Re: 'Gamble' not 'play'
You have to be 18 to play it therefore that makes you an adult, and as an adult you have the right to make your own decisions. The major part of being an adult is learning to make your own decisions and taking the consequences of those decisions. It wouldn't matter if you banned the lottery tomorrow, the sort of people pissing money up the wall on scratch cards would simply go play the "fruities" up the arcade or in the pub. Or worse, they'd get seriously into booze or drugs and screw themselves up that way. You can't save everyone, sure you can tell them their stupid or confused but when the craving strikes, nothing stops it and it needs feeding.
You can scream at a heroin addict all you like that they're f**king stupid to pump that sh*t into their veins but when the craving strikes no amount of shouting or advice will stop the horrendous craving that will drive them to rob, steal or kill to supply the addiction, they're no longer addicted to the drug, they're addicted to the addiction. Same with the "lottery junkies", it wouldn't matter if they won £10,000 tomorrow, they'd simply head to a casino as opposed to the corner shop to play the "scratchies".
You can't help some people, no matter how hard to want to or how hard you try, some people are destined to screw themselves up. What you can do though is to remove those they are hurting from them, take them somewhere safe and teach them that addiction is a bad thing, the kids or dependants, offer them a chance at a decent life.
Trust me. Once a junkie ( of anything ) always a junkie. It never stops 'til the day they pop their clogs.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
