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Q: Can you offer a pausible explanation for the Chinese compulsion to gamble ?
Many of us are well aware of how carefuly Chinese are in money matters. How they argue for hours seeking a discount, how they will not buy a needed item just becuase it is too expensive.
Yet, when it comes to gambling, all bets seem to be off.
My GF loves to gamble. She can not walk by a State Lottery shop without buying one or two tickets to the Welfare Lottery. She also buys 4 or 5 of those cards that you rub off the covering to reveal if you are a winner or not. She pays 20 Rmb, maybe win 5 or 10, but if she does, she is happy. Her life long dream is to go to Macau or Las Vegas to gamble?.
Is it a compulsion, or is it a desire to be richer ?. Do they realize that only the dealer gets rich with gambling ?
There was a guy that went to Macau and made 100s of thousands of dollars in a couple of days. I think it can be a combination of loving or enjoying the game they are playing and also getting richer. People play free poker all the time where I'm from because they enjoy playing the game. That's the same deal with Chinese people who love to gamble. I know there is a popular game in Macau that's called small big or something like that they love to play that game.
I actually knew one Chinese guy who would spend almost every day (when he didn't have to work) in those Chinese Lotto places. I remember him saying "In China, evey person wants to get rich quickly" and he actually believed that maybe one day he will get lucky and win a large amount.
bike-gypsy:
reminds me of people in the US that set aside lotto and cig money from they paycheck first
The people at my factory gamble on cards every day. Even when we go to KTV (girleoke) they spend all their time gambling when we are drinking and singing.
Even my gf came home the other night having lost 1000rmb, and pissed off not that she lost but because she caught them cheating her to win and couldn't get it back for fear of a beating.
The fast easy buck is king in China, and worth the risk of a loss for the chance.
Funny back in the west most people are not willing to make big risk for big gains, hence the reason most people choose a salaried job over a business investment. In China I think they are far more willing to risk it all for the chance of a big pay day.
Well, it's human nature to want to become rich without doing anything. The limited options of changing social standings in China just makes it more obvious here.
"Sophisticated people have retirement plans, rednecks- play the lottery!"--Jeff Foxworthy
Per a post above, people in the West don't try to make fast bucks? I couldn't believe that I read that. What about all of those Ponzi schemes? What about all of those people wheeling and dealling with their very own homes which brought about the current major financial economic crisis? What about 1929 and the stock market? Sorry but the West has to behome to the sleezy fast buck deal trend and America is probably the leader of the pack.
The Chinese are no different than any other people in terms of gambling. The Chinese flock to Macau. The American flock to Las Vegas and every other casino that exists. Gambling is very, very, very big business in the United States, from state lotteries and everything else. Horse racing? I haven't seen that in China yet but it's all over the States.
Human beings are universal. Gambling is the same here as anywhere else, and I would venture to say even to a degree less than in the States.
people's daily life here is a gamble. catching the bus, crossing the street, eating the food, tcm, hunan women, jobs, etc. one slip and they can lose their life for somehing as trivial as being the first one on an empty bus whne there is another bus 1 minute behind it. so gambling fo money is much lower stakes but keeps the high going.l
