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Responsible Gaming Reps Make Irresponsible Gambling Statements
OTTAWA, CANADA --
The Responsible Gaming Council is concerned that problem gambling may be a growing problem in Canada. In fact the council is so worried some members make sweeping statements about gambling and addiction that have no scientific basis, all to make their gambling concerns more dramatic.
Therapists specializing in addiction treatment say that false, overblown statements by authorities are one of the easiest ways to lose connection to those they are trying to help.
Paula Reddick, a social worker dealing with addictive behavior and problem gambling, says, "Nobody respected drug opponents who used 'Reefer Madness' to back their position, and the same result happens when people just say things without evidence."
Clara Panarella, a counsellor at Addictions and Problem Gambling Services of Ottawa, told the Ottawa Citizen that compulsive gambling is often disguised or hidden from view. "Gambling is invisible. That is why it is devastating. It explodes like a bomb.”
Other council members asserted that Baby Boomers may be in for a wave of problem gambling troubles, as incomes settle into fixed levels.
Reddick said, "Saying gambling can explode like a bomb is like saying it can shoot lasers right through you. And what scientific data shows that problem gambling is likely to emerge, as if shedding a cocoon, as the gambler reaches late middle age?"
Reddick said the only way to seriously deal with problem gambling is to consult scientific studies, which have leaned heavily toward seeing problem gambling as a symptom of deeper addictive compulsions, and not some evil trigger only wagering activates.
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