I don't gamble and I can't help thinking that anyone who goes to bookmakers or regularly play the lottery has something of a muggle. The only way to win at a casino is by owning it. All gambling modalities are designed so that the house wins if the interactions are repeated long enough. Similarly, most lottery gamblers will die without winning the long-awaited jackpot.
Still, I don't see how to object to any legalization of the gaming sector. I can't argue, as I argue, that people should be empowered to decide whether to use drugs, eventually compromising their health and finances, but not just to toast their money on a roulette. Who can do the most can do the least.
The discussion is less about the harm caused by these activities, which are real, and more about the kind of society we want to be. At least I would never sign a social contract in which I would delegate to my neighbors the decision as to what substances I can ingest or how to spend the money I earned honestly.
There is a problem with sustaining these levels of individual autonomy, advocates of less liberal positions will say. Humans have a series of brain bugs that make them easy prey for certain drugs and habits that can trigger obsessive behavior. We need to protect them against these manufacturing defects.
I agree that something must be done, but I think that the first line of government intervention should be limited to providing the citizen with reliable information. Secondly, the State can provide problem users with support from health services. I do not believe, however, that the choice should be stymied. In open societies, people have the right to do whatever they want with their own bodies and wallets — and to make mistakes in attempts.
Hélio Schwartsman
Brazilian philosopher and journalist, editorialist and columnist for Folha de S.Paulo newspaper. He published Aquilae Titicans - The Secret of Avicenna - An Adventure in Afghanistan in 2001. He writes for Folha daily, except Mondays and Thursdays, and weekly, Thursdays, at Folha.com.
Source: Folha de S.Paulo