Originally Posted by arcimede$ View Post
Frank, I think your position as a pro gambler and your personal distaste for gambling is warping your thinking here. A recreational gambler considers the money previously lost to be money spent on entertainment. It's no different than a trip to Hawaii, or a new set of golf clubs, etc. They received compensation for that money. The money they win on the current trip really is a win in their eyes. You just have to take a different perspective. Ity's not ALL about the money.
One question: Aren't you also a professional gambler? (I thought you were)

Second not question: The reason I sent this off to Randi for double checking, is to make sure I was not being negatively biased, and correctly portraying the current thinking of the psychological community. In that respect, you could say I was ahead of you. I tried to anticipate my own bias and counteract it. The only way I know of to check if one is biased, is to get a second opinion from someone else. Randi has treated pro gamblers in the past and isn't 100% against gambling. She only feels it is a problem, if as you have said in the past, "it creates problems". The difference is that she is in a position to be a much better judge of what constitutes a problem than an individual would be of themselves, if they had issues with gambling. One of the most common attributes to all addiction is denial.

You ended your post with, "it's not ALL about the money". I would agree. The issue here is a much deeper one and relates to why gambling is considered entertainment and has any potential for "fun" at all.

I also agree that people feel they receive compensation for their money. What I'd like to address is the source and origin of those "feelings" as it is understood by the latest research.