Should mentally unstable people be allowed to gamble?

[NeilLostBitCoin]

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

It's important to remember that a person's appearance doesn't necessarily indicate their mental health. Simply looking at someone's clothes isn't enough to determine if they're mentally unstable. We can't assume why they're dressed a certain way, but it's possible that it could be related to their gambling habits. Based on your post, it seems that the person you saw is mentally stable since he didn't misbehave in the gambling house and knew how to bet. We can't be sure if they're begging for money, which could explain their clothes. In some countries, begging is a job because the amount of money they can earn from it encourages people to continue begging.

[Fiatless]

Mentally deranged or unstable persons are well known for their violent behaviors of causing harm to others, they don't work for money neither have a sense to gamble for money but this man from the op does the opposite which makes me count him as not mentally unstable but as someone suffering from a depressive condition from life's challenges that had overwhelmed him making him to care less of himself

I don't think it is all mentally unstable people that are violent. I also feel that the ability to work and gamble is not a yardstick to conclude that somebody is sound. Many emotionally unbalanced people still work and are not violent.  

Alright, they may not all be that violent but still normal people won't feel comfortable occupying same space with them knowing that this person has a mental health problem.  And one more thing @fiatless, a depressed person isn't same as a mentally unstable person, the two conditions are entirely a different health issues, so a depressed person can still work and not be violent but I don't think this can be true with a mentally unstable person. He's mental so what sense has he to work ?

I don't understand your point of argument because you keep contradicting your former stance. You stated in your former post that mentally unstable people are violent and might not have the ability to earn a living and gamble. There was no time you made any effort to distinguish the type of mentally unstable people you were referring to when you generalized that they cannot work and are all violent. You never said anything about discomforting other gamblers, and neither did I mention any of the concept of depression. Come to think of it depression is a mental disorder and some of the cardinal signs of this condition (especially in extreme conditions) are anger and aggression which is the root cause of violence.

However, I think I have learned some lessons from this thread which include that everyone has the right to gamble as much as his presence doesn't cause discomfort to other gamblers and the casino management deems them fit. Also, we shouldn't judge a person's mental state by merely looking at their physical appearance. And it seems that most terms of service of many gambling platforms are silent on this issue. It is also evident that some national laws might not have covered this area.

[Lida93]

a depressed person isn't same as a mentally unstable person, the two conditions are entirely a different health issues, so a depressed person can still work and not be violent but I don't think this can be true with a mentally unstable person. He's mental so what sense has he to work ?

True. I agree with you Lida93. But I know some mentally unstable people still work at their family business to help their family. They work only what was instructed to them and always need guides and helping hands. The important thing is, even though they work and help in the family business, the members never give him cash money to spend according to his wishes, he always asks his family what he needs and they buy that thing for him.

So, he has no chance to gamble at all. The person I was talking about is our local and almost everyone knows him. Even if he goes to any shop and wants expensive things, the shop owners will refuse even if he wants to buy them with cash. Because they know that he is mentally unstable!

For this set I wouldn't categorize them as mentally unstable but people that are deficiency of reasoning and self determination, because like you said they take orders, follow orders accordingly as instructed and don't act except they are told to and for that other people see them as persons that can't decide for themselves therefore even when they try to take certain spontaneous decision for themself people will interpret it as unintentional because of their mental deficiency.

All am trying to cap in real sense is that mentally unstable people (demented person) don't take instructions neither do they adhere to it to go with. So those persons you @shishir99 is referring to as not mentally deranged or demented but are just deficiency of reasoning of their own. They are like dummy's.

Mentally deranged or unstable persons are well known for their violent behaviors of causing harm to others, they don't work for money neither have a sense to gamble for money but this man from the op does the opposite which makes me count him as not mentally unstable but as someone suffering from a depressive condition from life's challenges that had overwhelmed him making him to care less of himself

I don't think it is all mentally unstable people that are violent. I also feel that the ability to work and gamble is not a yardstick to conclude that somebody is sound. Many emotionally unbalanced people still work and are not violent.  

