Casinos shut on Christmas Day? Don't bet on it
A trap for lonely people who've lost everything, ex-gambler says
Last Updated: Monday, December 24, 2007 | 10:52 AM ET
CBC News
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Slot machines and blackjack tables aren't usually associated with Christmas, but Ontario's government-operated casinos will be open Dec. 25, a day most other businesses are closed.
"We're part of the entertainment industry and we're very much working in response to the preferences [of] our customers," says Don Pister, who speaks for the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, the agency in charge of province's gambling interests.
Casinos are open on Christmas because people want to be there, the Ontario gambling agency says.
(CBC)
"There's always been a demand for us to be open on that day, and so we shall again this year."
He adds that casinos offer dining and live entertainment and not all patrons gamble.
However, Doug Little, a former compulsive gambler who wrote a book about his addiction, says most people at a casino on Christmas are there to gamble.
"A lot of times people on Christmas Day are going to be alone because they've gambled their lives away, and the only place that they can go on Christmas Day is the casino where they can continue to lose … not only their money but their lives," he told CBC News.
As he sees it, closing casinos for a day wouldn't stop people from gambling on others, but it would send the right message, considering that government offices and liquor stores take Christmas off.
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