Do we need the government's protection? (Should the Government Relax Gambling Laws?)

Member Name: AdvocatusDiaboli

Product:	Should the Government Relax Gambling Laws?
Date:	10/08/01 (96 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easier for gamblers

Disadvantages: Over hyped 'Vegas in Blackpool'

I have gambled since I was very young and since I left University I have made my money through gambling. When I heard about the possible changes in the law I was very interested by the response of the public - it seems that many people believe that those without money should not be allowed easy access to gambling. I find this an outrageous opinion, everyone is adult enough to understand exactly what gambling is and if they lose all their money at it that is their problem. Why should those of us who enjoy gambling have our favourite pursuit regulated so heavily just because some people have a problem?

An example of these regulations is the ludicrous '24 hour rule'. I am due to play in a big Poker tournament in Luton on August 18th yet to do so I must register with the casino at least 24 hours before. Contrast this with the major tournament in September (The Four Queens Classic) in Las Vegas which I will be entering without even letting them know that I am coming or the World Poker Finals in Atalantic City the following month at which i will not be subject to any restrictions either. I have played in tournaments around the world and it is only in Great Britain that these regulations exist.

Casinos also suffer in this country because they are not allowed to advertise. This prevents a lot of people from knowing where their nearest/best casino is and makes it very hard for them to acquire new members. Entertainment shows are also outlawed in UK Casinos, these sort of rules result in the casino experience in this country being very different to what it is in the rest of the world. UK Casinos are still seen as clubs where people go for a night out.

I believe it is this that results in the British approach to gambling, the majority of British people go to a casino for a 'night out' and are prepared to lose money. In many other countries the situation is different as people take a much more educated approach towards gambling and le
arn how to play games, such as Blackjack, to level where it is possible to have an advantage against the casino.

The gambling laws are slowly changing though and the first place that the benefits can be seen is in the Poker room. The Poker rooms in casinos have always been loss leaders in the past for a casino, purely there to entice high-rollers in who will then go and dump their money on casino games. Casino's do not really like Poker because unlike the rest of the games in the casino it is a skill game and the casinos does not have any advantage over the outcome, it is played between customers. New regulations will allow the casino to charge an entry fee for tournaments now though and that will make tournament poker profitable for the casino.

Although I am in favour of changing the gambling laws in this country you may be surprised to hear that I do not have much faith in the idea of turning Blackpool into Las Vegas. This will not work for a number of reasons, firstly the weather. Las Veas is an amazing city built right in the middle of a desert, Blackpool seems to get about 3 days of sunshine per year. Blackpool also suffers in that there is no way its current culture could mix with a new vegas-type culture. Blackpool is a very old fashioned summer holiday destination and is full of drunked yobs on Fridays and Saturdays. Yobs are unheard of in Vegas and it is full of glitz and glamour. If they built a Vegas style area in Blackpool I believe all the local scallys would be out mugging people and thieving and issue which Las Vegas is only just coming to terms with through investing billions of dollars in high tech security on the streets.

I also believe that our drinking laws would ruin the chance of a 'Vegas' atmosphere in Blackpool. The current law states that you cannot drink whilst gambling in a casino, this is not the case in Las Vegas. However if this law was taken away I still do not believe it would help because our
society is more geared towrds 'binge drinking' instead of the levels found in las Vegas where everyone is just merry.

Overall I believe that the gambling laws in this country do need to be relaxed but I do not see the sense in trying to create Las Vegas in England. I sympathise with problem gamblers but do not feel that they should stop the development of the gambling industry in this country, an industry that is enjoyed by many without any drawbacks. We do not have the right culture and Las Vegas is a one-off anyway, even the Americans could not recreate it properly in their 'seaside town' of Atlantic City!

Summary: