Dear 21st Century Dad, I taught my kid how to play cards four years ago. He’s sixteen now. I figured it would be a good way to tap into his brain before he got too much a teenager and got difficult to talk to.
On the plus side, it kindled a natural ability in math. He’s says he’s even going to study statistics when he graduates from high school. We’ve had a lot of hours together that probably most dads wouldn’t get to enjoy.
The reality shows, all the killer detective programs, literally anything that’s not Texas Holdem or Poker, he calls, ‘pussy’ shows. He says, “The real action is in the cards.” Occasionally he’ll watch the Mixed Martial Arts and the boxing with me. Here’s the down side. I think the kid has become addicted to gambling. He spends a lot of time on the Internet. I had to give him a MasterCard number so he could play.
Last month, his math teacher phoned me to tell me how impressed he is with my son’s marks and then the principle called me to the school to tell me he was organizing bets on the school football games. My kid says he’ll be able to pay his way through school.” I believe him. He has owned a Jeep for a year, even though he couldn’t drive it for six months because he was too young. I don’t know whether to be concerned or not.
Dear Straight Flushed,
Our boy’s proficiency in math and his entrepreneurial schoolyard skills indicate he is already a compulsive gambler.
Internet gambling sites serve up to 50,000 gamblers at a times; that’s a phenomenal number of people throwing down money on virtual card tables. Imagine the numbers when China and other less developed nations go fully on line. American players such as Jason Berkowitz and Justin Bonomo have made or lost thousands of dollars in a day. As an 18 year old high school drop out, Jason Berkowitz won $577,343 in the World Championship of Online Poker. Jason was playing on line under his mother’s name before his 18th birthday.
In a 2003 study, The Nova Scotia Gaming Commission found that boys viewed gambling and betting to be a low risk activity and viewed them as positive activities. No wonder: they see their parents and every other mentor/model in society either buying a weekly Loto, or heading off to the bingo.
Compulsive teen gamblers and teen drug addicts share many of the same social dysfunctions: skipped classes and failed grades. They suffer heightened states of anxiety have poor coping skills. They will change their friends for new ones who support their lifestyle. They can be no fun to live with. If they end up owing money, we will have to watch our money and our possessions like hawks and we may find the police at our door looking for a thief.
Let’s give attention to these figures. 80% of teens in this last year have gambled; 5 to 6% of those are compulsive gamblers and a further 10 to 15% are at risk.
If our son has been organizing schoolyard betting games, we might attempt to find him a reputable professional gambler who can guide him in the gambling game, educate him to the darker side of the gaming world, and keep him out of jail. A professional therapist may enlighten him to the more balanced end of his personality.
Let’s see him as a professional in the making. We can educate him about the importance of keeping in tiptop physical shape. His training schedules should be no different than any other golf, hockey, football, billiards or basketball player. We can teach him the requirements that any professional needs to be at the top of his sport. Let’s share the cost of an RESP and talk about the lifestyle he may have after he gets his stats degree. Perhaps, we can cautiously nurture his mathematical talents and see if an alternative lifestyle goal presents itself to him.
We need to have a straight talk. Our son is addicted to high risk end games. He appears to have an intelligence that matches his passion. Wouldn’t it be wonderful for him to achieve his competitive dreams and remain in top psychological and physical health?
Google:
1. 2003 study, The Nova Scotia Gaming Commission
2. BC's Partnership for Responsible Gambling
Key into YouTube:
1. Texas Holdem – Position
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