#Problem Gambling

[tottallyana]

just found out that Bruno Mars has over $50 million in debt

happy problem gambling awareness month, everyone

I would say gambling awareness, but that number is a PROBLEM

[indizombie]

Often called a hidden addiction, problem gambling does not leave its mark on the body like other compulsion disorders, such as alcohol or drug abuse. That is why it can be harder to detect - and easier to conceal. This year, a study in the Scientific Reports journal showed about twice the level of problem gambling among top-level sportspeople in Ireland's Gaelic Athletic Association compared with their demographic in the general population. It followed a 2016 Europe-wide study that showed a significantly increased level of gambling problems among professional athletes.

Daniel Gallan, ‘Gambling addiction: Why elite sportspeople are especially vulnerable’, BBC

[jansvobodacz]

The Psychology of Gambling

Gambling has been a popular pastime for centuries, and while the games themselves have changed over time, the reasons people play have remained relatively consistent. Understanding the psychology of gambling can provide insight into why people are drawn to casinos and what motivates them to keep playing.

One of the primary reasons people gamble is the possibility of winning big. Even small wins can trigger a release of dopamine in the brain, which is associated with feelings of pleasure and reward. The anticipation of a potential win can be just as exciting as actually winning, which is why many people continue to play even when they're not winning.

Another factor that contributes to the appeal of gambling is the element of risk. People are often drawn to the excitement of not knowing whether they will win or lose, and the thrill of taking a chance on something. This can be particularly true for people who are risk-takers in other areas of their lives, as they may be more inclined to enjoy the thrill of gambling.

Additionally, gambling can be a social activity that provides a sense of belonging and connection. Casinos often have a vibrant atmosphere with lots of people socializing, drinking, and having fun. For some, going to the casino with friends or family can be a way to bond and share experiences.

On the other hand, there are also potential downsides to gambling. For some people, gambling can become a problem, leading to addiction and financial difficulties. It's important to recognize the signs of problem gambling, such as gambling more than intended, lying about gambling, or using gambling as a way to escape stress or negative emotions.

Overall, the psychology of gambling is complex, and there are many factors that contribute to why people choose to gamble. Whether it's the possibility of winning big, the excitement of taking risks, or the social aspect of the activity, gambling can be a compelling and enjoyable pastime for many. However, it's important to gamble responsibly and recognize the potential risks involved.

[40addiction]

Today I stop gambling.

Photo by Mwabonje Ringa on Pexels.com Today I stop gambling. It’s a bold statement, but one that I knew needed to be made.…

[justmebeingdifferent33]

My song about gambling addiction.

I used this song that I’d written for the main documentary I made about gambling addiction back when I was doing the Neuroliberation Campaign. Here’s a live recording on my old Youtube channel of me singing it. I’ve done better, but it’s the only live video version I’ve got for now so whatever, I don’t really care as it’s already out there. Please do consider subscribing to my NEW YOUTUBE…

[thecatsreaderslibrary]

"National Problem Gambling Awareness Month" Through March 2023 Along With My Friends of "The National Council On Problem Gambling Organization." There Is Help and Hope From Problem Gambling. . .

UPCOMING EVENTS EXPANDING ACCESS TO GAMBLING TREATMENT: TELEHEALTH AND WEB-BASED TOOLS MARCH 28, 2023 | 1:00 PM ET Online Learn More >> MOBILIZING LOCAL COMMUNITY COALITIONS TO PREVENT PROBLEM GAMBLING TUESDAY, APRIL 11, 2023 | 1:00 PM ET Online Learn More >> ADVANCED ADVOCACY MAY 2, 2023 | 1:00 PM ET Online Learn More > Connect With NCPG LIVE @NCPGAMBLINGRT @EricRaskin: New…

[starcurtain]

Hey! I apologize if this question has been asked before since it seems like a pretty obvious one, but where do you think the idea of Aventurine being a sex slave came from? Other than the obvious factor of it being something fun for the fandom to mess around with, I mean.

It's something I kind of took for granted as being true before playing his quest, but after finishing it I realized there wasn't really any indication. The only thing I can really think of is his master's comments about him having a good body. Is there anything in his behavior you can think of that would lead to this conclusion if it wasn't a popular fan interpretation already/kind of just an easy conclusion to reach with a slave character?

(also kind of related but what do you think of the idea that he sleeps around/with his clients to make deals? he's obviously willing to sexualize himself with the boob window, but that doesn't necessarily mean he goes further.)

As far as I can tell, the idea that Aventurine was involved in sexual slavery comes from three (maybe four) places:

First, the comment from the master about Aventurine's appearance. People were holding this comment up as refutable proof that Aventurine was used in sexual slavery on top of being tossed into the Hunger Games; however, the response from other players on this interpretation, especially the Chinese side of the fandom, was very mixed, with a lot of people pointing out that the context in the game probably meant the slave master was talking about Aventurine's ability to attract attention from fans watching the literal Sigonian Hunger Games, rather than having a direct sexual-slavery connotation.

