"Bad Bet" Blog Post One

The gambling industry is one of the most successful businesses in the world because of exciting thrill of having a chance of winning money creates an addicting activity that brings in millions of dollars in revenue every year. In Timothy O'Brien book of Bad Bet, he explores the variety of places where the gambling business is striving and how the Internet is starting to take over around the world. With sportsbetting and other types of gambling being illegal in all states in the U.S. besides Nevada, many websites from countries all over the world are beginning to create large revenues within their businesses when people are confound to the ability to gamble within their own home on websites based outside the U.S. In one of the websites talked about in this book, Centrebet, an online sports betting site based in Australia has had success bringing in revenue from customers all around the world to join this virtual casino. One of the General managers of the company said, "I think it's a great innovation that people can sit in the confines of their own home and disseminate information and place a bet without the stigma of walking down to the corner and placing a bet with a bookie"(Ian Loughlin, general manager). This is the issue right here because as the United States is trying to crack down on this addiction of gambling, there are so many different escape routes to get back into this game and end up losing money when having several options of virtual casinos online based in different countries. This gambling addiction can immediately ruin any happiness in a persons life as these places are so inviting and intriguing to play the games and within an hour thousands of dollars can be washed down the drain as these online casinos continue to make millions. I understand these possibilites first hand as I enjoy making bets within my friends and family to make the games more enjoyable and competitive when money is on the line. The way that this has not become a problem within my lifestyle is because the wages I make are at low amounts and I do not let it get into the way of my daily routine. The outcome of if I win or lose does not impact my life significantly and these gambles have not become an addiction to me. Casinos and online sports betting websites will be available to me once I am of age, but I know that I cannot let them get in the way of my life to a significant amount because if a lot of money is wagered it can change the way I live and go about things and can change who I am as a person. The Casino industry will continue to have success because of the addicting aspect of the game, but people need to find better ways to invest their money in gambling situations. I have a different way to gamble that is a safer and smarter way to manage my money which is in the stock market. Any day I can lose or gain a thousand dollars here or there, but since I know my money is in a safe place I try to stay content with my money flow everyday as I am confident that I will be making a profit in the end, and so far the strategy has worked out well for me.