Dangerous wheels for seniors

We are not talking about dangerous driving wheels here, although you often read items flagging the Dangerous Presence of Senior Drivers on the Roads.

Driving may be a sensitive topic for seniors because their age sometimes affects their ability to drive. They are more likely to receive traffic tickets compared to young drivers. The two main reasons for this may be due to slower reflexes and poor eyesight.

In some ways, the wheels we are talking about here are even more dangerous. We are not directly referring to those hypnotic and addictive rotating wheels you will see in video slot machines at casinos, although that is getting closer.

As the Globe and Mail suggested there are Wheels of fate that are not always kind to seniors.

Subsidizing commercial bus fares to bring patrons to casinos – particularly during the times of the day when casinos are at their slowest – is common across Canada, with hundreds of trips daily. The Quebec government pays some of the highest bus subsidies of any province – more than $3.2-million over the past two fiscal years to transport patrons to its casinos, according to figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. Casinos du Québec spokesman Patrice Lavoie said the province lays out an average of $7 for each person brought to its casinos by bus.

Although such bus tours were long thought to be benign – retirement homes routinely shuttle residents to casinos as part of their entertainment – researchers now question whether these trips potentially set seniors up for future gambling problems.

Barry Hall, a professor of social work at the University of Calgary, says casino bus tours represent a shrewd marketing strategy that caters to the egos of lonely seniors, particularly women. “I have observed the buses … and I have watched very handsome young men come out and squire the elderly ladies who are absolutely enthralled that they are being treated as royalty.”

It is not only free or subsidized transport that is encouraging big losers to keep coming back.

NDP health critic Frances Gelinas says casinos know who the VIPs are and those at risk of becoming addicted, since they also tend to be the big losers who keep going back to casinos. “There is no link between the casinos and treatment. Casinos offer these people VIP cars, pick them up in black limousines and offer other enticing gifts,” she says. “Casinos know there will be people who have addiction problems and the government should do a better job of preventing and identifying problem gamblers before their lives are ruined.”

Gamblers are enticed by the manipulation of the casino environment once you step foot inside, Research shows the casino’s music, the pumping in of extra oxygen contributes to keeping people in their seats longer. Casino employees take whole courses on public relations to make the patron feel more welcome.

For example, the OLG has subtle messages, ‘if you don’t play, you can’t win,’ and people buy into that dream world. Casinos target every group out there, including seniors, by providing free transportation from seniors’ homes, to giving vouchers for free buffets, hotel stays and shows.

Some seniors are beginning to speak out. The P.E.I. Senior Citizens’ Federation is upset by these casino incentives.

They affirm that the government-owned casino in Charlottetown shouldn’t be encouraging people to gamble. It is appalling that Charlottetown’s government-owned casino gave nearly $100,000 in complimentary merchandise to its high rollers during the past year.

The bottom line on all this is staggering and extremely distressing. In Canada, gambling is a $13.67-billion business nationwide. Problem gamblers account for one-third of all revenues, studies show.