Реферат: Legalized Gambling Essay Research Paper Through the

gamblers.40 Even worse, the estimated 1.3 million teen

gamblers, 7% of which are under the age of 18, are twice

as likely to become compulsive gamblers.41 Another source

determined that one million teenagers are compulsive

gamblers out of the eight million compulsive gamblers in

the country.42 These numbers vary so much because few

institutions have researched this very major problem.

These young compulsive gamblers have the same problems as

their older counterparts. Approximately 13% commit crimes

to pay for their habit.43 They put gambling above school,

friends, and their growing debt.44 A poll at a local Las

Vegas high school showed that 400 out of 768(52%) students

had gambled illegally. Other research showed 155,000

underage gamblers were caught trying to get into Atlantic

City casinos last year.45

Teen gambling is rapidly growing for many reasons.

First, few seem to care about or address the issue.

Second, every new casino built on the Las Vegas strip has

become family oriented. The MGM Grand, Luxor, and

Treasure Island, built in the last five years, and Circus

Circus and Excalibur, built a few years before, all have a

Disney-like environment geared towards kids. Children

have to walk through casinos to get to their hotel rooms,

theme parks and video game arcades.46 Third, teenage

gamblers hardly ever suffer any type of severe penalty

when caught trying to sneak into a casino or buy lotto

tickets, so they just go to the next casino or next drug

store. Finally, most young adults do not get warned about

the wrong of gambling. Parents and schools drill into