What have we done … I mean I knew it was bad but this article lays it out starkly.
More and more, I think our human brains, evolved for small villages and embodied interactions, just really can’t handle what technology can do. The internet plus smartphones plus unbridled unregulated capitalism in tech (social media, online gambling, porn, etc.) is killing society. Really, killing it. The glue of social ties and everything humans do to create a good life is being corroded by the acid of these technologies.
I don’t know how to go forward. More and more, I want to move somewhere that just doesn’t allow any of this, free speech be damned. (And I’m in Canada where we’re not even as libertarian on this stuff as the USA … but even here tech is destroying society)
This is a compelling account of the problem but the solutions need a lot of work. As a lawyer/law professor, I want to press for getting much more specific. The piece says:
"To that end, states should ban the most dangerous form of online gambling: online casino games. They should also take action against unlicensed or semi-legal operators and much more aggressively fine companies that fail to comply with regulations. And states should set up guardrails around sports betting. Ad restrictions — which have become common in other countries — could slow the normalization of gambling. States that have not yet legalized online gambling should carefully weigh the trade-offs."
1) How do states "ban the most dangerous form of online gambling: online casino games"? These will exist on servers in places that don't physically exist in a state. How do you force another country to change its rules to block US gamblers? How does a state force Mastercard etc to block US issued credit cards from being used for purchases in that country? These are really hard things to do even at the federal level, but seem to me to be next to impossible for states to do. There is a bit of an opening now that the SCT has upheld Texas' age verification requirement for porn sites -- but that isn't a full ban. It's easy to say "ban something", it is much harder to come up with exactly how you'd do that.
2) How are states going to "take action" against online gambling companies in foreign countries? That's where there "semi-legal" and "unlicensed" operators and companies that aren't complying with regulations will be. This is hard.
3) How are ad restrictions going to be squared with the 1st Amendment? That applies to commercial speech as well as political speech (albeit in a somewhat different way). Be specific about exactly what measures might help.
4) There are lots of bad things that happen in the world. In dealing with minors, states have much more room to operate than in dealing with adults. But minors tend to be really good at circumventing restrictions adults put into place to stop them from accessing online resources. Given states' limited resources, how high a priority is this compared to, say, putting more police on the street, paying for more health care for the indigent, funding schools, etc. It is important to identify a problem (as this piece does well) but we also need a conversation about the relative importance of problems to justify allocating our limited resources to it instead of to something else. And that requires talking about costs and benefits - all of these ideas are going to increase the friction in engaging in online gaming and so reduce the problem, but they aren't going to eliminate it. We need some conversation about how many resources get devoted to this compared to other things that are also pressing (education, health care, highway infrastructure, etc.)
I don't mean to be overcritical of this well-written and thoughtful piece, but it is important to at least address the tradeoffs involved if solutions are going to be proposed and to be much more specific about what those solutions are going to look like in the real world.
These are all fair critiques. Re 1), we are referring to legalized online casino games, which are only available in 7 states. Of course it is much harder to crackdown on offshore operators, but legalization drastically increases use and we would be better off if the activity was restricted to illegal operators. Re 2), yes this is very hard and ends up being a game of whack-a-mole. no disagreements there. Re 3), there are already ads around deceptive advertising (just as JCPenney is not allowed to advertise fake sales, Draftkings and Fanduel should not be allowed to say anyone can signup and win big when they kick out winners). Also, public health considerations can impede corporations ability to advertise, as was the case with cigarette ads. Re 4), completely agree. We are well aware of (and I believe address at least some) of the tradeoffs involved here. But yes, unfortunately it is much harder to solve problems than to describe them :)
As an addictions counselor, this is such an important article. I'm starting to see more and more clients with gambling disorders. They usually come in with substance use disorders, but I've been making a point of asking gambling related questions, and yowza! the number of people who are placing bets online is astounding. I've been actively searching for more information about gambling disorders and internet related "addictions." There aren't a lot of resources out there, so if folks have reading lists, studies, etc they can point me to, that would be great. Especially if they're treatment related.
Just yesterday I was having a conversation with a client about phone usage and how eager his 4-year-old was to see what he's doing on the phone all the time. We talked about access to porn and gambling apps, and the importance of having limits around phone or "elecronics" activity. We discussed how he wants to change his behavior because his son is watching.
It's also an issue with adults, not to take away from how gambling is effecting kids. Personally I've witnessed coworkers fall behind on their work because they are either betting on sports or playing games, which aren't that far off from each other. I understand that adults should be able to make their own choices but sometimes I wonder how much of a choice it really is.
Not that your coworkers are addicted, but someone who has a gambling problem is no longer "choosing" to gamble, in the same way someone addicted to drugs or alcohol is not "choosing" to drink/take drugs. They chose to start gambling, of course, but the current setup makes it easy to make bad choices, and then to remove choice altogether.
