From bingo in the United Kingdom to slots in Las Vegas and Sydney, and jambo in Cameroon, gambling is a feature of societies across the world. This work explores the complex relationship between cash and culture as gambling emerges as a global phenomenon. Traditional accounts of gambling's pleasures and dangers talk in terms of addiction, compulsion, greed and profit. By contrast, this work focuses on modern gambling as it has emerged as a commercial industry, analyzes the ambiguous relationship between morality and risk-taking and looks at the contradictory stance of governments. Providing a...

First published in 1996. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.