Online Gambling Has Health Benefits

Online gambling is healthy for the individual, and governments should stop using anecdotal evidence to legislate against it, gambling experts Patrick Basham and Annie Duke told the Fox News Stossel program last week. Note that according to the presenter, no anti-gambling lobbyists agreed to appear on the show.

Health benefits of gambling

"It's healthy for the individual. It's healthy for society. But you haven't heard this narrative before, because all the research money goes to those who say: Look, society's going to hell in a handbasket'," said Basham, a member of the Cato Institute and author of the book, Gambling: A Healthy Bet.

For example, there is evidence to show that playing bingo helps stave off degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimers, Basham said. He added that is in addition to all the evidence which shows that gambling in general is wonderful entertainment and recreation.

According to Basham, the federal government has neglected to show the public the results of a state-funded study that shows only one difference between gamblers and non-gamblers: "Gamblers are more sociable, more neighborly, more involved in their community, and are more likely to donate to charity."

Gambling problems overstated

Less than one percent of the people who engage in any kind of gambling activity have a problem, said Duke, a former professional poker player who now lectures on decision making. She added that this pales in comparison to the 7-9% of alcohol users who have a problem.

"It's a really, really small problem, but even if those people have problems they're making those choices for themselves as consensual adults," Duke said. "They're not hurting anybody, and I don't think we're supposed to legislate to protect a minority from their own bad decisions and hurt the majority who do it in a healthy way and who enjoy it in the same way they enjoy going to a restaurant or a movie.

Basham explained: "Scare stories are everywhere. The real evidence shows that the extended problem is massively overstated, and critically we never hear about the positive side of gambling which is true and far outweighs the negative."

Why attack online gambling?

The rise of online gambling has seen the gaming industry come under attack over the past decade. But as Duke pointed out, if the authorities are going to show consistency then they must also conduct their "thought experiment" on online shopping - another activity that is able to send people broke.

Recalling an anecdote used by anti-gambling activists about a kid who robbed a bank after losing a lot of money on online gambling, she said that if we start looking at the cause any time somebody robs a bank, it becomes a huge slippery slope where end up banning everything.

The standard should be, "Are you doing any direct harm and is it consensual? When you go several steps beyond that to whether you might hurt your family... we're going to end up banning the sale of donuts to people who are overweight."