Alright, they may not all be that violent but still normal people won't feel comfortable occupying same space with them knowing that this person has a mental health problem.  And one more thing @fiatless, a depressed person isn't same as a mentally unstable person, the two conditions are entirely a different health issues, so a depressed person can still work and not be violent but I don't think this can be true with a mentally unstable person. He's mental so what sense has he to work ?

I don't understand your point of argument because you keep contradicting your former stance. You stated in your former post that mentally unstable people are violent and might not have the ability to earn a living and gamble. There was no time you made any effort to distinguish the type of mentally unstable people you were referring to when you generalized that they cannot work and are all violent. You never said anything about discomforting other gamblers, and neither did I mention any of the concept of depression. Come to think of it depression is a mental disorder and some of the cardinal signs of this condition (especially in extreme conditions) are anger and aggression which is the root cause of violence.

However, I think I have learned some lessons from this thread which include that everyone has the right to gamble as much as his presence doesn't cause discomfort to other gamblers and the casino management deems them fit. Also, we shouldn't judge a person's mental state by merely looking at their physical appearance. And it seems that most terms of service of many gambling platforms are silent on this issue. It is also evident that some national laws might not have covered this area.

I don't know what seem to be contradictory in my explanations to you.  I still hold my ground on this matter that the mentally unstable people can't work  except they are not really mentally unstable but are a depressive individual's or person's suffering from mental deficiency in such state of condition they can work to a limit but for mentally unbalanced persons am not sure. And if they are allowed to gamble if am to be fair they are humans too despite their condition so they have a right to take up human activities too but normal people won't feel comfortable around them because they wouldn't know what next action they can carry out as it rings in their head ignorant if the consequences of their actions.

 And for the record depression as you had defined as a mental disorder is actually not correct as you had defined it. According to the Wiktionar-Dictionary defined depression as  (psychology) In psychotherapy and psychiatry, a state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future. There was no mention of a mental disorder.

We're all here to learn and it should also delight you to know that I have learnt new ideas from your Op post but that being said we still have to sharpen some edges and not agree to all things uniformly.

[piebeyb]

However, I think I have learned some lessons from this thread which include that everyone has the right to gamble as much as his presence doesn't cause discomfort to other gamblers and the casino management deems them fit. Also, we shouldn't judge a person's mental state by merely looking at their physical appearance. And it seems that most terms of service of many gambling platforms are silent on this issue. It is also evident that some national laws might not have covered this area.

Yes, that should be the main point, don't judge someone based on their mental condition as long as they don't bother anyone in the gambling house, of course that is the right they have to get as a customer. In essence, all gamblers, whoever has their money, are still guests and kings of a gambling house. That's the importance of respecting anyone to gamble as long as the government doesn't prohibit it.

I also, if I see it, it probably won't bother him and someone who is in trouble. In fact, I often see beggars buying several lottery tickets at gambling houses just to look for luck. Anyone can buy them, not only rich people can play, buying lottery tickets, poor and rich can't. no one knows that victory will come to whoever is lucky, sometimes poor people can become suddenly rich if they win the lottery with a very big prize,

[Fiatless]

And for the record depression as you had defined as a mental disorder is actually not correct as you had defined it. According to the Wiktionar-Dictionary defined depression as  (psychology) In psychotherapy and psychiatry, a state of mind producing serious, long-term lowering of enjoyment of life or inability to visualize a happy future. There was no mention of a mental disorder.

We're all here to learn and it should also delight you to know that I have learnt new ideas from your Op post but that being said we still have to sharpen some edges and not agree to all things uniformly.

I am glad both of us have learned from this thread and we are also aspiring to understand more. The process of brainstorming is filled with claims and counterclaims. But is inappropriate to base an argument on just a definition. The term "do your research" means gathering information from different sources, analysing them and reaching a conclusion. Don't also expect to have the exact words in a definition before you can dictate a relationship. If you just do a quick search on Google about types of mental disorders, I can guarantee that 60% of the results you will get will include depression. Even in your definition, it includes that are depressed person is prone self inflicted injuries and suicide (are these states mentally stable). The field of mental health is broad, you and I need to take a course on it to be able to gain foundational knowledge.

