Casino State: Legalized Gambling in Canada

Canadian online gambling regulations and social ramifications examined up-close with the new book - Casino State: Legalized Gambling in Canada. 

Authors 

Sociologist Professor from Trent University, Dr. Jim Cosgrave and York University Professor Thomas Klassen compiled a comprehensive account of the socio-economic costs and legalities of online gambling in Canada. 

The social costs 

Their collaboration, Casino State: Legalized Gambling in Canada focuses on the social costs involved in online gambling. Specifically the authors make the case that greater government dependence on tax revenues from online gambling naturally creates room for societal norms which may or may not yield positive results. 

During times of economic uncertainty, the public by-and-large tends towards quick-fix solutions such as online gambling. As government legitimacy of online gambling grows, via regulation, the social costs need to be ascertained. The book details and discusses issues such as morality, consumption and risk, crime and underage gambling and addiction, to name but a few. 

Canada may be tending towards state-owned gambling enterprises and the authors allow for healthy debate on the social costs involved in legitimizing online gambling. As the Internet bridges new boundaries, online gambling is rapidly expanding. Calls for regulation, in order to prevent fraudulent activity and unethical conduct are highlighted in a didactic manner. 

While Canada braces for an online lottery sales, there are concerns that online gambling may be easily accessed by underage people. The book facilitates debate, yet it offers somewhat of a slanted critique of an industry that provides much needed tax revenues to countries in dire need of such funding.