Hello people!!

Woke up at 6am this morning !! Took my digsmate Ryan's advice and had a shower to wake up (not that I needed one). It was the worst shower I've ever had, but I'm pretty stoked with myself. 1 X noddy badge for me !!!

Have been reading more literature about gambling for my project. The more I read the more bleak I get to see how this thing hurts people. It's not funny man!! This dude let's call him Yevgeni started gambling as a result of a midlife crisis and the next thing you know: Bye bye wife and kids, hello drug addiction !! Other stories like people gambling away their rent/electricity/gas/kids' school fee money in an attempt to "make up their losses" and "hit the lucky one". It's BAD!! and its an addiction !!!

The casinos & slot machine operators know exactly how ppl think and the cognitive distortions (bad/illogical thinking) happen: i.e. if you get two red BAR's on a machine with three, the automatic response is "Oh, I nearly won !! I must be getting close to the big one." Actually, a miss is as good as a mile.

Just think about this: If you could "beat the game" why are the casinos in existence in the first place? A: you can't beat the game and that's what they rely on. In fact, if you want the best chances of winning (statistically) place all ur bet on 1 roulette spin. As time goes by and the number of times you play increases, the chance of you winning decreases (by a lot) !!!

Also, most ppl gamble to "forget" their problems: this is where it really becomes insidious. Gambling feeds off of this, creating a surreal environment in which to do this. Temporary relief!!! Once outside the compounded trounbles of life plus your (very) recent losses hit you. At this time, suicide looks good. I'll leave the rest up to you.

Of course, we can't apportion all the blame to the evil casinos though. The gambler must take responsibility for his/her own life. It's a case (for the casino) of providing the opportunity for entertainment (why somebody would want to risk/throw away their hard earned cash in the name of entertainment is beyond me) and they do not view themselves as responsible for those who can't control themselves. In the same way as S.A.B. doesn't hold itself responsible for drunken driving. Maybe and maybe not. If nobody gambled, would the casino still run ?? Supply and demand. On the flip - side, do people gamble because the casino is there? Maybe a bit of both. The casino's do seem to take full advantage of people's bad thinking.

Maybe Jack Johnson's lyrics have some application here:

"it was you, it was me, it was every man,
weve all got the blood on our hands,
we only receive what we demand
and if we want hell then hell's what well have"

Neway, for those that engage in any activity to escape life's problems and fill up the void inside that you know is there: ONLY ONE PERSON can fill that for you. His Name is Jesus Christ and he died so that you could live eternally. He took your sin on his shoulders so that you can be in relationship with God. Blaise Pascal had a name for that hole: he called it the God - shaped vacuum - i.e. only God can fill it. For anyone that is reading this and knows its you: you need to give your life wholly and fully to Christ today. Turn away from your sin and put your trust in Jesus to save you. Pray and He will andswer. Then find a Christian (a real one) and go to church/find a CHRISTIAN church. You must accept him as both "Lord" i.e. boss and "Saviour".

Then get discipled !!!!!

Also, go to www.needgod.com: some great stuff there.

lastly, if you do read this and make a decision for Christ, or would like to know more, email me at snolly14@gmail.com or g01s3222@campus.ru.ac.za

God bless you all.

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