Military Gambling Addiction Twice as High

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May 26, 2011

by Chad Hills

Veterans have about twice the rate of gambling addiction problems as does the general population. The Veterans Administration Health Services Research & Development funded a study to determine the prevalence of problem and pathological gambling addiction within the U.S. military, and their findings were disturbing. Here are a few items that stood out:

One in 10 veterans has a problem or pathological gambling addiction (2 percent pathological addictions and 8 percent problem addictions to gambling)
Unemployment seemed to play a major role in whether the veteran had gambling addictions, and married veterans were more likely to have gambling addictions (not what psychologists and researchers expected to see, very unusual)
Veterans have about twice the rate of problem/pathological gambling addictions compared to the general, non-military population
Both male and female veterans have almost identical problem and pathological gambling addiction rates (again, this is unusual – not what psychologists and researchers expected to see)
Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety tend to have more gambling addiction problems
Younger veterans (20s) were more likely to be diagnosed as pathological gamblers (from previous data, most veterans with pathological gambling addictions are 35 and older, so this change in age for addiction was unexpected)

Our troops protect this nation and our freedom. Shouldn’t we protect them by not tempting fate through placement of video slot machines, video lottery terminals or other gambling venues on military bases?

Military aggression, job stress, post-assignment stress, being away from loved ones and being placed in very dangerous and hostile environments can make our troops vulnerable to unhealthy methods of emotional escape. Video gambling machines can quickly become an addiction for troops trying to escape troubling emotions.

Dig Deeper …

John W. Kindt, Gambling with Terrorism and U.S. Military Readiness: Time to Ban Video Gambling Devices on U.S. Military Bases and Facilities?

Related content:

Ripley

Army Morale, Welfare, and Recreation offers slot machines that are managed by the Army Recreation Machine Program on overseas military bases only. This excludes Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories. The base that hosts the slot machines keeps 15% of the win, which seems pretty paltry to me. The rest goes to ARMP and Army MWR in unknown percentages. Other services get better deals. The Navy keeps at least half of the win on the base where it is generated. I have no information on the Air Force.

The argument for offering slot machines is that people who gamble would go to gamble on the economy. Slot parlors with 10-20 machines are very common in Germany. I live within five miles of no fewer than four slot parlors (LowenPlay is a chain of slot parlors), and chances are that there are another four that I haven’t found. However, these machines have a safeguard that U.S. machines lack. Suppose that you put a 20 euro note into the slot machine. TWO euros will be transferred into the betting bank of the slot machine, with the remainder transferred over at a rate of about a euro per minute. These machines also shut down every hour for five minutes to force gamblers to take a break, and stop feeding money over to the betting bank if you bet and lose more than about 50 euros within an hour. It simply isn’t possible to bet as much as you want without sitting around and waiting for a long time.

There are ways around these safeguards, such as being willing to sit and wait for 20 minutes so that you can make the maximum two euro bet or moving to another machine, but often the slot parlor is crowded enough that another machine is not available. It is common for German gamblers to tie up two or three machines this way. Slot machines in larger casinos, such as Baden Baden or Wiesbaden, do mot have these restrictions.

About a third of the customers of the slot facilities in Wiesbaden are German citizens who are allowed to use the facilities. Many are military spouses.

I’d prefer to see slots removed from U.S. military bases. About half of the slot machines that we have are made by Novomatic, an Austrian manufacturer of slot machines. These boast a 5000:1 potential payoff for the game “Book of Ra” and 9000:1 for “Lucky Ladies’s Charm” or “Dolphin’s Pearl”. U.S. manufactured games with equally high potential payoff s are available as well. Compare this to an older, single reel machine like “Double Diamond” that paid 800:1 for the jackpot, with a bonus of 100 coins if it was a three-coin machine.

Chad Hills

Ripley, thanks for commenting on CitizenLink. I appreciate your insight and sharing of your experience with gambling parlors/machines on Germany-based military facilities. It’s interesting that safeguards are in place to slow down gamblers’ rate of money loss – forcing gamblers to rest, clear their heads and possibly realize they’ve lost too much.

American casinos don’t do this. In fact, they place rows of ATM (cash) machines near slots, so that gamblers don’t have to leave their “lucky” slots for more than a few minutes. I’m not sure if similar safeguards are placed on U.S.-based military gambling machines, but it would be wise. Too many lose too much too fast, and it can happen before gamblers can even think. A cool-down period is definitely beneficial for any gambler; although, pathologically addicted gamblers will likely find ways to work around the system. But with Player – or Club – Cards, the casinos could definitely find and stop problem and pathological gamblers – they just don’t want to, because more than 60 percent of their revenues come from only 10 percent of the heaviest gamblers. Casinos know this and very little is done to stop this addiction.

Many of the positions in the military are life-threatening and extremely stressful. We underestimate the value of “escape” for these military men and women (and their spouses). Alcoholism and gambling both tend to “numb” the senses and allow brief windows of emotional escape, which can result in addictive behaviors. With our military personnel being so valuable and holding such responsible life-threatening positions, I think slot machines are not the best idea in such close proximity to our soldiers. Unfortunately, the military and states see this vice as a cash cow, and neither are likely to remove gambling once it has dug into a foxhole and created gambling revenue-dependent programs.

Thanks for sharing your insight, especially regarding gambling in foreign U.S. military bases, and thanks for your service to preserve our country’s freedom. You are greatly appreciated.

http://www.femalegamblers.info Marilyn Lancelot

The person sitting next to you in church, the man in line at the grocery store, or one of your co-workers; any one of these could be involved with a gambling problem. Imagine your grandmother committing a crime to support her gambling addiction. I am a recovering alcoholic, gambler, and have recovered from other addictive behaviors. I published a book, Gripped by Gambling, where the readers can follow the destructive path of the compulsive gambler, a prison sentence, and then on to the recovery road.

I recently published a second book, Switching Addictions, describing additional issues that confront the recovering addict. If a person who has an addictive personality, doesn’t admit to at least two addictions, he’s not being honest. These are two books you might consider adding to your library. I also publish a free online newsletter, Women Helping Women, which has been on-line for more than ten years and is read by hundreds of women (and men) from around the world. (www.femalegamblers.info). I was interviewed and appeared on the 60 Minutes show in January 2011, which was moderated by Leslie Stahl.

Sincerely,

Marilyn Lancelot