Currently in Australia, there is a speculation going on about PM Julia Gillard might dishonour the Poker Machine Reform deal with Tasmanian Independent MP Andrew Wilkie. It was the deal that made Julia Gillard as Australia’s first female Prime Minister. Recently, there was a change over of the Speaker, and it resulted giving Labor a margin and made Independent Andrew Wilkie’s support less important to the Government.
Of course, she wouldn’t dishonour the agreement in obvious way as she’s broken many promises and dishonouring the deal will be the end of her credibility as a Prime Minister.
I want to express my support for the Poker Machine Reform. I want Julia to keep her promise.
Poker Machine is a hidden Australian way of life. Of course, nobody is proud of it. It is depressing. People are frozen in front of poker machine. Their zombified eyes staring at the flashing screens. Their fingers keep feeding coins into the machine. Occasionally their arms move to flick cigarette ash or carry drink to their mouth while their eyes are fixed to the screen. In the darkened room with annoying repetitive noise from poker machines and polluted air with cigarette smoke, nobody is alive. (Maybe, they are not allowed to smoke there these days…)
Australia should be serious about the poker machine addiction and the harms it causes to addicts and to their family & friends. Addicts are in deep denial and no rational education nor counselling can get through to them. What can family & friends do when an addict tells he/she needs to go to get away from everyday problems and/or tells you it’s just an expensive hobby even when they are bankrupt from gambling?
Prevention is important and effective. Maybe it’s too late for those who are already addicted. But, we could stop younger generation from wasting their money and life on meaningless poker machines.
Sure, Clubs are donating to community and charity organisation. But would you really accept the donation knowing the money comes from poker machine addicts, who cannot afford it at the first place and who possibly have some form of mental health issues?
Clubs are manipulating financial statements to claim they cannot survive if the Government forces to implement the pre-committment monitoring system. Financial Statements are not black and white. There are still legal way to manipulate the figures and ratios. My suspicion was confirmed by a NSW’s financial expert. (Sorry, I cannot remember her name nor the institution…)
Clubs are exploiting money from the addicts. They say they donate large sum of money to community & charitable organisations, and their donations are critical for survival of these recipients… If you look at their financial statement carefully, those donation are only a small potion of their income from poker machine.
If we look at the bigger picture, it would be much better for economy and social health if the addicts spend their money to other services, such as food, beverage, and different form of entertainment, than throwing in poker machines. They would even have some money left to donate to community & charitable organisations. It would also save lending cost to institutions by reducing the number of bankruptcy and write off the credit card/personal loan debts, which would benefit consumers.
You can have some ideas what financial and non-financial harms poker machines are doing to people and community at Poker Machine Reform: The headline Facts The Clubs And Hotels Don’t Want You To Know .
Poker machine is not a form of entertainment. As reported at Catalyst , it is cleverly designed to take money from gullible players. Nobody can really win money from the machine. I have/had(?) a friend who has a serious poker machine addiction. Unlike the woman in Catalyst report, my friend is still addicted and tells me it’s just an expensive hobby… I wonder if she knows that her “expensive hobby” is breaking her family & friend’s heart.
While I watched reports and debates on TV over the time, I see different types of addicts in this issue. One is the gullible players who are conditioned to get addicted to the machine. The other is Clubs and Government who are addicted to the easy big income from poker machine.
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Some of the articles that would help you understand the issue
The Australian: PM Julia Gillard casts doubt on Andrew Wilkie’s poker machine reform , 20 January 2012
Andrew Wilkie: Poker Machines
Briefing Sheet from Senator Nick Xenophon: Poker Machine Reform: The headline Facts The Clubs And Hotels Don’t Want You To Know
Catalyst Story Archive: Gambling , 9 October 2008
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Of course, she wouldn’t dishonour the agreement in obvious way as she’s broken many promises and dishonouring the deal will be the end of her credibility as a Prime Minister.
I want to express my support for the Poker Machine Reform. I want Julia to keep her promise.
Poker Machine is a hidden Australian way of life. Of course, nobody is proud of it. It is depressing. People are frozen in front of poker machine. Their zombified eyes staring at the flashing screens. Their fingers keep feeding coins into the machine. Occasionally their arms move to flick cigarette ash or carry drink to their mouth while their eyes are fixed to the screen. In the darkened room with annoying repetitive noise from poker machines and polluted air with cigarette smoke, nobody is alive. (Maybe, they are not allowed to smoke there these days…)
Australia should be serious about the poker machine addiction and the harms it causes to addicts and to their family & friends. Addicts are in deep denial and no rational education nor counselling can get through to them. What can family & friends do when an addict tells he/she needs to go to get away from everyday problems and/or tells you it’s just an expensive hobby even when they are bankrupt from gambling?
Prevention is important and effective. Maybe it’s too late for those who are already addicted. But, we could stop younger generation from wasting their money and life on meaningless poker machines.
Sure, Clubs are donating to community and charity organisation. But would you really accept the donation knowing the money comes from poker machine addicts, who cannot afford it at the first place and who possibly have some form of mental health issues?
Clubs are manipulating financial statements to claim they cannot survive if the Government forces to implement the pre-committment monitoring system. Financial Statements are not black and white. There are still legal way to manipulate the figures and ratios. My suspicion was confirmed by a NSW’s financial expert. (Sorry, I cannot remember her name nor the institution…)
Clubs are exploiting money from the addicts. They say they donate large sum of money to community & charitable organisations, and their donations are critical for survival of these recipients… If you look at their financial statement carefully, those donation are only a small potion of their income from poker machine.
If we look at the bigger picture, it would be much better for economy and social health if the addicts spend their money to other services, such as food, beverage, and different form of entertainment, than throwing in poker machines. They would even have some money left to donate to community & charitable organisations. It would also save lending cost to institutions by reducing the number of bankruptcy and write off the credit card/personal loan debts, which would benefit consumers.
You can have some ideas what financial and non-financial harms poker machines are doing to people and community at Poker Machine Reform: The headline Facts The Clubs And Hotels Don’t Want You To Know .
Poker machine is not a form of entertainment. As reported at Catalyst , it is cleverly designed to take money from gullible players. Nobody can really win money from the machine. I have/had(?) a friend who has a serious poker machine addiction. Unlike the woman in Catalyst report, my friend is still addicted and tells me it’s just an expensive hobby… I wonder if she knows that her “expensive hobby” is breaking her family & friend’s heart.
While I watched reports and debates on TV over the time, I see different types of addicts in this issue. One is the gullible players who are conditioned to get addicted to the machine. The other is Clubs and Government who are addicted to the easy big income from poker machine.
===
Some of the articles that would help you understand the issue
The Australian: PM Julia Gillard casts doubt on Andrew Wilkie’s poker machine reform , 20 January 2012
Andrew Wilkie: Poker Machines
Briefing Sheet from Senator Nick Xenophon: Poker Machine Reform: The headline Facts The Clubs And Hotels Don’t Want You To Know
Catalyst Story Archive: Gambling , 9 October 2008