Before the legalization of online gambling, the great majority of Americans would go their entire life without being tempted to seek out a bookie or fly to the handful of jurisdictions in which in-person sports betting was permitted. What millions now face are endless deceptive advertisements aired during the most-watched television broadcasts in America, inviting them to risk their money on platforms funded by venture capitalists rather than by organized crime. Many of the commercials I see while watching football promote what are called “risk free” bets, a phrase that should probably fall afoul of various truth-in-advertising statutes. What they mean is that if you bet $300 and win, you will be able to withdraw your winnings (in five to seven days via bank wire or instantaneously if you opt for the platform’s branded prepaid card); if you lose, your forfeited wagers become credits that can be used for future bets. Risk-free bets serve one purpose: ensuring that you continue to make use of the platform.

One bet I would be willing to make is that no matter what misgivings some of us have about it, legal sports betting is not going away. Total wagers are already in the neighborhood of $120 billion, and the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of online gambling in 2018 is unlikely to be reversed. To shield a tiny portion of the population who engaged in behavior that might once have been considered immoral (or “harmful” as many prefer to put it now) from the worst consequences of their actions, we have exposed many millions of others to an apparently mitigated version of the same hazards, and enriched powerful corporate interests in the bargain. If nothing else, the triumph of online gambling should give us pause the next time we find ourselves invited to make similarly blithe assumptions.