An old bit of wisdom \u201d\u201c that gambling is only for people who never took math \u201d\u201c may have finally hit home with Americans. According to surveys by researchers at the University at Buffalo, the number of gamblers and the frequency of their play have dropped since 1999 despite a recent proliferation of casinos and lotteries. Even more heartening, the largest falloff was among people under age 30 (from 89 percent to 78 percent).<\/p>\n
Unlike their elders, perhaps the younger generation knows the odds are never in their favor when they are up against the \u201cHunger Games\u201d\u009d-like gambling industry. Or perhaps the thrill is gone with so many more gambling joints now an easy drive away for most Americans \u201d\u201c or just a click away in many places.<\/p>\n
The survey, published in the Journal of Gambling Studies, did find hard-core gamblers are betting more money and that Internet gambling has gone up. But policymakers \u201d\u201c who generally promote gambling \u201d\u201c should take note of the decline in interest among young people.<\/p>\n