Essay on Gambling in Alberta, Canada

Gambling in Canada can be traced back to 1892 when the Canadian Criminal Code banned almost all gambling activities apart from horse racing. At the end of the 19th century, placing bets on horse races was done both on the tracks and off them. Authorities were inclined to accommodate on-track betting despite its legal status not being clear. As time went by, exemptions were made to the Criminal Code, allowing small scale gambling whereby the winnings went to charity from 1892 up to 1969, people in Canada could gamble at summer fairs or place bets on horse races. In 1969, the Criminal Code was amended in a way that allowed federal and provincial governments to fund worthwhile events and activities using lotteries. This essay looks at gambling in Alberta, Canada.

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People from Alberta love gambling as much as those from other parts of Canada. It all started back in 1967 when the provinces earliest charitable casino was inaugurated at the Edmonton annual fair. Alberta got its firsts casino in 1980 located at the middle of Calgary. A second one was opened a year later just along the highway in Edmonton. Unlike the case of certain other provinces, the Alberta government does not allow online gambling sites. People in Alberta who wish to play casino games via the internet have to look for websites whose regulation is done by non-Alberta governments.

There are numerous places in Alberta where gambling is legal. Anyone living in areas of Alberta such as Edmonton will enjoy all the online gambling prospects as well as those of brick and mortar casinos. There are over two dozen establishments to gamble in the province, with casinos scattered in large cities and small towns. For instance, Calgary alone has not less than seven casinos. There are at least five in Edmonton, including the Palace Casino located at the West Edmonton Mall. Gambling establishments can also be found in cities such as Grande Prairie, Lethbridge and Enoch.

They are various forms of gambling that are legal in Alberta. They include charitable gaming such as legalized bingo and lotteries, and horse racing. The Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission is responsible for regulating gambling activities in the province. It registers gaming employees, licenses all charitable gambling, inspects legal gambling establishments, investigates any criminal activities in these establishments, and manages all financial audits. In addition, it supplies electronic gaming equipment and ensures they are in a good working condition, while also collecting registration and licensing fees. Canada has a one-of-a-kind policy structure when it comes to gambling. It is different from other nations in that gambling is exclusively run and regulated by respective territorial and provincial governments. Such governments operate within the threshold of the Criminal Code when it comes to offering gambling options demanded by the political environment and the market. Private operators, First Nations and charities also enjoy benefits of gambling activities by providing opportunities for provincially-authorized gambling via operational arrangements.

It is worth looking at the effects of legalized gambling in Alberta. The residents of this province leap the most benefits of gambling since they are the ones that participate in it. They are also the beneficiaries of the funds dispersed by charitable organizations and the provincial government. Since 2007, Alberta citizens of First Nations communities have been receiving direct benefits gotten from First Nations casinos. Such benefits are in the form of better public services and a minimized need to pay involuntary services. These are among the most crucial and positive effects of legal gambling in the province.

Another positive impact of legal gambling in the province has to do with employment. There is a lot of potential for more employment opportunities in labor intensive types of gambling such as casinos and horse racing. Numerous individuals are employed to help in various gambling establishments, including bingo halls, racing entertainment centers and casinos. They work as cashiers, security guards, bookkeepers and so on. Others are personnel whose role is to manage or deliver gaming operations; mostly slot managers, slot operators, bingo hall managers, and pit bosses. The hourly wages for individuals who join the gambling industry tend to be somewhat higher than what they used to get in their previous employment. Additionally, a notable percentage of those who have been newly employed in this industry did not have a source of income previously. Hence, the fact that they are hired means new employment opportunities have been created by legalized gambling.

A positive impact of legal gambling is that it provides an extra leisure option and entertainment value for Aberta residents. The fact that many people gamble with revenue collected from it being in the tune of millions of dollars is proof of its value in the society. However, as much as gambling is popular form of relaxing for these residents, it is worth putting this leisure benefit into perspective. Actually, buying lottery tickets happens to be the most popular form of gambling in the province. Other forms of gambling such as raffles, instant win tickets, slot machines or betting in sports are popular among the minority of the residents. According to economists, there is a way of measuring the leisure benefits of legalized gambling. It involves consumer surplus- the difference between what an individual is willing to pay for something and what he or she actually pays. The good thing about this approach is that it is able to provide a more tangible measure of one of the main positive effects of gambling. This effect is often ignored when evaluating the benefits and costs of gambling. Also, it acts as a counterpoint to gamblings more tangible costs in terms of money.

