Gambling is good for our commu
Gambling is good for our commuIn recent years, gambling has become one of hottest political issues in Canada. The word "gaming" is the term preferred by the gambling industry over "gambling". Both words refer to the same kinds of activities in Canada which include lotteries, casinos, charitable gaming and pari-mutuel wagering such as horse racing. The gambling industry and gambling activity in Canada have been growing rapidly over the last few years. Gambling has become part of most people’s everyday lives. The public’s attitude has also changed dramatically over time. Many people see it as a leisure activity. In British Columbia, the total amounts wagered during the 1992/93 was approximately 1.2 billion dollars. By 1995/96 the number had increased to almost 1.7 billion dollars and such a number is reaching to 2 billion dollars. Gambling has become a socially acceptable source of entertainment and government revenue. Groups from B.C. have differing reasons to support or oppose legalized gambling and the expansion of gambling from government who receive large amount of money every year from the gambling industry.
Gambling today is no longer simply a matter of the traditional bingo night for a local charity organization. The gambling industry at the end of 1990s is quite different from the past. Gambling was once low-tech and labor-intensive industry and people had to wait for a long period of time between each event. It was also controlled by some illegal groups or criminal organizations. Now it is a 24 hours activity with instant result and without waiting too long. Government is playing an important role in today’s gambling industry. There are kinds of gaming activity which are sponsored or controlled by government who sees it as one of the major sources of it’s revenue.
Economic impact of gambling:
Government revenue--This is a key point that why government support legalized gambling and expansion of the industry. In 1994, almost half a trillion of dollars were wagered within Canada. During 1995 and 1996, the government net gaming revenue was $ 264.9 millions. By 1998/99 this had increased to almost $ 400 millions. Such a dramatically increase in government revenue influence it’s attitude to push for expansion of gambling. It is considered to be an alternative to raising taxes.
Government has been spending lots of effort in reducing budgetary deficits in the last few years but there seems no profound effects. In education, colleges’ and university’s tuition fees have been increased by around 30% in five years because the government is cutting its budget. This puts extremely high pressure on most students. Moreover, by cutting the total amount of government student grant may result in keeping people away from going back to school. The similar problem also exist in other area such as medical and social welfare which may cause...
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