[Jody.Drummer]

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

It's important to remember that a person's appearance doesn't necessarily indicate their mental health. Simply looking at someone's clothes isn't enough to determine if they're mentally unstable. We can't assume why they're dressed a certain way, but it's possible that it could be related to their gambling habits. Based on your post, it seems that the person you saw is mentally stable since he didn't misbehave in the gambling house and knew how to bet. We can't be sure if they're begging for money, which could explain their clothes. In some countries, begging is a job because the amount of money they can earn from it encourages people to continue begging.

Well that's the important point, sometimes the situation can be reversed, or it means that people who are dressed neatly can have worse behavior and hearts than people who are dressed shabbily, so of course it's true that we can't judge someone just in terms of appearance. In my opinion, the people said by the OP are those who do have a life below average, or that means one of the poor people who are involved in gambling so that their way of dressing is not like normal people which of course clearly raises some speculation and assumptions from people who see it, especially from the officers on guard there.

If you just saw someone like that then obviously I think one of the first things that comes to mind is that you will assume that they are one of the people who have a mental disorder but after communicating and they look fine in the sense that they don't have any disorders and have never made problems at the casino then that's where trust will arise where the officer has got certainty that they are good people. On the other hand, it is clear as the OP said that the person works odd jobs to earn money for gambling, and that means they have good responsibility and always try hard to get something, unlike beggars in general.

[ethereumhunter]

I also, if I see it, it probably won't bother him and someone who is in trouble. In fact, I often see beggars buying several lottery tickets at gambling houses just to look for luck. Anyone can buy them, not only rich people can play, buying lottery tickets, poor and rich can't. no one knows that victory will come to whoever is lucky, sometimes poor people can become suddenly rich if they win the lottery with a very big prize,

I've seen it too. They said they sometimes buy lottery tickets. They hope to make money from the lottery so they will still buy it if they have the money. These people gamble because they desire to win the jackpot prize from the lottery. And yes, anyone can gamble, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, because gambling can reach all groups. Gambling seems to give hope to everyone that gambling can give them a lot of money and that's what makes people interested and start playing the gambling games they like. They should not need to gamble too often and only occasionally so that they do not become addicted to gambling. In that case, the officers still allowed him to gamble even though he was dressed shabbily because he had been gambling at the casino for a long time and never made a fuss. So the officers didn't see him as a threat and allowed him to gamble. After all, he always left after he finished gambling, and either he lost all his money and then left, or he won some money and then left.

[junder]

a depressed person isn't same as a mentally unstable person, the two conditions are entirely a different health issues, so a depressed person can still work and not be violent but I don't think this can be true with a mentally unstable person. He's mental so what sense has he to work ?

True. I agree with you Lida93. But I know some mentally unstable people still work at their family business to help their family. They work only what was instructed to them and always need guides and helping hands. The important thing is, even though they work and help in the family business, the members never give him cash money to spend according to his wishes, he always asks his family what he needs and they buy that thing for him.

So, he has no chance to gamble at all. The person I was talking about is our local and almost everyone knows him. Even if he goes to any shop and wants expensive things, the shop owners will refuse even if he wants to buy them with cash. Because they know that he is mentally unstable!

A mentally unstable person sometimes gamble,this is what I have seen,but in most cases,those ones who have the ability to find money like that are always harmless,they do not disturb other person's peace which makes their people allow them come close to where humans are,and they are also free to do whatever they like in as much as they do not harm,but for those ones who harm people,I think people do not allow them get close where people are as well because they can pose a threat on human life,and cause problem as well.
Most atimes,they give people draw code that they see spiritually,which if you try,it plays.I think this is the only relationship they have with the sane people,and their sanity level will determine whether people will allow them come close to them or not.

