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Gambling has existed in every
known society. Around the
world today, millions are ad–
dicted to the dream of "hitting
it big," but end up chasing
that elusive dream forever.
by
Paul O. Knedel
Y
ou
THINK
"hitting it big" is a
new thrill of the 20th cen–
tury?
The spirit of gambling has existed
in man as far back as recorded his–
tory. The desert tombs of Egypt and
the sand-covered ruins of Babylon
have yielded up dice simi lar to those
used today. Archaeologists have
fouod games of chance also among
the ancient Chinese, Norsemen,
Greeks, Romans and Gauls. In at–
testation to the saying, "there is
nothing new under the sun," the ar–
chaeologists' spade even unearthed
loaded dice in the ruins ofPompeii!
Modern Day Counterpart
Gambling, widespread in the an–
cient world, is also flourishing
today, worldwide.
So prevalent is gambling in
England, for example, that this
is–
land has been called a fioating ca–
sino. Britons now gamble to the
tune of nearly $8 billion a year.
More than a million persons are
now affiicted with the compulsive
gambling habit. Almost every oight,
half a million people , mostly
women, will be playing bingo. Bet–
ting on the horses is widespread,
and it is one of the main topics of
conversation in the pubs. "Punters,"
as gamblers are known in Britain,
have been known to bet on anything
from the weather to when an es–
caped prisoner will be recaptured.
In Australia, gambling is so wide-
spread that on a per capita basis,
Australia has become the biggest
betting nation in the world. With
600 racetracks and 2,500 licensed
bookmakers, there is seldom a break
in the action. Prívate clubs with slot
machines have become a focal point
of the Australian way of life.
Even in Tasmania the first legal
casino has become an instant suc–
cess. On two occasions, the casino
was forced to clase its doors because
3,000 people - ten times the in–
tended capacity - packed the 21 -
story structure.
Throughout Asia, the gambling
craze is mushrooming. Malaysia's
capital of Kuala Lumpur attracts
players from Singapore to its now
legalized casinos. Determined to
add a little spice to gambling, one
establishment in Malaysia agreed to
let people gamble on their credit
cards.
Even the small mountain king–
dom of Nepal has instituted gam–
bling at a hotel in its capital,
Katmandu.
South Korea has Iicensed severa!
casinos and takes in millions of dol–
lars annually from the operations.
Djakarta, Indonesia's capital. has
taken in a third of its revenue from
different forms of gambling. Slot
machines, horse racing, local lot–
teries and licensed casinos brought
the city government more than
$7,000,000.
The epidemic of betting in the
United States involves horse racing,
cards, s lot machines , spor ting
events, bingo and lotteries. Al–
though ha rd statistics are difficult to
obtain, gambling is assumed to be
the biggest business in the United
States. Legal and illegal gambling
was estimated by the President's
Comrnission on Law Enforcement
to be in excess of $50 billion - and
growing.
The Ultimate in Gambling
World famous Las Vegas
is
the
glittering capital of gambling
in
the
United States. More than 20 rnillion
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WHY THE ODDS ARE STACKED AGAINST YOU