Activists like to tell us – with plenty of justification – that lack of affordable health care is a crisis. But suppose you also have a gambling addiction, with or without health insurance?

New studies show that personal bankruptcies are up nearly 30% in states which legalized online betting. (see link below).

There is $150 billion wagered annually on sports alone by working class people. People who can’t afford to go to a brick and motar casino unless they catch the bus from Philadelphia to Atlantic city. It's just $7 and only takes an hour and a half. When you arrive you'll be comped on your first $10 worth of slots tokens, so you're already ahead, right?.

Please - nobody should post a reply to this thread which claims bettors get most of their money back, since casinos are limited by law on the how much they can earn on each bet. Gambling addicts bet until their money is gone. If they win a couple of times before that happens, it doesn’t change the end result. Which is a good idea to buy a round-trip bus ticket. You don't want to be singing "Loan me Two Dollars" . . .

The NFL is the 800 pound gorilla for wagering in the USA. We'll be able to see plenty of ads for online betting before, during, and after the Superbowl tomorrow. Possibly during the puppy bowl too. In the UK, television and in person viewership of soccer matches dwarfs the NFL statistics. And half the Premier League teams have the logo of an online betting company on their jerseys. Go Hammers!

A reporter for Harpers magazine – which usually embraces all sorts of deregulation and vice – spent a year researching America’s gambling problem. And became semi-addicted in the process. He thinks online sports betting should be restricted or rolled back, because they could be worse than fentanyl or meth. His article (link below) has convincing stats on how many teens and tweens already have gambling aps on their devices, which is a violation of the age restrictions. Evidently pressing “I am over 18” button for FanDuel is no more effective than it is for porn?

Someone will say we can’t turn back the clock on legalized gambling. That we have already bought into mobile apps, Powerball, Mega millions, scratch offs, Atlantic City, Vegas (which will get a new bullet train from LA to increase its take), landlocked casino barges that meet a hilarious standard for “riverboat gambling" because of a fishpond sized moat . . .

There’s no reason to advertise gambling during the super bowl. Kids are watching. We don’t allow TV ads for Jack Daniels, Marlboros, porn, weed dispensaries, Glock pistols, and how to create fraud IDs. There are some red lines that haven’t been crossed yet.

But maybe the lobbyists will get the last word on those too?

I’m just sayin’ . . .

media and advertising

Will America’s next big financial crisis be online gambling . . . ?