That's true, if there are people who are mentally unstable and they gamble in physical casinos but they don't disturb other people's comfort, that's not a problem, even if their appearance is different from other people in general, so their appearance becomes a spectacle for many other people, we can't I think they are mentally unstable, because in my opinion everyone has different thoughts about their appearance and maybe they have their own motives and if they gamble and win it will attract the attention of many people.
also with the security in physical casinos, perhaps they will also pay attention to mentally unstable people, because they are afraid that they will disturb the comfort of other people, even though they are mentally unstable, the casino will not worry about it if they have enough money to gamble, because the goal Casinos are for profit so anyone can gamble if they have enough money. because there may be people who appear polite and neat but they have mental problems that can disturb the comfort of other people. So I think a mentally unstable person can gamble if he has enough money and doesn't disturb other people's comfort.

[Fredomago]

I also, if I see it, it probably won't bother him and someone who is in trouble. In fact, I often see beggars buying several lottery tickets at gambling houses just to look for luck. Anyone can buy them, not only rich people can play, buying lottery tickets, poor and rich can't. no one knows that victory will come to whoever is lucky, sometimes poor people can become suddenly rich if they win the lottery with a very big prize,

I've seen it too. They said they sometimes buy lottery tickets. They hope to make money from the lottery so they will still buy it if they have the money. These people gamble because they desire to win the jackpot prize from the lottery. And yes, anyone can gamble, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, because gambling can reach all groups. Gambling seems to give hope to everyone that gambling can give them a lot of money and that's what makes people interested and start playing the gambling games they like. They should not need to gamble too often and only occasionally so that they do not become addicted to gambling. In that case, the officers still allowed him to gamble even though he was dressed shabbily because he had been gambling at the casino for a long time and never made a fuss. So the officers didn't see him as a threat and allowed him to gamble. After all, he always left after he finished gambling, and either he lost all his money and then left, or he won some money and then left.

With that argument, they are also hoping for some luck and even the money they use comes from those donation that they've got while seeing for goodhearted people that will passed by, who knows if one day luck permits and allow them to win right? and  in terms of unstable people who also attached with gambling, they are also using the veneu either they are having fun or also aiming for luck and enjoy the money that they will earn from gambling.

As far as the security can vouch with their attitude they should be allowed to play, anyway, the decision is for the owner  to take whether he will allow it or he will not if he see or feel threat with the person, but as long as there's none and the owner and the security are allowing then it's good to go.

[alastantiger]

As far as the security can vouch with their attitude they should be allowed to play, anyway, the decision is for the owner  to take whether he will allow it or he will not if he see or feel threat with the person, but as long as there's none and the owner and the security are allowing then it's good to go.

Mentally ill people shouldn't be allowed into a gambling facility. The only place they should be allowed into should be a psychiatric or a care home for full recovery. If you say security should vouch for them before letting them in, the security will not be able to tell the history of the illness and if their illness has its onset or cause by gambling.

[wheelz1200]

I think the problem with things like this is that it seems to involve judgement of an individual.  Who is to say if someone is mentally unstable or not?  How is this information to be obtained?  You have to watch out for slippery slopes with these sorts of things. 

This kind of assessment needs to involve a psychologist expert if there is indeed a statement letter from the relevant party about the mental disorder experienced.
But of course this will not be done randomly in people who appear to have mental disorders according to our observations.

But if they are the closest people or family, it is necessary to do some checks to determine if they appear to have a mental disorder due to gambling or not, This needs to be done.

Maybe if a person signed some document claiming to be mentally unstable then you could have a discussion, but the idea of observing someone and determining they are mentally unstable and denying them certain things seems like a bad idea to me.

But when we do the idea of mental disorders in strangers, and they don't accept it, of course we will accept the problem of unilateral accusations that are detrimental to the accused person.

But when someone has committed a criminal act or an act that can endanger others, the accusation directly and reporting to the authorities is not a problem,
because there is an element of mental disorder that arises right away.

