“GAMBLING CHAMPIONS” (You bet!!) – By Des Kelly

Nearly twenty four billion dollars annually (you bet), makes Australians. including, sadly, Lankan/Aussies, as I call all Sri Lankans now living permanently in Australia, the Gambling Champions of the World, NOTHING TO BE PROUD OF!!. Every year, as time goes by, it steadily gets worse.

Aussies will gamble on anything. If there are two flies crawling up a wall, they will bet on which fly “takes-off” first,
there are horse races, dog races, trotting races, camel races, right down to cockroach races, it doesn’t matter a jot. “Let’s have a bet on that” would have to be one of the most famous phrases coming out of Aussie mouths.
It staggers me to think that so much money is wasted on a “habit” that ends up in total losses to the gambler, 90% of the time. The other 10% might win once or twice, only to lose the bloody lot, the next time around.

I now refer in particular, to my Lankan Aussie friends.
In case you guys & gals don’t realize it, in “GAMBLING”, anywhere, it has already been pre-planned by whom I would refer to as the “Gambling”Mafia”that the “HOUSE” will always WIN. This means that your chances of winning are mighty slim, In fact, you may not win any-bloody-thing, as your Aussie mates might say.

It is early on Melbourne-Cup day, I write this. The BIGGEST Horse-race in the World, a Public Holiday, over here. Horses, Trainers, Jockeys & Owners of these magnificent animals come to Melbourne from the far corners of the world, bringing with them “their hopes” of winning a three handled, 18 carat gold cup, as it was since 2014, worth 175.000 dollars. The cup itself is but a pinch of salt or a grain of sea-sand, in comparison to the amounts of money “LOST” on the “running” of the race. Without a doubt, to watch this “superb-spectacle” is awe-inspiring, but my sole interest is in the horses themselves, their trainers and jockeys, who do everything they possibly can, to win this race, in particular. I have certainly watched the Melbourne Cup every year, from the time I arrived here as a migrant.
Sadly, even as I watched the Lexus Melbourne Cup, 2018, one beautiful horse, running it’s heart out, pulled up lame and had to be euthanized on the track, then & there, Cliffsofmoher, Irish, beloved race-horse is now, no more.
My sincere condolences to everyone, from his owners to the stable-hands that looked after him, his jockey & trainer, all who were shattered by his sudden demise, in the race that
“divides” the Nation, the magnificent, but sad 2018 Melbourne Cup. It has happened before, and will happen again. Many thorough-breds since ‘Archer’ in the 1st great horse-race has suffered a similar fate & have had to be put-down, but I suppose, these animals are, under normal circumstances, well looked after, and accidents will happen.

Then, not too long after this particular race, Jocky Hugh Bowman, was charged with 3 offences, careless riding, weighing half a kilo over what he was supposed to weigh, & what I am much more concerned about, was the fact that he had over-used his bloody whip on Marmelo, the runner-up, in the cup. This animal was giving his all, to try and win, only to be excessively whipped by a man who, as the usual rider of the wonder-horse WINX, should worship, not whip the animals that have made him a bloody fortune.

Getting back to my story on “Gambling Champions”, let me please try to advise my readers of eLanka especially.
If you HAVE TO GAMBLE, if you are addicted to the habit, or just do it as a hobby, to keep your minds ticking over, my advice to you is to put aside, say $20.00 per week, for that purpose. Do your gambling with that money & not a cent more or less. You are quite likely to lose the lot, but even if you WIN, do not get greedy and try to take down the gambling mafia. Put your winnings in a separate bank account and “gamble” with THEIR money. This way, you will not go broke, but still keep your interest alive.

Many years ago, I visited the Crown Casino in Melbourne to simply see exactly what was going on, there.
There is no day or night on these premises. It is a continuous-calamity of human-kind sitting or standing at poker-machines, gambling tables, soft lighting & rather than sweet-music, bleary-eyed individuals trying to win-big.
Being there, prompted me to try one of the poker machines.
A couple or three dollars later, I really hit the jack-pot. It was indeed a huge “win” for me. 60 whole dollars. I immediately went over to the cashier, collected my money and went home, have never ever been to that, or any other casino.
Nowadays, you cannot switch on ” the box”, without being peppered with gambling ‘ads”finally telling you to “gamble responsibly”. What a bloody joke !, if you did, as they advised, where would they get the money to publicise the ad, in the first place ?. Don’t be fooled, Ladies & Gentlemen,
We are already Gambling-Champions aren’t we ?.