Editorial
The Gambling Fascination
Wednesday, 17 September 2008 05:55 Last Updated on Tuesday, 03 February 2009 05:56
The church and religious leaders all over the world condemn it as evil. Politicians fall over themselves to legislate against it. Anti-addiction groups thump podiums and vehemently attack it as the scourge of society.Marriages are destroyed by it. Lives are brought to financial ruin by it. Yet despite all this, gambling is ever on the increase and its fascination seems unlikely to ever fade.
So what is this gambling fascination that constantly attracts new hopefuls to its fold? Is it the vague promise of easily obtained wealth and riches? Is it the thrill of the anticipation of the outcome of a wager? Or is it just the perceived glory in attempting to beat the odds?
Well, perhaps all of these things in varying degrees for different people.
Gambling has been around about as long as humans have been, in one form or another. Perhaps the earliest form of gambling was the wager of a man’s own life against the attempt to kill a large beast to feed his tribe. It may have been a heavy price to pay for losing, but all the glory and the ultimate prize of survival was the jackpot to be taken.
Perhaps this instinct for survival is the primal basis for modern man’s continued affinity with the thrill and excitement of the wager. In a similar fashion to his ancestors believing in the power of deities to determine the outcome of a wager, modern gambling man is commonly seen to be praying to his guiding angel called lady luck as he blows her a kiss into his cupped hands before rolling the dice the length of the craps table.
Everyone loves a tale of an outstanding winner and one such true story is told and retold about the strange motivation which led Ashley Revel in 2004 to sell all his worldly possessions and bring his total net worth to the Plaza Hotel in Las Vegas. There, he placed all $135,300 of it on the 50/50 “red” at the roulette table. The all-or-nothing gamble paid off in this instance as the ball landed on “red 7”, leaving Revell to walk away with twice what he walked in with.
This tale of beating the odds and others like it, fuel the fires of anticipation in every gambler who believes they have the same chance of walking away a wealthy winner from the game they approached with high hopes and open wallet. Sadly, this is the exception to the rule and the vast majority of gamblers have their high hopes dashed all too soon.
But the next day they are back to try again and this is the fascination with gambling which baffles those not afflicted its siren lure.