How would a professional assess on the spot.  Online it's literally impossible but brick and mortar casinos how would you know someone has a mental disorder?  They just walk through the doors, this is almost a pointless proposition because one there is no true way to "label" a person going into a casino and two is all the discrimination lawsuits that the casino will face.  It's just like anything else, until they pose a threat to themselves or someone else that is visible that day there is no way to stop them from gambling.

[rhomelmabini]

Recently I was around a physical bet shop close to my area and I observed a man who was shabbily dressed walking in the gambling house. I got into the place to observe what his intentions were. He walked straight to the gaming attendant, placed his bets in a highly coordinated manner and quietly walked out of the physical gambling house. From the way he was well organized, you will never know that he was mentally unsound apart from his dirty clothes and unkept hair and beard.

When I inquired from the attendant, she said he was a regular customer and that he usually raised money for gambling through the manual jobs he does around the area. She also told me that he has never misbehaved and acted violently in the gambling house so she was comfortable with him.

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

Well, there are a lot of categories afaik regarding mentally unstable individuals and this should be known to anyone that we shouldn't base it on their looks, the way they behave, or the way they dress or something similar. If somehow that physical bet shop, a casino perhaps has some rules being enforced to not consider them, then, that I think should be exercised. But, for me, there are instances in which we can take some considerations.

[acroman08]

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

the problem here is that you do not know if the guy is actually mentally unstable or not. apart from being shabbily dressed, with dirty clothes and unkept hair and beard, the guy seems to be mentally fine. the attendant even said that the guy made his money doing manual jobs, and has never misbehaved or acted violently to the point that she feels comfortable with him. it is kind of unfair to judge the guy as mentally unstable because of the way he looks.

[Pokapoka124]

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

AFAIK there is no policy prohibiting persons who have mental disorders from placing their bets like everyone else. Personally, I have never seen a disturbed person come into a casino or bet shop but then again I have not gone to a physical casino in years. I think it is possible for someone like that to come into a bet shop and gamble without causing up drama but it’s a very difficult for that to happen in a casino. I doubt the security would let him past the doors. It will be bad for business as other players may not be comfortable.

[blockman]

That's right, they all have the rights to stop someone they think are suspicious and will cause a ruckus. But I think that each customer that they see will be given time to be observed before they do any action like kicking him outside the premises or will keep him inside and continue to gamble. Usually, if these people that don't dress well have got mone and it's seen at the entrance or have been checked, they'll just allow these people to enjoy their day and win or lose, they'll still get that person's money through losing their games.

It's indeed wrong to make hasty judgments based solely on appearances. Inclusive approach should be adopted that allows people a chance to demonstrate their behavior and intentions. It's important to maintain a secure and orderly environment within establishments. Security measures are in place to ensure the safety and well-being of both customers and staff. Addressing potentially disruptive behavior is a valid concern, and intervention may be necessary in certain situations.

It's because there are big time people that don't dress very well so that the suspicious from bad actors will be gone if they've got money or none. That's what they are doing and that's not going to draw attentions from those people that are just observing the premises and looking on who's got money and who are the ones that they can potentially eye for them to extort money or do something bad. You'll never know that the well dressed ones are also bad actors and that's why some dress codes are fine as long as it's not that bad at all or these people are just dressed simply, as long as it has no problem with the casino, they're good to go.

The contention that individuals who may not dress well should still be allowed to enjoy their time and engage in activities like gambling underscores the principle of fairness and non-discrimination. Making assumptions about someone's character solely based on their attire can lead to unfair treatment and exclusion. The financial capacity or the ability to engage in the activities offered by the establishment should be a primary consideration.

They are allowing it as long as they're not wearing vulgar dresses and they are still looking fine but just simple with their looks. IMHO, that's going to work perfectly when you've got a lot of money and you know it. But you're also careful going outside in any premises whether it's on the casinos or malls or anywhere you go. Just dress simply and let the people judge you by your looks but they don't know what's inside you. But on the other hand, we shouldn't really judge people by the way they dress.

