Is gambling a pastime or addiction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Is gambling a pastime or addiction - Essay Example Prediction cannot be made for all betting risks like lotteries, some slot machines and bingo but for certain other things like sports betting and horse racing, a prediction can be attempted, depending on the predictor’s expertise and insight. In the UK, there are a number of offline commercial gambling kinds available such as lotto, bingo, card games, sports-related betting, non-sports betting, scratch cards, roulette, slot machines, and football pools and spread betting (Griffiths, 2009). In the UK, the terms â€Å"problem gambling† and â€Å"pathological gambling† have been employed in a number of studies to explain gambling that affects the person and family life of the gambler. The general term â€Å"Prevalence† is used for process addictions, which is the epidemiological term for the number of people addicted to a specific problem. In the field of process addictions, only problem gambling has so far produced prevalence estimates (Griffiths, 2009). Various societies have distinct societal concepts of social problems, as in Canada beliefs and values vary on when gambling is to be seen as a problem and the causes behind it. It is not easy to define process addictions, for instance, when gambling is a harmless pastime and when is it addictive (Firth, 2010). The American Psychiatric Association (APA) identified gambling as actually a pathological disorder in the 1980. Even Freud (1929/1950) had researched problem gambling but remained inadvertent about its prediction. According to APA, gambling is a rising psychological disorder, featured by emotional addiction, lack of control and attached negative repercussions in the gamblers’ academic, social, or vocational life. Other popular names for pathological gambling are compulsive gambling and addictive gambling (Jean, 2000). In addictive gambling, the person shows a recurrent and continued disorder of dysfunctional behaviours by remaining busy in gambling. The person wants to put at the risk greater sum of money to attain increased stimulation. Continuous striving is seen to curb, check and/or stop gambling. Feeling of restlessness or irritating behaviour is observed when striving to check or curb the habit of gambling. For an addictive gambler, gambling becomes an escape-route from mood shifts. An addictive gambler reverts back to equalise the loss. Such a person attempts not to disclose the level of engagement with gambling. Wrong means are sought to arrange funds for gambling. Gambling when it becomes an addiction causes the loss of one’s aim in life pertaining to the relationship, scholarship or career. Dependence on others for maintaining status increases with the prevalence of gambling, as a gambler needs financial support due to shortage of funds. The only criterion segregating addictive behaviour is the presence of bipolar disorder. The debate over whether gambling is an addiction or pass time, (Kusyszyn, 1980) has been hyped out of proportion. For instance, many years back, a popular suggest columnist used to publish an article by a doctor explaining that gambling â€Å"could not possibly† be addictive (Jean, 2000). Viewing the perspective of this physician, functions like gambling, stealing and outward expression of sexual behaviours do not engage substance intake and that’s why they are not addictions. Instead, the physician debated, they are generally representations of manic depressiveness although mania is an external recognition for the presence of gambling disorders. Had it been true, then most of the gambling patients would have been managed with lithium, which is not so (Jean, 2000). Those who support gambling as mere pass time and question

Moral, Social and Political Philosophy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Moral, Social and Political Philosophy - Essay Example Held charged traditional philosophy with presenting masculine morality as gender neutral and superior to those of women. The paradigms used, such as the contractual, conflict, competition and controversy models, are by themselves forms of gender bias and support patterns of domination and subordination. The ratiocinations of Alasdair MacIntyre in his essay Is Patriotism a Virtue, although admittedly an improvement over traditional Western concepts of morality and philosophy is actually founded on its basic masculine bias and interests. It remains to be contract, conflict, competition and controversy driven, resting on public rather than private realities. Espousing the particular characteristics and merits of one's particular nation is relevant only within the framework of physical national boundaries and the competition for resources and relies on a culture of scarcity, selfishness and rivalry. Identity is not really inflexible and set on hard and fast rules. MacIntyre's rejection of objective and impartial moral vantage point from which to view patriotism is superficial. He even acceded that personal morality is colored by its source, the culture of its situs and the ethics of its teachers. It is an admission that the subject is learned by osmosis subconsciously and not from formal education. It is highly susceptible to emotional prodding of self-interest and pride. Patriotism is only partially induced by the maternalist ethics of care which Ms. Held would like to become the foundation of modern morality, philosophy and politics. As such, it cannot cross the chasm of bias and regionalism which would be otherwise in a culture of care where responsible beings would be willing to let go of superficial standards in order to achieve a more enlightened national or even world culture. 2. Current morality and ethics on war and capital punishment depends on the justness of the grounds and the means for doing so. A reactive war on self-defense and self-preservation in response to an invasion or attack is accepted as ethical and moral and so would a pre-emptive one if a threat of invasion or attack is eminent and likely. A just war is not one for invasion and selfish purposes and ends. The convictions of doing away with armed conflict between political communities came about after suffering two world wars and centuries of smaller ones and embodied in the United Nations Charter. Only the possibility of international cooperation could prevent any nation from using force to gain territory, wealth and resources from another. The Clausewitz definition is no longer probable except under the auspices of the United Nations. A disagreement in governance no longer justifies killing of a multitude by another nation. Nevertheless, wars do break out once in a while as long as nations keep arms and manufacture them. Killing as a way of punishment is justified by way of social protection and retaliation for the commission of serious crimes. This is practiced because imprisonment of the criminal for life does not ensure deterrence of criminal behavior and rehabilitation of the convict, in addition to taxing the treasury of necessary funds to keep the criminal behind bars. It has also been asserted that the same goes with capital punishment and death does not reform the criminal nor make amends especially for the murder of another person. There is always the possibility of