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Gambling is a complex and intriguing human activity. When it appeared long ago, it seen as popular, but it has cycled to the opposite extreme to be rebuked, condemned and repressed as a social evil. More precisely, Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs) are one important aspect of gambling that affects gamblers and makes them addicts. These machines are often refered to as the "crack cocaine of gambling", "one armed bandits" or even the "devil`s television". First, to uncover the VLTs world, we need to go back and explore the history of these machines. Then, we need to emphasize on the relation between the population and the machines: what attracts people and how? Following this, view by a psychological manner, we have to focus on the fact that VLTs are not random and how people are enslaved by them. Also, the explanation of how these slot machines are taking money from people and their effects. Statistics revealed by a professor who studied gambling in Las Vegas said that 78 per cent of pathological gamblers had thought about suicide and 49 per cent had attempted it; 35.5 per cent said they stole from work to pay for their gambling and 27.5 per cent said they filed for brankruptcy. Finally, the role of the government and the economy will be introduced, and some solutions for addicted gamblers must be included. First, a little historical introduction is important to analyse where the gambling and VLTs came from. The earliest reference to gambling is found in ancient Egypte displaying various board games. Knuckle-bones, from which dice were derived, were popular in Greece and India (Roman board games). Many other little inventions were created; such as the roulette which was introduced into England in 1739 (Roulette history) and playing cards, which originated in VLTs 3 12th century China, reached Europe through Spain and were brought to America with Columbus in 1492. Lotteries were known to exist in early Roman times and were used in judicial proceedings to determine guilt and for the selection of politicians. In England and Western Europe around the 16th century, lotteries became a popular mean of raising government revenue for public projects (lottery history). By 1790 lotteries were flourishing to the point of a "lottery mania" and were more active (Lottery history). Horse racing is several thousand years older than Christianity with Homer and Xenaphon. "Knowledge of the first horse race is lost in prehistory" (Horse racing). It was then made common in the 11th century in London under the interests of Henry VIII. The formation of the Newmarket Jockey club in 1750 paved the way for the formal regulation of racing (Horse racing). Poker-machines, referred to as slot machines or Video Lottery Machines, were invented by the American Charles Frey in 1895. They gained popularity rapidly to become one of the most profitable gaming devices invented (Slot machine history ...,2001-2002). Profits derived were so fabulous from such little investment and little effort that governments willingly took advantadge and control of these machines. Today, the number of video lottery machines has increased by thousands year after year and the money continues to grow rapidly in the governemnts pocket. From a journal written by Novak (1998) it is said that "the amount of money players fed into the machines went from $1.4 billion in 1996 to $2.1 billion in 1997" (p. 2). VLTs 4 It is important to examine the relationship between the population and the Video Lottery Terminals. The question that psychologists and sociologists often ask themselves is what attracts people to VLTs? First, the machines are often very attractive because of their splendid colour and their simpleness. The games are usually visually appealing. Some would like to say that they are « architecturally primitive » (Golfman, N., December 1998), but because they are not complicated to play and there are not many buttons and readings, the players like these machines that require no skill. “And even though it is a chance outcome, it seems that there is some skill involved. So, you get the sense that you are good at what you are doing” (King, M., March 1999). Long ago, these boxes were rudimentary with brown and black colours. But today, to attracted even more people, they are striking with fluorescent coulours and are becomming more modern to fit into today’s world. It is seen that after playing a couple of times, it is very difficult to resist the temptation to drop a coin when you are given the opportunity. The next point is in fact about control.
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