Freedom of Choice

This country was founded on freedom of choice. The early settlers did not like what was going on in their particular country and decided to set out for the brave new world. They would be free to make their own choices in the new land which later became know as the United States of America. I know a little about world history not much but I would say this is the only country in the world which started out this way. I think Australia was started as a "dumping ground" for the English prisoners; far from a freedom to choose their own land and ways of doing things.

This freedom of choice has gotten murky over the years but we as Americans live in the greatest country on the planet. This statement maybe why most of the other countries really do not like us because of our "Western Arrogance". This country is truly remarkable because the choices we have are plentiful. One of those choices is to gamble; Lord knows there are so many options in this country; lottery, horse racing, dog racing, casinos, sports wagering, jai alai and I am sure I am leaving many others out. We should have these choices but when people run into trouble because of their bad choices does the government have an obligation to help these people?

I hearken back to the tobacco lawsuits and please keep in mind I have never smoked in my life so my perspective maybe less than objective. I thought these lawsuits were ridiculous because faced with the choice some people chose to smoke cigarettes knowing the consequences. Now as a person who has an addiction (compulsive gambling) I know how hard it is to quit something without a chemical compound. As we all know cigarettes contain nicotine which is highly addictive and so people try their whole lives to quit to no avail.

The auspice of the lawsuits were not that people shouldn't smoke; it was brought on the tobacco companies for deceptive advertising or being less than truthful with their products. The tobacco companies lost and owed millions if not billions of dollars and some of these verdicts have since been overturned. However, not too many tobacco companies have gone out of business because of these lawsuits and in fact people continue to smoke no full well the consequences of their actions (theoretically).

This brings me to gambling and the Gaming Industry. I read an article regarding a tobacco bill and anti-gambling lobby in Nova Scotia, Canada. The tobacco bill addressed the responsibility of the tobacco companies to educate their "customers" on the usage of tobacco. The article then turned toward the Gaming Industry saying they too have a responsibility to address the detrimental affects of gambling and they were threatening a class action law suit.

I am all for freedom of choice and people have the right to choose. The government shouldn't take these choices away from the public because then we stop being the great country. However; everyone including the large corporations has a personal responsibilities to their consumers. If there are ill effects of gambling then these ill affects should be noted. If people need treatment due to their compulsive gambling then should be treatment programs funded by the gaming companies.

The state Connecticut took in over $700 million in tax revenue last year from their two very successful casinos and the budget for the treatment for compulsive gamblers is $2 million. I don't know about you but to me this seems inadequate. It is estimated that the state of Connecticut (this doesn't include the surrounding states of New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts) has 50,000 compulsive gamblers which means the state of Connecticut spends $40 per compulsive gambler for their treatment. The numbers certainly don't add up. California is another story and when I get those numbers I will let everyone know. I do have a sneaking suspicion the dollar per compulsive gambler will be less than that of Connecticut.

I certainly think everyone should have the right to choose but in my opinion the government should have the best interest of society in mind not the best interest of the government or the corporations. When things get skewed the government should bring those things in line. I know the Gaming Industry will come around because it is in their best interest to keep their products alive and this means taking care of their customers when they do have problems.