My old man brought home 🏈💸🇺🇲🏟️ parlay cards. (knew a guy at the bar😉 ~ he always reminded me 🎰 that they were a sucker bet, but just for fun 🎲 🃏) You used to have to go to the track or casino, now it's everywhere like porn. Interesting times indeed.....
But as long as maximal individual autonomy is our highest good, we will lack the language and political will to curtail any of these. After Babel is about teenagers and smartphones, but the problems don't stop at age 18.
Let’s face it, what we once called “screen time” has morphed into something far more insidious legalized digital gambling cloaked in a barrage of dopamine hits and vibrant TikTok dances. Silicon Valley has effectively borrowed tactics from the casino industry, crafting a digital playground that ensnares our children. With their flashing lights and alluring sounds, these platforms offer random rewards that turn every scroll into a thrill, every swipe a spin of the wheel, where the house inevitably reaps the benefits.
Meanwhile, parents find themselves grappling with an uphill battle, left to wrestle with the allure of screens while tech moguls conveniently enroll their own children in screen-free schools. Isn’t it ironic?
Jonathan Haidt hits the nail on the head; this issue goes beyond mere concern it’s a rigged game, and our children are nothing more than tokens in it. The most troubling reality is that those who possess the power to enact change are too preoccupied reaping the financial rewards of this digital frenzy.
We aren’t merely raising children; we’re cultivating users. And the apps? They play the role of the dealers, controlling the cards in this high-stakes game.
It is possible—there are lots of apps, each with a sign up bonus (though you have to make a small deposit to receive the “free money”). But when he wins he’ll likely receive non-withdrawable site credit, not cash. And when he gambles that credit and, eventually, loses, I’d bet (ha) he deposits some real money, and cycle of loss chasing begins….
What have we done … I mean I knew it was bad but this article lays it out starkly.
More and more, I think our human brains, evolved for small villages and embodied interactions, just really can’t handle what technology can do. The internet plus smartphones plus unbridled unregulated capitalism in tech (social media, online gambling, porn, etc.) is killing society. Really, killing it. The glue of social ties and everything humans do to create a good life is being corroded by the acid of these technologies.
I don’t know how to go forward. More and more, I want to move somewhere that just doesn’t allow any of this, free speech be damned. (And I’m in Canada where we’re not even as libertarian on this stuff as the USA … but even here tech is destroying society)
This is a compelling account of the problem but the solutions need a lot of work. As a lawyer/law professor, I want to press for getting much more specific. The piece says:
"To that end, states should ban the most dangerous form of online gambling: online casino games. They should also take action against unlicensed or semi-legal operators and much more aggressively fine companies that fail to comply with regulations. And states should set up guardrails around sports betting. Ad restrictions — which have become common in other countries — could slow the normalization of gambling. States that have not yet legalized online gambling should carefully weigh the trade-offs."
1) How do states "ban the most dangerous form of online gambling: online casino games"? These will exist on servers in places that don't physically exist in a state. How do you force another country to change its rules to block US gamblers? How does a state force Mastercard etc to block US issued credit cards from being used for purchases in that country? These are really hard things to do even at the federal level, but seem to me to be next to impossible for states to do. There is a bit of an opening now that the SCT has upheld Texas' age verification requirement for porn sites -- but that isn't a full ban. It's easy to say "ban something", it is much harder to come up with exactly how you'd do that.
2) How are states going to "take action" against online gambling companies in foreign countries? That's where there "semi-legal" and "unlicensed" operators and companies that aren't complying with regulations will be. This is hard.
3) How are ad restrictions going to be squared with the 1st Amendment? That applies to commercial speech as well as political speech (albeit in a somewhat different way). Be specific about exactly what measures might help.
4) There are lots of bad things that happen in the world. In dealing with minors, states have much more room to operate than in dealing with adults. But minors tend to be really good at circumventing restrictions adults put into place to stop them from accessing online resources. Given states' limited resources, how high a priority is this compared to, say, putting more police on the street, paying for more health care for the indigent, funding schools, etc. It is important to identify a problem (as this piece does well) but we also need a conversation about the relative importance of problems to justify allocating our limited resources to it instead of to something else. And that requires talking about costs and benefits - all of these ideas are going to increase the friction in engaging in online gaming and so reduce the problem, but they aren't going to eliminate it. We need some conversation about how many resources get devoted to this compared to other things that are also pressing (education, health care, highway infrastructure, etc.)
I don't mean to be overcritical of this well-written and thoughtful piece, but it is important to at least address the tradeoffs involved if solutions are going to be proposed and to be much more specific about what those solutions are going to look like in the real world.
