Tommy, a friend of mine who has frequented the best casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, said it best. Everyone is a gambler. It's the human condition. Why fight nature?

His words can be easily dismissed as excuses made by a person addicted to the excitement and thrills experienced when playing games of chance. But a deeper study of what he has shared will reveal that there is more truth to his statement than we give him credit for.

Life is a roller coaster ride, fraught with risks and uncertainties. We never know what tomorrow will bring. Every second of every minute of every hour of every day is a persistent battle against unknown factors.

Often, we try to control these factors by reducing them into set formulas. We try to predict their outcome to the best of our abilities, despite the fact that they are often unpredictable. We try to contain the risks by breaking them down into more manageable components. We try to limit the perils by scrutinizing the possibilies.

This approach has proven very effective for many people. And why not? Everything in our lives is a gamble.

Marriage is a gamble. Business is a gamble. Friends are a gamble.

There are no certianties in our daily existence, but we deal with them nonetheless.

So why not have fun with something that we get to encounter everyday?

Here we arrive at a subject close to the heart of this gambling guide. More specifically, the question is gambling utterly and repulsively evil?

Naturally, you would receive different answers, depending on the opinion of the person you ask.

Some would say that gambling is a deadly sin. It's a habit forming activity that deals with uncontrollable variables at the expense of sound financial planning and speaks ill of a person's responsibility. It also speaks ill of his ability to prioritize, as well as the sense of importance he extends to the essential aspects of his life.

Best there are also some people, like my good friend Tommy, who would say that gambling is just a way of having fun. If it does not jeopardize the other things that you should be responsible for, it's all a fair game. We deal with uncertainties everyday, after all. Why not turn things to our advantage and make these risks a source of enjoyment and a respite to the monotony that life may throw our way?

It really depends upon the person.

If you feel that gambling goes against everything you hold sacred, then don't gamble.

If you feel that gambling is as harmless as betting on a lotto combination, and if you commit yourself to strive to maintain the harmlessness, then there is no reason why gambling should be considered evel.