Probably the most crucial consideration when looking at the effects of gambling is the overall impact it has on the quality of gamblers lives. According to some people, legal gambling encourages materialism and capitalism, which do not do much good to harmony in the society. Others agree that this argument is true. However, gambling and tendency towards capitalism also encourage entrepreneurship and risk taking. These two are crucial to economic success that is linked to well-being of the society. Another argument put forward is that gambling cannot be perceived as true entrepreneurship since it promotes the idea that it is possible to gain something from nothing. It is unfortunate that effects in this area are also quite difficult to quantify. For one, there is no consensus on the definition of quality of life or how it should be measured. Also, the materialistic or capitalistic inclination of the western society is probably among the reasons why people actively participate in gambling. It is also a possible reason why political leaders tolerate and make it legal.

Theoretically speaking, it may be unrealistic to deduce that gambling will have a diverse effect on the quality of life. This is given the fact that regular involvement in gambling only occurs in a tiny segment of the population. It is worth bearing in mind that about a quarter of all people do not take part in gambling. In the case of those who actually gamble, most of them only purchase the occasional raffle and lottery ticket. Perhaps the possible exceptions to this theory are the reserve communities that have economically successful gambling establishments in the vicinity and which enjoy widespread social and economic benefits. A possible way of finding out the effect of gambling on the quality of life is by looking at it from an individual level. Such examination would entail figuring out the levels of happiness or stress that result from taking part in gambling.

As much as legalized gambling has its benefits, it also has some shortcomings. There are certain social and moral problems resulting from gambling in Alberta. The gambling industry in the province may be experiencing incredible growth, with revenue generated from it amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars. However, it is more difficult to figure out the extent of human suffering that goes hand in hand with this staggering amount of revenue. Uninformed residents of Alberta perceive these revenues as good news. They have a mistaken belief that gambling is some kind of voluntary taxation; a victimless and painless means of raising revenue for the government. Such an outlook does not put into consideration a well-documented fact that an extensively disproportionate amount of gambling revenue is gotten from poverty-stricken people and addicts. Also, the atmosphere of children from gambling-addicted families is that of un-ending interpersonal conflict, domestic violence, and poor parenting. As opposed to being socially harmless, legal gambling is somehow damaging to individuals, families and the society at large.

Going back to the history of gambling in Alberta mentioned earlier in the paper, it is apparent how appalling ethics in the industry have changed. Gambling in the province is so ever-present and visible that not many people notice anymore the insightful ethical transformation that has taken place within such a brief period of time. In just a few decades, Alberta has changed from an area that disdained gambling as undesirable and disreputable. It is now a province that ardently promotes gambling as a form of leisure and entertainment. Such a rapid turnaround in public opinion was facilitated by a brilliant marketing campaign. The manner in which the public initially perceived as socially undesirable was gradually altered in a way that it came to be thought of a kind of an adult sport played indoors. It has even been given a euphemistical title gaming. In the late 1990s, it dawned on some citizens groups the social damage that was being caused by gambling, particularly slot machines. It spurred them to start lobbying for a provincial referendum. However, this failed to take place although the groups were directed to petition for local plebiscites for every one of the affected communities. This action turned out to be a failure as they could not match the funding given out by the Alberta Hotel association that supported the slot machines. In the referendum campaigns, pro-gambling forces gave the impression that they were more interested in defending the freedom of peoples choice than they were in making money. Pro-slot machines forces argued that gambling addicts made up only a small percent of gamblers. They then made the issue look like it was one involving civil liberties vs. censorship. Their campaign was on the basis of the fact that the majority should not be denied entertainment just because of the habit forming problems of just a few. Hence, the Alberta gambling industry succeeded in convincing people that it was a relatively harmless entertainment and leisure activity that was mainly for the public benefit. A gambling culture was thus established in Alberta thanks to the smart marketing campaign orchestrated by the gambling industry, as well as failure on the part of the provincial government. The same government did not sufficiently consult the residents of the province as to whether or not they wished to see legal gambling on such a major scale.

The social cost of gambling in Alberta is worth looking at. Obviously, the severe problems resulting from gambling are triggered by the loss of huge amounts of money. Such losses lead to inner conflicts, family stress. The impact created by the loss of a certain amount of money per month varies depending on the gamblers income. A low income earner with a family to support, an individual receiving AISH (Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped) or one on welfare losing a lot of money every month...