These are all fair critiques. Re 1), we are referring to legalized online casino games, which are only available in 7 states. Of course it is much harder to crackdown on offshore operators, but legalization drastically increases use and we would be better off if the activity was restricted to illegal operators. Re 2), yes this is very hard and ends up being a game of whack-a-mole. no disagreements there. Re 3), there are already ads around deceptive advertising (just as JCPenney is not allowed to advertise fake sales, Draftkings and Fanduel should not be allowed to say anyone can signup and win big when they kick out winners). Also, public health considerations can impede corporations ability to advertise, as was the case with cigarette ads. Re 4), completely agree. We are well aware of (and I believe address at least some) of the tradeoffs involved here. But yes, unfortunately it is much harder to solve problems than to describe them :)
As an addictions counselor, this is such an important article. I'm starting to see more and more clients with gambling disorders. They usually come in with substance use disorders, but I've been making a point of asking gambling related questions, and yowza! the number of people who are placing bets online is astounding. I've been actively searching for more information about gambling disorders and internet related "addictions." There aren't a lot of resources out there, so if folks have reading lists, studies, etc they can point me to, that would be great. Especially if they're treatment related.
Just yesterday I was having a conversation with a client about phone usage and how eager his 4-year-old was to see what he's doing on the phone all the time. We talked about access to porn and gambling apps, and the importance of having limits around phone or "elecronics" activity. We discussed how he wants to change his behavior because his son is watching.
It's also an issue with adults, not to take away from how gambling is effecting kids. Personally I've witnessed coworkers fall behind on their work because they are either betting on sports or playing games, which aren't that far off from each other. I understand that adults should be able to make their own choices but sometimes I wonder how much of a choice it really is.
Not that your coworkers are addicted, but someone who has a gambling problem is no longer "choosing" to gamble, in the same way someone addicted to drugs or alcohol is not "choosing" to drink/take drugs. They chose to start gambling, of course, but the current setup makes it easy to make bad choices, and then to remove choice altogether.
there's real harm from gambling, but this article doesn't also include the benefits. It's applied math/probability.
It's the best way to make abstract math concepts real.
A desire to get better at poker helped me re-enroll in school and complete my math degree
My old man brought home 🏈💸🇺🇲🏟️ parlay cards. (knew a guy at the bar😉 ~ he always reminded me 🎰 that they were a sucker bet, but just for fun 🎲 🃏) You used to have to go to the track or casino, now it's everywhere like porn. Interesting times indeed.....
Sports gambling will do for young men’s finances what porn did for their sex lives.
We're not made to carry a bookie in our pocket.
Or an X-rated video store.
Or a virtual therapist.
Or the library of Alexandria.
But as long as maximal individual autonomy is our highest good, we will lack the language and political will to curtail any of these. After Babel is about teenagers and smartphones, but the problems don't stop at age 18.
As a mom to boys who love sports, sports betting is one of the main reasons why I won't ever buy them a smartphone or tablet.
Young people don’t have “access” to gambling and porn. These companies have access to them.
I don’t think parents realize how gambling is sneaking into these ‘games for kids’ and restructuring the brain early
Next do stocks and options trading. /r/wallstreetbets is a dark place
Let’s face it, what we once called “screen time” has morphed into something far more insidious legalized digital gambling cloaked in a barrage of dopamine hits and vibrant TikTok dances. Silicon Valley has effectively borrowed tactics from the casino industry, crafting a digital playground that ensnares our children. With their flashing lights and alluring sounds, these platforms offer random rewards that turn every scroll into a thrill, every swipe a spin of the wheel, where the house inevitably reaps the benefits.
Meanwhile, parents find themselves grappling with an uphill battle, left to wrestle with the allure of screens while tech moguls conveniently enroll their own children in screen-free schools. Isn’t it ironic?
Jonathan Haidt hits the nail on the head; this issue goes beyond mere concern it’s a rigged game, and our children are nothing more than tokens in it. The most troubling reality is that those who possess the power to enact change are too preoccupied reaping the financial rewards of this digital frenzy.
We aren’t merely raising children; we’re cultivating users. And the apps? They play the role of the dealers, controlling the cards in this high-stakes game.
Great essay!
these statistics shocked me:
Thirty percent of American men and 22 percent of American women now have a sports betting account, including nearly half of men ages 18 to 49.
Vegas truly is in our pockets…
My 18 yo says he only uses the “free money” in some of the apps and that he doesn’t spend anything - but still wins. Is this possible?
We’ve made the argument to him that even if he’s not losing money, he’s wiring himself to gamble which isn’t going to end well.
It is possible—there are lots of apps, each with a sign up bonus (though you have to make a small deposit to receive the “free money”). But when he wins he’ll likely receive non-withdrawable site credit, not cash. And when he gambles that credit and, eventually, loses, I’d bet (ha) he deposits some real money, and cycle of loss chasing begins….