European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 19, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A Magazine of military gambling by Chuck Roberts staff writer sgt. Zake Wright is a compulsive Gambler a Man with a great Deal of anger. He is angry at himself for allowing gambling to destroy the Trust of his wife and children. Angry for risking his army career. A he knows now that he is addicted to Slot machines. He has t gambled since Jan. 1, but the pain of his two year compulsion remains fresh in his memory. Wright gambled so recklessly that he lost touch with reality. He attempted suicide lied to his wife piled up debts and wrote bad checks. Finally he was hit with an article 15 for the fraudulent checks getting a suspended judgment. Quot the Money part is fixed but the damage to my family still hurts Quot he says. Quot i denied my family shoes and  he says he will spend the rest of his life trying to regain his family a Trust. When he finally came to grips with his problem he was especially angry at the army for enticing him to the Brink. Over the months his views have softened. Quot now i am kind of upset but not so  like other compulsive gamblers who talked to the stars and stripes Wright believes the military bears responsibility for the problems its Slot machines help create. A a a the . Military reaps More than $110 million a year from its gambling operations yet spends Little repairing the lives of those who become compulsive gamblers. A six month investigation by the stars and stripes indicates that thousands a and perhaps tens of thousands a of service members civilian employees and family members in Europe Are compulsive gamblers. The newspapers review of government reports and its scores of interviews with gamblers mental health workers and military officials establish clearly that there is no organized attempt to identify those with gambling problems or to help them. Meanwhile the military continues to aggressively expand its gambling programs adding 1,500 Slot machines in two years. Statistically,.a service member in Europe today loses about 50 percent More on sanctioned gambling than he or she did just two years ago. That a because Slot machine revenues climbed 47 percent in european that time while troop strength dropped by 2 officially the military Hierarchy does not acknowledge gambling problems. Some officials even contend that the 11.000 Slot machines and video poker games the Monte Carlo nights and the Bingo extravaganzas on overseas installations do not constitute gambling. The Ajr Force does not have a gambling program Quot said an air Force spokesman at military personnel Center Headquarters at Randplph fab Texas. Quot the Slot machine program is recreational in  the army echoes that sentiment. Quot there is no hype or Eavy promotion and machines Are Only installed at the request of the command Quot said Keith Craig director of Thrno services for the hospitality management group of Ai a Rev Community and family support Center in Xandria a. His office runs the program. Arifi cons or that we Are in the Leisure time business Tim i a Oal is t0 provice a reasonable amount of playing me for the patrons disposable recreation  the action is often fast at the Pathfinder no club in Baum older Germany. A amps Dave Didio gambling in the military a profits i problems a Day 1, the problem a Day 2, the Money a Day 3, the illness army medical and Legal records do not indicate gambling is a major problem Craig said. He suggested that soldiers and family members with gambling problems Quot request that the Community commander bar them from playing the machines or ban them from facilities where machines Are  in this atmosphere most military gambling addictions go untreated a addictions leading to debt divorce discharge and prison. Quot the military tends not to do anything until a problem is an epidemic Quot said or. Valerie Lorenz executive director of the National Center for pathological gambling in Baltimore. She said the military deals with the symptoms of gambling a bad debts primarily a with courts martial and discharges rather than attempting to cure the disease. Lorenz and other mental health professionals criticize the military for failing to recognize compulsive gambling As a mental illness which is How it is classified by the american psychological association. Or. Bruce Mather clinical director at the Community counselling Center in Mainz Germany said gamblers problems Are exacerbated overseas because the military does not consider compulsive gambling an addiction and thus does not provide adequate treatment. Compulsive gamblers usually get into trouble by writing bad checks to cover their gambling losses Mather said. But the military considers financial difficulties a personal problem a not a medical problem he said. Mather who began treating gamblers while working at Nellis fab at Las vegas nev., said some commanders do show concern for soldiers suffering from gambling problems. But the army has no regulations or manpower to Back up that concern Quot he said. Also Mather said it often is difficult for commanders and supervisors to recognize that subordinates Are addicted. Quot its hard to document compulsive gambling Quot he said. You can t smell it like alcohol. The eyes Don t get continued on Page 14 monday november 19, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a