Second, the comment from Sparkle about stripping naked and getting on his knees for Sunday. This one has way more implication in English than I think it might for an Eastern audience, actually. In English, this pretty much sounds like Sparkle saying Aventurine trades sexual favors for success in his gambles. However, I suspect the original intention in Chinese was more about humiliation. Western audiences don't have as much history with honor-based prostration, i.e. accepting corporal humiliation as a form of reconciliation that Eastern audiences might be more familiar with. And in any case, Sparkle is Sparkle. She probably just went for the lowest blow she could think of here.

Third, the general assumption that if Sigonian slaves were being chained, branded, beaten, sent to death matches, etc., it seems logical that they would also be taken advantage of in other ways. I honestly think this is probably the fairest take--many, many real slaves around the world faced (and still face!) sexual abuse, so if slaves from Sigonia were treated so poorly you could make them fight to the death for entertainment, it stands to reason they were probably also not safe from other forms of assault. We also have no idea what happened to Kakavasha in any of the years between his being a tiny child fleeing the massacre and then being purchased as a slave as a late-teens-early-twenties person. That's a very long time for a child to have to survive on their own on an extremely hostile planet and not face risks of all kinds or end up needing to do unspeakable things to survive. So I think this is at least not that far-fetched, although it's important to say there's nothing in the game that directly confirms this.

And fourth: I read a tweet semi-recently that stated that one of the Chinese (or maybe it was Japanese) names for a quest Aventurine was involved in was actually a reference to a book about a teenage sexual assault survivor. However, when I tried to verify this myself, I couldn't find any quest Aventurine was in that was based on a book about sexual assault in either English, Chinese, or Japanese. It's possible I just missed something, but I'm taking this one with a bit of a grain of salt currently, since I can't confirm it personally.

Regarding your other question, about whether I think Aventurine sleeps around to make deals...

I definitely think he does not, for one major reason.

First, I will admit that Aventurine is definitely willing to use his appearance to his advantage. This is pretty obvious. He wears incredibly flashy clothes, baths himself in cologne, overloads on glittering golden jewels, and absolutely calls attention to his appearance when working with clients.

We see him actively doing this in his Moment Among the Stars video, where he is clearly using his looks as an equal tool (to his wealth), to daze his target.

It's not an accident that he says things like "Use me as you wish," with all the explicit connotations preserved. The implication is there. However, unless he was absolutely backed into a corner, I think that implication is all it will ever be.

The reason I think this is that the devs go out of their way to give Aventurine three fairly noticeable physical behaviors in his in-game scenes:

For one, he has some of the most closed off body language of any character in the game.

Aventurine's default conversation pose is arms crossed directly and tightly in front of himself. This is like "Defensive Body Language 101." By crossing your arms, you put a symbolic barrier between yourself and the person you're speaking to, and also ensure that your hands are up and available in case you actually need to physically defend yourself.

Virtually all of Aventurine's conversations take place from this stance, no matter who he is speaking to (from the Trailblazer all the way to Topaz). He deliberately closes his pose off and tightens up his silhouette, which just sends a glaring "Don't touch me" message.

This closing off is also blatantly apparent when you compare it to the deliberately open poses he strikes while trying to make himself seem accessible to others (like tempting clients) or seem powerful (to intimidate):

Complementing this habit of closing himself off is a second noticeable aspect of his body language: He frequently avoids eye contact to the point that he even holds conversations while entirely facing away from the person he's speaking to.

I might be a bit lenient and say maybe he's doing this to on purpose to be mysterious, whoo~~ But... in all honestly, he just does this with everyone, even with Ratio while trying to talk about an actual important issue (wanting to look into Acheron's real identity). Hell, even the fake Aventurine does it to himself!

We can even say that wearing the rose-tinted glasses in the first place is another intentional barrier, one Aventurine deliberately removes in specific moments to give people the (false) impression that he's "letting them in" to his circle:

Now, this might be a bit more complicated in Aventurine's case, because eye contact has a whole extra meaning when eyes are the defining trait of your species and come with particularly challenging racial stereotypes. So it may be that Aventurine is simply used to conducting conversation while looking away to minimize racial prejudice against his eyes' unique appearance.

However, I'd also argue that the devs deliberately turned his entire model away in cutscene after cutscene to create a clear sense of being inaccessible, unapproachable, and unwilling to engage in the physical intimacy of standing closely, directly facing, and staring at his conversation partners.

While he faces away, he controls both the figurative and the literal direction of conversation, forcing people to keep their eyes on him while he is free to move as he pleases. Over and over again, it just says "I want to be the one in control. I'm not afraid to show my back to you, but you are not welcome to come near me."

And, in fact, that's a third aspect of his character's body language that I am sure the devs did not include accidentally: More so than other characters, many of Aventurine's conversations are conducted from weirdly far distances. Like, half the time he's talking, he's standing all the way on the opposite side of the room!