[goinmerry]

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

Not until the said person does harm the others, that's the only time where they should be not allowed to enter the casino premises.

These casinos are not judging their customers at their cover therefore anyone can play there.

But if by some chance, that these persons cause an incident that involved other customers around, regardless if they are mentally unstable or not, these casinos will probably kicked out these people as their priority is comfortability and safety of their customers.

[bocyaj]

It's important to remember that a person's appearance doesn't necessarily indicate their mental health. Simply looking at someone's clothes isn't enough to determine if they're mentally unstable. We can't assume why they're dressed a certain way, but it's possible that it could be related to their gambling habits. Based on your post, it seems that the person you saw is mentally stable since he didn't misbehave in the gambling house and knew how to bet. We can't be sure if they're begging for money, which could explain their clothes. In some countries, begging is a job because the amount of money they can earn from it encourages people to continue begging.

It was fishy for the understanding of the mentally unstable person,because the OP had discussed about the physical appearance of the gambler who do gambling regularly in the physical gambling.So as the gambling conducting person was comfortable with the gambler,he can able to play the game in the casino.The gambler should not get violent after the loss,they should keep some of the money as the backup to use during the gambling process and after the holding money was get into the loss in the gambling site.This was the hidden secret of the successful gamblers in the gambling site for huge period of time,many gamblers will not say this to new gamblers.

[oktana]

I don’t doubt you but what if this man is not mentally unstable but has turned poor from too much gambling? Well, for mentally unstable people, I think they shouldn’t be let to gamble because even if some people may say that it’s about luck after all, we need to consider that the amount you stake is quite a decision to make and you can’t just input any amount. So, how do you trust someone who is mentally unstable to make the right decision in such case. They just shouldn’t be allowed.

[macson]

Recently I was around a physical bet shop close to my area and I observed a man who was shabbily dressed walking in the gambling house. I got into the place to observe what his intentions were. He walked straight to the gaming attendant, placed his bets in a highly coordinated manner and quietly walked out of the physical gambling house. From the way he was well organized, you will never know that he was mentally unsound apart from his dirty clothes and unkept hair and beard.

When I inquired from the attendant, she said he was a regular customer and that he usually raised money for gambling through the manual jobs he does around the area. She also told me that he has never misbehaved and acted violently in the gambling house so she was comfortable with him.

My question now is are there any moral, ethical or legal obligation to bar a person from gambling after physically observing that he is mentally unstable?

In my neighborhood there was also someone like this, he was depressed because he had lost a lot of money in gambling and even his family had thrown him out on the street, once he almost injured an officer at an offline casino in my neighborhood because he was prohibited from entering, from that incident, no one dares to stop him, he can't be thrown out, even the police can't arrest him.  Occasionally i also see someone who gives him a little capital for gambling. When he is invited to gamble, he will not hurt other people, this is the reason why we should not let gambling ruin our lives.  The worst level of gambling addiction is going crazy because of gambling.

[ethereumhunter]

With that argument, they are also hoping for some luck and even the money they use comes from those donation that they've got while seeing for goodhearted people that will passed by, who knows if one day luck permits and allow them to win right? and  in terms of unstable people who also attached with gambling, they are also using the veneu either they are having fun or also aiming for luck and enjoy the money that they will earn from gambling.

As far as the security can vouch with their attitude they should be allowed to play, anyway, the decision is for the owner  to take whether he will allow it or he will not if he see or feel threat with the person, but as long as there's none and the owner and the security are allowing then it's good to go.

The hope of getting lucky will always be there because they still often gamble so they will not spend their days gambling. They may use the money from donations to gamble because there will be people who feel sorry for them and will give them some money to buy food. But if they instead use the money to gamble, that is disrespectful to the people who already sympathize with them. But it's up to them with the money and we don't know for sure either.

And the security at the betting shop always allows that person to gamble so that he will continue returning when he wants to gamble. He may continue like that until he finally wins and if there is an update about that person's story, we will all be happy to know how the story continues.