The controversy over the on-again, off-again campaign against the illegal numbers game unwittingly invites attention to gambling and the fact that most people, Filipinos particularly, are gamblers by nature. The huge attention at the cockpits during Sundays will put to shame many churches in a country that wears its religiosity on its sleeves. Some take it even further, commenting that the lines at the lotto betting stations are longer than those who are lining up for the communion. Try watching a basketball game live and chances are you will chance upon bettors in the stands. The bet-takers shout proudly as if it was a vice, more passionate about it than many people are about their prayers. Mahjong joints stick out in any community, a symbol of prestige and privilege more often than not. Oftentimes, these are also places where card players converge for the same purpose. To some, deaths bring good tidings because wakes give them not only the opportunity to play mahjong and card games openly. It even makes them feel good because they do it for a noble cause – which is to comfort the grieving.
In many communities, they start it young as kids who should be adoring cartoon characters place bets on spiders instead. Who hasn't heard of bets placed on plate numbers, page endings and practically anything that will serve the purpose. It is much more subtle, and yet far with far more reaching consequences when parents gamble on the courses their children should take in college. Many times we hear of bitter children because their benefactors placed their bets on high-paying jobs over their preferred field of specialization. People gamble on their marriage, putting more emphasis on foreigners with dollar accounts. Little wonder that many marriages end up broken and many homes dysfunctional because it turns out families are made up of more than cash deposits. Many Filipinos gamble with their future on politicians who invest a few pesos during the election and cash in on the position by taking back millions in return. Indeed, there seems to be no end about what people can bet on. If they can gamble with their souls, they can gamble on just about anything. Most gamblers swear they have lost more than they have won. And yet, there is something about gambling that never fails to lure them in. So if you think swertres is on the way out, think again. If it does, you can be sure another game of chance will take over where it leaves off.
Wanna bet? |
