• The National Council on Problem Gambling has taken the stance that gambling addiction is the fault of the individual, allowing state lawmakers to ignore arguments that more access to gambling might make it easier for people to lose control.
• Since the Supreme Court struck down previous restrictions on sports betting in 2018, 36 states have legalized it, and new ballot initiatives are proposed every year.
• When arguments are made for loosening the government’s restrictions on vice, proponents usually emphasize how the responsible use of the vice might alleviate pain or address the worst excesses of the War on Drugs.
• This way of seeing the world overlooks the fact that our hearts and minds are shaped not only by reason but also by our experiences, affections, and habits, which are just as often inexplicably self-destructive as they are reasonable.
• Electronic slot machines are designed to get players addicted, and sports-betting companies have enticed colleges and universities to allow them to promote their products on campus.
• Marijuana legalization has contributed to a rise in opioid-related deaths, and higher-potency products are more dangerous.
• The industries that profit off addiction want to frame the question of access around “responsible use” and occasionally suggest that some people might have a genetic predisposition to addiction.
• We should make it as difficult as possible to access things that impair our ability to make good decisions, and policy plays a role in shaping the environment so that we can develop our virtues.
• Some judicious restrictions are better for everyone: Gambling should take place in casinos, not on smartphones, and marijuana should
Published February 11, 2023
Visit The Atlantic to read Matthew Loftus’s original post America Has Gone Too Far in Legalizing Vice
