Gambling addict suing Alberta Gov't for $2 million

[undercoverbrother]

What a load of garbage.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2012/10/24...-for-2-million

[polak]

Someone should introduce her to the great gambling game of Russian Roulette.

[First Lady]

Suing government = still gambling.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by fotze

If smokers can sue and win against tobacco companies then I guess this is fair.

My recollection is that the tabacco companies used to deny their product was addictive and deadly.

[Rathji]

That's it, I am suing Chicken on the Way for me being so fat.

If they wouldn't have opened that McKenzie Towne store...

[Resolute 14]

I'd be curious to see if she can prove her claim about the government not making the risks clear. There have always been PSAs running on TV and radio, and there are posted alerts a the bars themselves. The risks associated with gambling - including addiction - are well known.

Basically, this reads like a case of someone who screwed their life up and is blaming everyone but themselves.

[Coys1882]

Give her as much as she wants - she'll be giving back to the government when she drops it down the slots anyway.

[chemgear]

"But it can't possibly be my fault or my responsibility!"

[troutman]

She would just give it right back to the Government at the casino.

The loneliest man at the casino is the AADAC counsellor.

Gambling in Alberta
Policy Background Paper
http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/...background.pdf

There are both critics and supporters of the direction taken by the Alberta Government,
and their efforts to create public policy that balances gambling revenue with safeguards
to prevent gambling problems. What appears to be missing from the current policy
debate is a clear accounting of the costs and benefits of gambling in Alberta, and a
more rigorous approach to evaluating the effectiveness of gambling intervention
strategies. In particular, the social costs of gambling are not yet well understood or
easily articulated.39 Lessons can be learned from state governments in Australia who
are at the forefront in conducting sound research to inform policy and program
practices, within government and the gaming industry.32

http://www.aglc.gov.ab.ca/responsibl...ng/default.asp

[albertGQ]

What does she do for a living to lose $750k? That's a lot of cash

[Barnet Flame]

The woman needs help for her addiction and is going about it in entirely the wrong way. Even if she were to win this case in some insane parallel universe, she'd likely lose it all again.

[Barnet Flame]

Originally Posted by albertGQ

What does she do for a living to lose $750k? That's a lot of cash

I'm guessing (I nearly said 'betting') that she has accumulated massive debts, stolen and spent the majority of her earnings on gambling.

[Komskies]

Originally Posted by Rathji

That's it, I am suing Chicken on the Way for me being so fat.

If they wouldn't have opened that McKenzie Towne store...

It's the fritters. It's all the fault of those damn delicious fritters.

[AR_Six]

"Know your limit, play within it" is as well-recognized a slogan as just about anything for me, I don't know how you can possibly say that anyone's been misled here.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by albertGQ

What does she do for a living to lose $750k? That's a lot of cash

Over 17 years. So $44K per year.

When I worked at a hotel/bar we rotated jobs, and sometimes I worked as a VLT cashier. There were people who lost their mortgages over those machines.

[albertGQ]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Over 17 years. So $44K per year.

When I worked at a hotel/bar we rotated jobs, and sometimes I worked as a VLT cashier. There were people who lost their mortgages over those machines.

Those VLTs can be deadly. I've never played them but I've got an addictive personality so I'm glad I never started. Cause I can see myself never stopping until I completely ran out of money

[Otsy]

Originally Posted by troutman

She would just give it right back to the Government at the casino.

The loneliest man at the casino is the AADAC counsellor.

Gambling in Alberta
Policy Background Paper
http://www.albertahealthservices.ca/...background.pdf

There are both critics and supporters of the direction taken by the Alberta Government,
and their efforts to create public policy that balances gambling revenue with safeguards
to prevent gambling problems. What appears to be missing from the current policy
debate is a clear accounting of the costs and benefits of gambling in Alberta, and a
more rigorous approach to evaluating the effectiveness of gambling intervention
strategies. In particular, the social costs of gambling are not yet well understood or
easily articulated.39 Lessons can be learned from state governments in Australia who
are at the forefront in conducting sound research to inform policy and program
practices, within government and the gaming industry.32

http://www.aglc.gov.ab.ca/responsibl...ng/default.asp

If a person so chooses, they can go talk to the Responsible Gambling Information Centre Representive employed by the AGLC based in most casinos. The RGIC rep has all the odds of all the games, and basically can tell a person roughly what they're going to spend if they're going to play nickel slots daily for a year or whatever the game in question is. Still leaves this all up to a person to want to know that. Most people are afraid to find out how much they're going to spend.

[Jacks]

She shouldn't be able to sue but I can sympathise with her, those machines are the crack cocaine of gambling.

[Northendzone]

wonder how she calculated her travel costs? i feel sorry for her, but that being said, she needs to take responsibility - not everything in life can come with a warning?

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Northendzone

wonder how she calculated her travel costs?

Prior case law, per Km trip, I would guess