Gambling is a common vice among youths across the world, and up to this minute, I still wonder why many people think betting is an escape route out of poverty. I have had a deep discussion with people who are addicted to gambling, and one common thought they have is that taking gambling seriously can change their lives while it's doing the opposite to them.
It's a clear fact that gambling isn't doing them a favor, but they are too obsessed and can't see the truth about the path they are treading on. Rather than enriching their lives, gambling is sucking them dry and it so bad for some people that they even beg for funds to gamble.
I know that it has helped a few people across the world, but the number is just 0.01% of the people that spend money gambling every day. There are those who win their bet once in a blue moon, and it's always like they just got a refund out of all they have spent gambling, but they don't think about their losses. The most silly thing is that they end up losing that money to gambling again all in the name of trying to win more.
I was 19 when I got to know about gambling and despite my family situation, I never considered it. That year, I had to live with a family friend, and one of my guardian's sons, who was barely 14, had become an addict.
He was really obsessed with gambling to the extent that he would do anything to get money just to gamble. He started stealing and was caught several times, but his victims always pardoned him because of my guardian's reputation. It got so bad that this boy used his school to gamble and lost, he would always leave the house but never got to school.
My guardian sent me to check something at his school, and that's how we knew. The old man was brokenhearted and wept bitterly because of the boy. After the punishment he got, I concluded that this boy wouldn't bet again, but I was wrong.
I saw some bet slips under the bed while cleaning some weeks later and I felt disappointed. I clearly said to the boy that he can't be saved and gambling will ruin his future if he doesn't quit. He started mentioning the names of people who made it from gambling, and I became speechless because thats the first thing many of those addicts talk about. Gambling gives them a form of hope that wull materialize into nothing in the long run.
If we look around today, there are so many bet companies across the world while our streets are filled with bet shops. Every morning, whenever I step out of the house, I see young boys already chatting there, and it breaks my heart to see things like that. The age restriction thing doesn't even work because teenagers can easily bypass those security checks for gambling, and in the blink of an eye, they become addicted.
I play bets as well, but it's a once in a blue moon, and despite winning a few times, I never saw it as a means to make money because I understand how these things work. Gambling gives and takes from you, but when you look properly in the end, you will realize it has taken more than it gave you.
There is another guy who runs a small business around me; he sells and spends all his money on gambling. When he finally wins, he will restock his shop and lose the money again to gambling.
I spoke to him about it, and he said the time will come when he will win so much to expand his business instead of just restocking. Today, he doesn't have the business anymore, and he is struggling to bet so that he can win some money to start again, which might not happen.
Whether gambling should be banned or not is complicated because those companies never force people to gamble. People do it by choice and should be responsible for whatever happens to them.
Many times, I have seen the "bet responsibly" warning after those betting companies finish advertising, but people do not care. They just want to win some money and nothing more, forgetting that winning bets happens by luck. I wouldn't choose that gambling should be banned but will only encourage people to become disciplined when gambling because they can't be sure of anything.
While trying to het richer through bet, always think of the worse. I am saying you can't get lucky but don't spend more than you can afford to lose on betting but if you are the kind who get addicted to things easily, gambling should be a no go area for you.
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