Aussie Poker Study on Addiction

A recent report casts a critical eye on the situation with poker machines and the government, suggesting that the poker machine industry gets treated with kid gloves thanks to their worth to the coffers of the government. The authors of the report, Richard Woolley from the University of Western Sydney and Charles Livingstone of Monash University, say in the report that "self-respect, mental health and peace of mind" are at risk for those who suffer from gambling addiction. They also suggest that the ones addicted to poker machines are not just those who play, but the state governments that benefit to the tune of billions of dollars a year.