Is Angie Bachmann Responsible For Her Gambling Debts - Essay Example

Angie Bachmann: A Case of Freewill or Habit Angie Bachmann, a housewife and a mother of three daughters, is a pathological gambler, who by engaging in gambling has lost all the family’s savings, including a one million inheritance from her parents. She was declared bankrupt, as she had no money to pay off the credit she owed to the casino owned by Harrah’s Entertainment. The company sued her and she countersued the company for enticing her and the case is taken to the state high court. The question thus arises, whether Bachmann should be held responsible for her gambling debts, as by that point in time, gambling had become a habit for her, which was no more controllable. Upon careful analysis of the case as well as the various evidences presented from all sides of the problem, it becomes clear that Angie Bachmann is responsible for her gambling debts to a large extent, however, the casino also had a part to play in the same. Angie Bachmann is responsible for her gambling debts basically because it all started when she decided to treat herself to a fun afternoon if she could stop herself from going crazy or eating the cake kept in the fridge. The basic problem was that she was a bored housewife and “had no idea what to do” once she was done preparing for her three daughters to school and her husband to go to work (Duhigg 102). Since Angie wins the bet she kept with herself, she decides to treat herself for a fun day outside the home. However, she drives to the nearby “riverboat casino,” which is the root cause of her harrowing future (102). There was no outside influence or habit forcing Angie to go the casino and nobody had compelled her to go to that particular casino, but she did, thus proving her exercising of her own freewill. She could have chosen to go shopping or watch a movie or even go to the spa, but instead, she herself chose to spend her afternoon in the casino. This first incident laid the groundwork for the future outcomes, which would ultimately result in her becoming a housewife who “threw everything away” (110). Therefore, it becomes clear that Angie Bachmann is basically responsible for her gambling debts, as she with her own free will chose to visit a casino rather than engage in some other way to treat herself. Soon enough Angie had been visiting the casino every week on Fridays but knowing the dangers involved, she abided by strict rules she enforced on herself, so as to have complete control over her gambling. She saw it as a “reward” for getting by through “empty days,” keeping the house clean and “staying sane” (102). She would at times win big and at times lose, but she was carefully using the money she won to fly down to Tennessee every two weeks to visit and spend time with her sick parents who were showing signs of lung diseases. Though she was doing good with the money she won by helping out with credit bills and buying groceries, the fact remains that ultimately she was engaging in an activity, which would led to her doom. She saw this as a “job” too and had strictly “disciplined” herself, however, this was not an actual employment, and her mind was actually making up excuses for her gambling habit (102). The problem started from her boredom, and Angie could always choose better hobbies than gambling in order to pass her days by. Furthermore, if she wanted to help out with house bills, she could try getting a real job, rather than falsely believing gambling to be a job, as in the end, it did her more harm than good. Therefore, it can be seen that Angie is responsible, as she considered gambling to be a hobby as well as a job, even when she knew she was headed for worse. However, as days passed by, she started to feel more distant from her family and felt that nobody was bothered much about her. Thus, she started going to the casino every single day, as she started seeing gambling as a sort of escape from any problems that she faced. Bachmann felt the compulsion to gamble grow stronger and she realized that this “insistent pull” made her “distracted or irritable” the days she could not go to the casino and that she was thinking about it “all the time” (103). However, even when she realized this, she did not take any steps to help herself from such a problem. She could actually sit down and have heart to heart talks with her family or even consult a family psychiatrist in order to gain insight into how to become a happy family. However, she continued finding solace for all her problems in gambling, thus, one can see that by not addressing the problem in a timely manner and seeking a solution, she kept feeding her bad habit, and thereby is to be held responsible for her gambling debts. Therefore, Angie is responsible for her gambling debts as even after knowing she was facing problems within her family as well as emotionally, she did not seek any good solutions for the same. Finally, she became bankrupt and owed $20,000 to the casino, and moreover, her parents passed away. Everything was returning back to normal when she stayed away from gambling, however, again one time she decides to visit the casino and her old habits return. She was in a state where she could not refuse the offers put forth by Harrah’s, as her habits determine her response, and thus, it becomes clear that she was obsessed and addicted to gambling. However, Harrah’s is a commercial entertainment company, and their job is to make money by preying on people like Bachmann, thus they cannot be blamed. On the other hand, it was ultimately Angie’s fault, as she knew the problem had gone out of her hand, and if she wanted, she could enrol her name under the “voluntary exclusion program,” and not be able to engage in gambling behaviours (110). Therefore, it becomes clear that by not taking conscious efforts and appropriate measures to control her behaviours or change her gambling habits, Angie Bachmann is personally responsible for her gambling debts to a large extent. However, one cannot say that she alone is responsible, because the casino company also had a hand in how much Bachmann lost in the end. It can be argued that since Harrah’s is a business, its main aim is to maximize profit, and they are doing nothing wrong so long as they engage in activities that are deemed legal. But if the morality or ethical behaviour of the company is brought into light, then it can be seen that the manager has wilfully manipulated Angie to gamble more, despite knowing her state of depression upon losing her parents. Enticing a habitual gambler is okay, however, enticing a gambler who is depressed and is suffering terrible emotional loss is quite malicious. Bachmann said she was almost broke, but the company forced her to “come anyway” by promising her a “line of credit” (109). Furthermore, even as Bachmann tried to stay away, there were constant calls from the casino with various emotional pressure such as the person losing their job if Bachmann does not go, and emotional arguments like despite providing so and so services Bachmann had “not been gambling too much lately” (109). Therefore, the emotional pressure as well as luring tactics put forth by the gambling company also had a part to play in the amount of gambling debts Bachmann ended up having. Thus, it can be seen that Angie Bachmann was largely responsible for her gambling debts due to the fact that she rewarded herself to an outing in the casino that first day. Secondly, she tried to find a hobby in gambling, and she also considered it as a job, rather than engaging in good hobbies such as reading or painting, or even searching for a good job. Thirdly, despite realizing that she was starting to get addicted to gambling, she did not seek help. Furthermore, when she lost everything she could enrol her name in the voluntary exclusion program in order to prevent future incidences, however she fails to do so, and ends up losing her one million dollar inheritance and goes bankrupt. However, the casino has a role to play too, as they took advantage of her delicate and vulnerable emotional state and enticed her with various offers to keep spending all her money on gambling. Thus, it becomes clear that Angie Bachmann is responsible for her gambling debts to a large extent, however, the casino has also had a part to play in the same. Works Cited Duhigg, C. The power of habit: Why we do what we do in life and business. New York: Random House, 2012. Print. Read More