Gambling - Poker
by: Jerry Price - Aug 21, 2006 - comment
“In the past five years, poker has become a national craze. Hands are dealt on the Internet, and TV shows such as Celebrity Poker Showdown on Bravo draw huge audiences. A ‘royal flush’ is becoming as familiar a sports phrase as a ‘Hail Mary.’
“With poker’s growing popularity has come greater scrutiny by law enforcement agencies, and arrests and crackdowns are taking place from Baltimore and New York to Monterey, Calif. In October, a business group in San Jose was warned that it would break the law if it hosted a poker tournament to raise money for a library . . . Poker has become so ubiquitous that some may not realize that they are committing a crime. In what Baltimore police said was the largest such raid in their city since 1932, 75 people were cited in November for playing in a poker game advertised in the local newspaper.
“Among other recent arrests:
- In December, police in Fairfax County, Va., charged two men, including an off-duty police officer, with operating an illegal poker game in a home. It is legal to play poker in Virginia, but it is a crime to operate a gambling establishment, charge an entrance fee or take a cut of the pot.
- A man was charged in February in Atwater, Calif., with running an illegal poker tournament in his sports bar. Seven others were charged in September in Monterey and Seaside, Calif., with illegally running poker tournaments and sports betting pools, according to a spokesman for the California state attorney general.
- About seven illegal poker clubs were closed down last year in New York City, says chief police spokesman Paul Browne. Some of the shuttered clubs were targeted after shootings occurred or weapons were found there.
Excerpted from Charisse Jones, “National Poker Craze Drawing Attention of Law Enforcement,” USA Today, January 18, 2006
“The Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling reported recently that teen gambling is on the rise. The council, based in Green Bay, indicated that Internet gambling and sports betting are an increasing part of teens’ lives throughout the country, and claimed that the popularity of poker games, including Texas Hold ‘Em, is rising rapidly.
“‘The popularity of poker has skyrocketed in the past few years and it has captured the attention of a lot of teens and young adults,’ said Rose Gruber, executive director of the Council on Problem Gambling.
“Gruber said an estimated 6 to 12 percent of teens are at risk of becoming addicted to gambling, while 5 percent of Wisconsin’s general population is at risk of being compulsive gamblers. The council claims that nearly 16 percent of the population have someone in their lives with a gambling problem and that gambling among teens is a fast-growing addiction.
“‘Many parents seem to have the attitude that gambling at home with a group of friends is safe,’ Gruber said. ‘They feel it’s a better alternative than drinking or doing drugs. But that attitude ignores the fact that gambling can be just as addictive and destructive as alcohol or drugs. Gambling can also serve as a gateway to other destructive behaviors.’
“It’s hard to fathom, but many young problem gamblers cited by the council said they started gambling at the tender age of 10.
“The danger goes well beyond monetary matters.
“Adolescents between the ages of 14 and 17 with serious gambling problems are at a heightened risk for suicide ideation and suicide attempts, according to the problem gambling council.”
Excerpted from Andy Thompson, “Teen Gambling: A Rising Concern that Brings Bevy of Woe to Parents,” The Post-Crescent (Appleton, WI), December 23, 2005
In December 2005, Lehigh University student Greg Hogan, 19, robbed a bank in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to pay off a $5,000 gambling debt incurred through online poker. Hogan was president of his sophomore class, played second-chair cello in the university orchestra, worked in the chaplain’s office, and is the son of a Baptist minister.
His world came crashing down because he got addicted to poker and started borrowing money to fund his addiction.
Texas Hold ‘em is the hottest gambling venue today. It is televised on several nationwide channels and played in all-night tournaments, campus fundraisers, dorm rooms, local poker clubs, and homes across the nation. Toy stores and major department stores now sell poker sets openly.
Edward Looney, executive director of the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey, says, “The word, conservatively, is ‘epidemic.’” Elizabeth George, chief executive of the North American Training Institute, which specializes in dealing with problems of youth gambling, says the popularity of poker is “absolutely phenomenal.”
The University of Pennsylvania’s Annenburg Public Policy Center released a study in September 2005 which stated that half of college men admit to having gambled on cards at least once a month during the year. That is a 5 percent increase from the previous year. Fifteen percent played at least once a week in 2005, up from 2 percent in 2002.
Wendy Koch, “It’s Always Poker Night on Campus; Internet Makes It Easier to Bet—and Get Hooked,” USA Today, December 23, 2005
Further Learning
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