This habit of speaking from a-larger-than-normal distance is apparent in the first scene with Himeko...

And then in just about every other conversation too:

The bubble is twenty feet in every direction.

Like yes, he does approach and have conversations like a normal person... sometimes... But it is significantly more noticeable with Aventurine than with other characters that he often conducts whole conversations--even with his allies--from a distance. Just genuinely weirdly far apart.

Leaving space for Gaiathra, I guess.

And it's because these significant decisions were made with Aventurine's in-game body language that, when he deliberately alters his own behavior, it is instantaneously noticeable.

In 2.0, he closes the distance, the glasses come off, and he gets directly up in the Trailblazer's face.

It's uncomfortable not just because the player is suddenly being loomed over, but because this behavior has already been subconsciously established for the player as out of character for Aventurine.

The barriers the character himself was putting up are deliberately stripped away so that he can use physicality and demanding eye contact to intimidate his target. He has to reverse his own normal body language in order to come across as domineering (and, I guess if you're into that, appealing in a domineering manner).

And ummmm, just a tiny aside here because I can't resist:

This does mean that when the game goes out of its way to demonstrate Aventurine altering his own normal habit of distant and defensive body language, it is absolutely intentional.

Yes, this is a Ratiorine post in disguise. There literally isn't any other character in the game that Aventurine is shown being comfortable standing so close to and interacting with in this manner. This doesn't occur in every one of their scenes, but Ratio is the only character that this happens with repeatedly. It's not an accident that the devs literally added "They were walking side-by-side" as flavor text.

But look, I'll be fair: There's a great example of this in Aventurine's scene with Acheron too, where he closes the distance and attempts to make eye contact with her--seeking her guidance and closeness--and she is actually the one stepping away, speaking with her back turned, demonstrating her power and control (and issues with connection!) in that scene.

Anyway, this was a whole longggg tangent into analyzing Aventurine's body language, but my point is that, overall, the devs deliberately adjusted his model's actions in-game to give the impression of a person who clearly wants to be in control of every interaction he has with other people, who insists on distance over intimacy, and whose stances and habits suggest that he is significantly less accessible and open than his "Use me as you wish" motto might suggest.

Long story longer, I think that there is almost zero chance Aventurine is willingly ceding control over himself or the actions expected of him to anyone he isn't 100% comfortable with, and I think that using physical intimacy of any kind would be an absolute last resort for him. Frankly, he comes across as more likely to shoot himself in the foot than let someone he doesn't trust lay hands on him.

To me, he reads very much as "You may look, but you may not touch."

[thepie]

Thank you for blessing me with two jackpots today

He could push me off a cliff ngl…. I mean what

[l-e-i-k-o]

𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕒𝕟𝕔𝕒𝕜𝕖𝕤.

[teatitty]

Look listen Yugi has always been goth even as a child and he grew up with an egyptologist grandfather that had quiiiiiite a few sleazy connections [seriously Sugoroku has such a "two steps away from becoming the villain" backstory it's incredibly funny] who probably joked a lot about cursed objects and the like there's No Fucking Way he didn't consider the possibility that the Ancient Egyptian Puzzle he was solving might be cursed - if anything I think that just fueled him more. You think this kid hasn't read dark gothic romances that end in tragedy and/or deal with romancing ghosts? As if

The only reason YGO is a shounen adventure and not a shoujo romance is because of all the outside forces blocking him from achieving his final goth form: Guy Who Is Dating A Ghost

[shake-it-up-and-make-it-vyzee]

90% of counter example writers quit before a SMALL epsilon

[unquietspiritao3]

their faces omgggg

[penelopepitstopp]

OMG THEY ONLY GONE AND GOT WIDDERS. THE OL' STIFF NECK HIMSELF.

I thought for sure the stalemate would go on for longer. Plenty of tea chat as expected but no porridge?!!?!

Also I definitely knew about Josh sleeping under his duvet like a little dormouse so I'm surprised they didn't as I thought he's mentioned it lots before, but maybe he just mentioned it once and I've just never been able to forget it

Also, for those of you who don't listen to the very end you really should because otherwise you miss out on gold like this...

Ed saying that was the first time he did it meaning the first time he did the show but the way he says it really sounds like there's been other moments since he's got James to do THAT 🤣

[fishcann]

Something i think about a lot is how after I completed the honest hearts dlc I went back to yes man to check in with him and the goodbye dialog was "Don't stay away too long!"

HE MISSED MY COURIER I DONT CARE IF IT WAS A RANDOMIZED VOICE LINE LET ME BE DELUSIONAL!!!!

[40addiction]

New Dad's Dilemma: Should I Stop Gambling

Photo by Zahid Hussain on Pexels.com Being a new father is a joyous and life-changing experience. As I held my newborn in my arms for the first time, I felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility and desire to be the best parent possible. However, lurking in the back of my mind was a lingering question – should I stop gambling? This blog post will explore various aspects of the situation,…