So...
Gambling.

There is a great deal of stigma attached to gambling as some of the comments on this thread show. But is it that bad, really?
( Hdjejjwsjdjjf LOOK, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:19, 15 replies, latest was 15 years ago)

I am utterly risk-averse with everything bar my health.
I don't have a gambling bone in my body. The way I see it, bookies, casinos etc are hugely profitable businesses, and there's a good reason for this. You're more likely to lose money than win it, unless you're a genuine expert on horse racing or whatever...and I'm not.

I worked with a fellow for a while who had no 'vices' bar gambling on horses, he knew his stuff and had a separate bank account for his gambling. He'd put ten grand in there about five years previously and when I met him he had about the same amount in there, and at times there'd been eighty plus grand in there.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:29, Reply)

I made an awesome dinner,
I reduced down some white wine with added chilli and garlic down to nothing while some Fussilini was boiling, I then added a big nob of butter so it browns ('ber nois zet' thing). Then added the meat of a MOTHER FUCKING LOBSTER and tost through the pasta.

Oh god, its was so luxorious and good. I also put the shells in when the wine was reducing, donno if it did anything though.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:17, Reply)

If it only impacts on the gambler, then no.
If you have no other responsibilities than yourself, I don't see a problem. If you have a family to support, then I think it's a bit irresponsible.
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:45, Reply)

This is pretty much my view
What I don't like are people with very little understanding of how gambling works, but who seem to have a knee-jerk opposition to it.
( Hdjejjwsjdjjf LOOK, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:49, Reply)

I went to university with a really fucking odd chap
who could memorise a shuffled deck of cards and tell you them in perfect order a fortnight later, whilst stoned out of his mind. He survived handsomely for a couple of years travelling round Europe utilising this ability in casinos. Had his head kicked in a few times though. But that wasn't 'gambling' as such, really.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:56, Reply)

Yep
Card counting like that is a good trick if you can do it. There are ways to replicate the effect mathematically with a game like blackjack, but casinos don't make it easy and as you say, getting your head kicked in is a strong possibility.
( Hdjejjwsjdjjf LOOK, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 19:59, Reply)

I'm up for blowing my wad on a tasty punt

( broadsword, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 20:05, Reply)

But I don't gamble

( broadsword, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 20:05, Reply)

You'll be wanting this then

( Hdjejjwsjdjjf LOOK, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 20:08, Reply)

Looks like you're up the creek without a paddle
hahahaha. Ha.
( The Light in Chains don't touch the Pope's boner, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:23, Reply)

What about 'blowing your wad' on a nice pair of breasts?

( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Sat 19 Feb 2011, 20:07, Reply)

I like breasts

( The Light in Chains don't touch the Pope's boner, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:26, Reply)

I used to work with an extremely addicted gambler, he was £20k down at one point and I saw him put £1-2k over a weekend every couple of weeks while at work.

( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:13, Reply)

I've seen it happen
I was playing in a casino poker tournament the other day when a guy came through from playing roulette. He'd just £4500 in ten minutes. But the single worst one I ever saw was in a different casino. A guy walked in with £100. He threw it down onto the roulette table on one space, and won. That's 3.5k in ten seconds. Without a flicker of happiness on his face, he started to redistribute it over the table. No idea if he lost it again, but probably.
( Hdjejjwsjdjjf LOOK, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:30, Reply)

Yeah', I got gambling problems in the family, or at least, my dad had problems when he was growing up with his dad (my granddad).
Which is why I'd never heverly get into it. About once every few monts I put £30 down on roullette to get it out my system, I normally get down to like £5 then up to £50ish and pull out.
( G/PP 💩💩💩💩💩&#128, Sat 19 Feb 2011, 22:53, Reply)