It's hard for me to share my own feelings about Vegas and gambling in general without sounding preachy and moralistic, which is weird, because I really am libertarian by nature.
Generally, if people want to do something, and it does not directly harm anyone else, I say 'let them." That goes for drugs, smoking, eating, sex, suicide, gambling, whatever.
You speak for you.
That said, my own observations on gambling are that it is horribly corrosive. Not the occasional wager of a cup of coffee on the weather, or office pool, (which I never feel compelled to make anyway), but the way that casinos, poker, bingo, lotto, etc have all just become ubiquitous, and likely to be frequented by those least likely to be able to afford it, and the most likely to be ensnared in a downward spiraling economic result. These forms of gambling have all become so familiar that we don't think twice about them. But the truth is that it is all a less than zero-sum game. Crime goes up. Morals go down. Focus becomes on'big payouts' with no effort, versus working to get something via your own efforts. Kids get inculcated to a culture of excessive risk taking (without even knowing the mechanics and math of risk/reward) and desensitized to losing money, as well as to the inappropriate use of credit, i.e. to fuel a lifestyle beyond what regular income can support.
Look at Casey Serin, my favorite whipping boy, lately. Gambling? Yes. The guy expects to somehow develop a mythical "passive income stream", but without equity of his own, and without work. He is not alone. Infomercials abound, using powerful psychological catnip: "You deserve it" and "Everyone has theirs, get yours", "Don;t be just a working schmuck, you are too smart - leave that all behind!"
Heck, if you think of us aspiring FI/RE types, and our talk about drawing a 4% SWR while sipping Mia Tais, kinda sounds the same, right?
But there is a vital difference in substance (that can be too subtle or just not of interest) in what people like Casey are trying to pull off. By letting others use my earned capital to advance a new business, a crop, an invention, I am taking a risk of loss, and therefore getting rewarded with part of the future profit. When you look at gambling, what is the net gain from that closed process, though? What crops get grown? What value is added to society? Politicos wanting to get a hunk of money for their area (and selves, usually!) will claim that economic development occurs as gambling moves in, but it is always (IMHO)robbing from Peter to pay Paul in the long run.
Anyway, just let me sum up my position by saying I am hugely thankful that I have never felt the urge to gamble, and based on how I have seen it affect people, I don't feel likely to change.
