But all these studies would indicate that an alarming number of young people are out of control in their gambling habits. Studies have also suggested some of the results of this problem gambling. These youth had to be playing a non-Minnesota lottery, probably in the neighboring states of Iowa or Wisconsin. Simple logic would seem to refute this claim. We live in a time in which many states run lotteries and use the revenues to support schools.
Society is more accepting of gambling, and more adults gamble openly and legally.
Advertising floods the air waves, further contributing to the social acceptability of gambling and promoting the idea that a lottery ticket can be the ticket to a life on Easy Street. Researchers and treatment practitioners make the same points. Young people graduate from high school believing it is their patriotic duty to gamble so they can return revenues to their towns and states. Compounding the problem is the fact that society hasn't yet fully realized the danger to young people. While parents, policy makers, and educators now recognize the dangers of teen drinking and smoking, the long-term problems of teen gambling are much less acknowledged.