Are you in the wrong job ?

[Beebo]

I’m very fortunate with gambling, it just doesn’t appeal to me, and the thought of losing money far outweighs the thrill of winning.

I have a very close friend who has struggled all his life with gambling to the point of ruin.

Like most vices it seems to disproportionately affect the poorest in society. How much benefit money goes into the hands of the bookie?

 

[srw]

. Not sure if others will understand
this but..... the thought that, if I
win, someone who cant afford it
will be losing.

If your bet is at the bookies, the other side is a well capitalised regulated company that can well afford to lose.

Gambling - at least gambling against the house or on exchanges* - is a nasty business that plays on people's hopes and wrecks lives. I'd cheerfully regulate it out of existence. But it's important to attack it with comments that make sense rather than bits of nonsense.

*Clause added for the cleverclogs thinking of poker.

 

[winjim]

If your bet is at the bookies, the other side is a well capitalised regulated company that can well afford to lose.

Gambling - at least gambling against the house or on exchanges* - is a nasty business that plays on people's hopes and wrecks lives. I'd cheerfully regulate it out of existence. But it's important to attack it with comments that make sense rather than bits of nonsense.

*Clause added for the cleverclogs thinking of poker.

I find the exchange model fundamentally more honest than the bookies. Bookmakers manipulate the odds so they always have the edge, they can afford to 'lose' because they never actually lose. An exchange will just charge commission on winnings so they don't need to win or lose themselves, which is why you get better odds. Were I to gamble, I would always choose an exchange over a bookmaker.

 

[srw]

I find the exchange model fundamentally more honest than the bookies. Bookmakers manipulate the odds so they always have the edge, they can afford to 'lose' because they never actually lose. An exchange will just charge commission on winnings so they don't need to win or lose themselves, which is why you get better odds. Were I to gamble, I would always choose an exchange over a bookmaker.

I find gambling exchanges repulsive for precisely the reason @Dave7 highlights. It's you against another mug. Some of those mugs can't afford to lose. See also financial spread betting and amateur derivative gambling.

 

[winjim]

I find gambling exchanges repulsive for precisely the reason @Dave7 highlights. It's you against another mug. Some of those mugs can't afford to lose. See also financial spread betting and amateur derivative gambling.

But at least one of you has a chance of winning. The bookmakers have it rigged so that everybody loses.

 

[screenman]

But at least one of you has a chance of winning. The bookmakers have it rigged so that everybody loses.

I doubt they would last long if they did not make a profit.

 

[winjim]

I doubt they would last long if they did not make a profit.

But my point is it's possible to make a profit by charging commission on winnings rather than manipulating the odds. The bookies make their money before a ball is even kicked.

 

[Dave7]

[QUOTE 5449319, member: 9609"]the rights and wrongs about gambling aside - I have to say I am incredibly impressed with this womans success, she took some big risks in the beginning and its all paid off big time - well done her. And it won't have been any walk in the park she took on some mighty companies in what I would imagine is a pretty cut throat industry and showed them the way. Very impressive.[/QUOTE]
In my OP I stated that I am all in favour of people taking the risk then making good (even VERY good) profits..... as you say. But I question someone making such MASSIVE profits while many of the punters lose absolutely everything.

 

[srw]

But at least one of you has a chance of winning. The bookmakers have it rigged so that everybody loses.

Well no. The commission you pay the exchange is economically identical from your perspective as the bookie's edge in the odds. It's money taken out of the winnings you'd get if you gambled at precisely accurate odds. The fact that the exchange is doing it risk-free makes it even more like a tax.

 

[winjim]

Well no. The commission you pay the exchange is economically identical from your perspective as the bookie's edge in the odds. It's money taken out of the winnings you'd get if you gambled at precisely accurate odds. The fact that the exchange is doing it risk-free makes it even more like a tax.

I guess it depends on how you look at it. To my mind the exchange charges you commission on winnings, the bookie charges you commission just to place a bet. And how much risk do you really think the bookies are taking?

 

[Accy cyclist]

I walk past a bookmakers on my local high street nearly every day and see addicts pumping those slot machines or passing slips to the one behind the counter. Most i know or know of. One of my neighbours goes in the place about 6 or 7 times a day to put small bets on. He says it's fun and not an addiction. That may be so but i just don't understand the appeal of having some money in your pocket then trying to increase that amount, with the chance of losing that money much more than the chance of increasing the amount. Also i'm sick of seeing(or was until....) that so called 'hard man' actor Ray Winstone who's really a theatrical luvvy encouraging addicts to gamble on the most trivial of things. One of the reasons i don't watch telly anymore. I don't like his stupid voice or his stupid knobhead face.

 

[winjim]

How could she not do well? People give her their money, she gives 95% of it back. All she's done is develop a fancy smoke & mirrors front end for it.

 

[Shortandcrisp]

I placed a £1 bet on Corbiere to win the Grand National in, I think, 1981. To my amazement it one and I collected the princely sum of £22. The first and only time I’ve gambled. Decided to quit while ahead! I must be the only living person who’s spent 3 days in Caeser’s Palace, Las Vegas without gambling, drinking or visiting a girly bar. Instead I spent all my time in the free gym or the swimming pool!

 

[Beebo]

Thread resurrection!

She’s only gone a paid herself £469 million this year.
She was paid £277 million last year and £245 million the year before.
Her tax bill must be huge and she does a lot for charity but this is all money earned from gambling. There must be such misery of some customers associated with her company.

 

[snorri]

Thread resurrection!

If only there was a way of putting the thread resurrection warning beside the thread title, we could go straight to the last post in the thread !

Edited to add 'thread'