| Casinos target senior citizens, gambling opponents say BY PAT ROGERSUnited Methodist News Service 
Edward Glines and his friend, Rhoda Wise, wait for the Lucky Streak bus that will take them from a hotel parking lot in suburban Maryland to Trump Casino in Atlantic City, N.J. Glines, 78, makes a trip to Atlantic City at least once a year. He regularly plays cards with his friends and often visits the racetrack near his home in South Florida. He is one of a growing number of seniors who spend their free time gambling in casinos and playing other games of chance. Its exciting. ... I guess everybody likes it, he said before boarding the bus for the three-and-a-half-hour ride to Atlantic City. Seniors such as Glines and Wise see casino trips as welcome social outings a chance to get out of the house, be with friends and have a little fun. But experts say seniors, especially those who begin gambling late in life, risk becoming problem gamblers or even addicts. Pat Fowler, who runs the National Council on Problem Gambling, said 22 percent of the calls to her help line are from seniors who are problem gamblers. Its not unusual for us to hear from an older person who has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and they usually lose it all in a short time, she said. In some cases, she said, senior citizens become so addicted to gambling that they risk money earmarked for prescription drugs.  The Rev. John Eades, a United Methodist pastor from Shelbyville, Tenn., recalled a 70-year-old man who lost everything to gambling. He started gambling when he was 68, and he lost his home, his retirement, and he was left with whatever his Social Security would bring in. Eades, a professional addiction counselor, knows the dangers, after battling an addiction to gambling himself.
Casinos and other gambling outlets target older Americans because seniors often have free time and discretionary income, Fowler says. Casinos use perks such as free meals and drinks, cheap transportation and coupons as lures designed to reel seniors in. They also entice retirees with promotional mailings and advertising. You will see the industry choose promotions that appeal to the older adult; we have seen marketing across the board that targets that population, Fowler said. Fowler and other experts say another factor in the rising number of problem senior gamblers is the ever-increasing accessibility of gambling outlets. The landmark National Gambling Impact Study shows that before 1990, casino gambling was legal in just two states; today 28 states allow casinos to do business, and 48 states have legalized gambling, such as casinos, lotteries and horse racing. According to a University of Illinois study, casinos depend on problem and addicted gamblers for profits. Fifty-two percent of casino revenues come from such gamblers, the study shows. The Rev. Tom Grey, a United Methodist and executive director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, isnt surprised that casinos target older Americans. They (the casinos) are bottom-line people; all that matters is money, Grey said. Seniors are especially vulnerable to becoming problem gamblers because when they were young, gambling was seen as sinful, or at least harmful, he said. They grew up when gambling was prohibited, and now all of a sudden the stamp of approval is on it as entertainment, Grey said. The United Methodist Church opposes gambling in any form. Grey urges congregations to offer seniors more alternative free-time activities in an attempt to keep their older parishioners out of casinos. | 
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