons, Hindus, and Jains, do not allow gambling activities within their religion. However, there are some groups which openly and zealously advocate gambling, including the Catholic Church.
Gambling creates bad moral behavior.
Gambling can lead to risk taking behavior, including substance abuse, aggressive or bullying behavior, and betting on events with the intention of winning. A report from the UK gambling industry states that 3% of all employees in the gambling industry in the UK have a gambling problem and gamble in excess of £100 a week on the side.
A US study has shown that nearly 1 out of 4 gamblers develop a gambling problem and abuse the money they gambled. A Japanese study found that 23% of Japanese men have a gambling problem, with one-third of those with a problem committing at least one offense. For those who have gambling problems, gambling has serious consequences, including physical health problems, depression, and suicide.
Gambling is dangerous and addictive.
Gambling can lead to compulsive and repetitive behavior (e.g., gaming). If left untreated, this could lead to psychological disorders such as depression and other mental health problems.
Gambling can be extremely dangerous and can lead to many physical, mental, and social problems. The more a person accumulates, the greater the problems they face.
Gambling is linked with crime.
The link between gambling and crime is often cited in religious and other arguments against gambling. However, recent research does not support the link between the two.
A report on gaming machines in the UK shows that only a small percentage of the problem gamblers are linked to the machines. Nevertheless, gambling is seen by most as a threat to society. Such threats are often exploited to create public concern for the loss of social and economic well-being.
Gambling causes economic damage.
Analyzing the economic impact of gambling, one report states that in the UK, each individual problem gambler represents a cost to the government of approximately £5,400 per year, with the total cost to the country reaching £700 million. Similarly, the economic costs of the US have been estimated at $130 billion per year due to gambling addiction. In light of these costs, it is not surprising that the UK government has limited the number of land-based casinos and the number of hours that gambling is available.
Gambling is immoral.
Some religious groups condemn gambling, while others actively promote gambling as a virtue. But both moral and legal arguments against gambling are flawed. Legal arguments against gambling are often made on the basis of the religious prohibition of gambling, but the problem is not in the prohibition but in the legality.
The problem arises because of social attitudes towards gambling. If attitudes towards gambling were changed to reduce the perceived risk, and the harms associated with gambling were reduced, then the ban would have no basis. However, we all know it is impossible just like how a sin can be justified.
While religious groups are entitled to their opinion on this matter, the concern for moral hazard in unregulated gambling is too great to ignore. In economic terms, the concern is that the increased consumption of gambling in unregulated markets encourages greater risk taking behavior in other areas. The reduction in social and economic well-being that such a decrease in social norms would lead to would be great enough to justify introducing gambling prohibition.
Gambling encourages excessive consumption.
According to the International Centre for Responsible Gambling (ICRG), excessive gambling is often linked to other problems, including poverty, unemployment, the use of addictive substances, family violence, financial problems, and mental illness. An excessive desire for gambling can have a devastating effect on personal and family life, and is much more of a problem for low-income people. But although some people have lost sight of the social harms that gambling causes, society’s response to such behavior is gradually changing.
Gambling causes moral hazard.
The negative consequences of gambling are not the problem; it is the gamble itself that causes the problems. Without the gamble, however, people would not be incentivized to take more risks. Thus, with gambling prohibition, people who are willing to take excessive risks will now have access to them, driving them to do so.
The obvious danger is that in this situation people who are willing to take on this risk will be in the majority, because the odds are already in their favor. Consequently, gambling will become more risky, leading to more gambling losses, and therefore more losses in income and reduced living standards for the majority of people.
Gambling fosters socially unacceptable risk-taking behavior.
To the contrary, in a free society, people are motivated to take social risks, such as entering into relationships, taking on jobs, starting businesses, or taking creative risks. Where the social environment makes it safe for individuals to do these things, the freedom to do so will expand. However, where social norms and cultural beliefs make it difficult to do so, as in many countries of the world, the individual liberty that they enjoy is curtailed.
Gambling prohibition does not increase the freedom of individuals; it forces them to do the socially unacceptable (at least legally) thing. For example, if gambling prohibition were introduced in the United States, women would not be able to gamble because there is a stigma attached to it, despite their being as free to do so as men.
Gambling prohibition do not encourages corruption and fraud.
To the contrary, it promotes corruption and fraud. The people in power would have access to the largest share of the casino spoils, whereas the poor would be deprived of a large share of the spoils. Moreover, those in power would have the resources necessary to corrupt the regulators and officials who enforce gambling laws. Furthermore, the state bureaucracy, which is particularly susceptible to corruption, would be overburdened. This makes it more likely that gambling would be facilitated in private homes and possibly in public buildings such as schools, hotels, and government offices.
It is Devastating to the Welfare State
According to ICRG, the UK has received £3.9 billion of fiscal revenue from gambling in 2010. The amount of money lost by the state exceeds the amount of money that the state received as a result of gambling. The amount of damage done by gambling to the social fabric of society dwarfs the benefit to the government. Gambling is Devastating to the Welfare State, says the Independent Catholic review.
Conclusion
These are few reasons why gambling is illegal. There are many more and, ultimately, their argument comes down to this:
- It is morally wrong.
- It destroys lives.
- It hurts people financially.
- It undermines the quality of the social fabric of society.
- It promotes corruption and fraud.
In many countries of the world, these arguments are seriously enough to make it necessary to make gambling illegal. Unfortunately, although the arguments above are strong, they are not strong enough to make any other argument for making gambling illegal compelling enough.
