Gambling Problem?

I was at Parx casino in PA the other week. I was taking money out from the booth behind the cashiers cage. As I swiped my card and showed the man my ID, he pulled out a 50 page list of names from behind the counter. I asked him what he was looking at. He said he needed to check to see if I was on the self exclusion list. I told him I was not. After checking to make sure I was clear, I asked him how many names are on that list. He said close to 20,000. That is just for PA ...and just the ones who were in so deep that they had to put themselves on the exclusion list.

Is it a gambling problem, or a money problem? Or perhaps both? Although there is an excitement and thrill to gambling, I still tend to believe its all about the benjamins baby! At the end of the day, whatever you do, wherever you go, whoever your with, etc, you need money and we all want it! That is why gambling is so popular... instantaneous monetary accumulation.

The gaming industry is not going to die anytime soon.... only get bigger and bigger as people are out of work and need to find ways to make money... and when they have it, they like to wager for more.

It's a combination of folks having issues with self-control and impulse control.

Plus, casinos allow most punters to help fill their time while not gambling with hope, the hope of a good win, which while unlikely could happen.

Many people have little else to hope for, or to get excited about, so they get sucked right in.

Yes, it is definitely a place to go when people are bored too.

Quote: WatchMeWin

He said he needed to check to see if I was on the self exclusion list. I told him I was not. After checking to make sure I was clear, I asked him how many names are on that list.

What would have worried me is if you would have said, "I told him I was not. He stopped looking."

A "self-exclusion list" consists of people who realized at one point that they could not keep themselves from gambling. Certainly, some of them would claim that they were not on the list if they were that desperate to gamble.

In Owning Mahowny, that's what he says about not having a gambling problem, but says he has a short term financial problem.

I tend to agree and disagree on self-exclusion lists. All it really means is you want to be barred from the premises and not able to gamble there. Some of the people might have gambling problems, but there are more people in casinos with problems than on those lists. The lists don't work how people need them to work and there are many unintended consequences. Somebody may really want to be able to just choose one gambling joint, but they can't and people don't want to be barred from every casino in a chain. That's more intimidation than casinos wanting to help people help themselves. Not wanting to visit a casino in one state has nothing to do with a casino or casinos in other states.

Quote: ThatDonGuy

What would have worried me is if you would have said, "I told him I was not. He stopped looking."

A "self-exclusion list" consists of people who realized at one point that they could not keep themselves from gambling. Certainly, some of them would claim that they were not on the list if they were that desperate to gamble.

I cannot count the people who have hit me up for and/or "borrowed" 10 bux, or more, from me in my life of hanging out at poker rooms, casinos, and race tracks. None of these sickies should be on the outside of a mental institution. I have two words for them. Straight, jacket.

But who is the nutcase? Them? Or me, who has actually given these people money. No one pays back. No one! And it fries me that I have loaned 100 bux to poker dealers, guys who make plenty of money in tokes, and then lose their asses gambling after their shift is over. Seriously, who is sicker than a poker dealer? And none of them can play worth a lick.

There is a loan shark at parx poker room that plays poker 60 hours a week and sits there just to make loansz.... primarily to dealers

Quote: Wizardofnothing

There is a loan shark at parx poker room that plays poker 60 hours a week and sits there just to make loansz.... primarily to dealers

-EV? I would think so or missing something.

Everyone has a gambling problem in the casino I say. If you're there at 3 am, 6am, 9am, 2-11 pm gambling, you have a problem no matter how much is in the bank. They redid all this stuff to reduce the numbers of addicts. Kind of like unemployment numbers.

Quote: Mooseton

-EV? I would think so or missing something.

I don't understand your comment.

Quote: onenickelmiracle

Kind of like unemployment numbers.

If you have given up looking for work you are not unemployed; its probably the same with exclusion lists, you are no longer a problem gambler since you have solved that problem.

Quote: bobbartop

I don't understand your comment.

What I meant was to ask WoN why would that poker player sit around just to make loans to poker dealers if they have a bad rep for paying back because that sounds like negative EV.