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Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

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Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#31

Post by pikiejoe »

runeb wrote: post #28
pikiejoe wrote: post #10

I know friends that work in online gambling, they say they are more ashamed of people who work in banking, hft, defense (offense?) contractors, Facebook or Google. Why? Because all the above have tangible negative effects on society. We need an engineering code of conduct - too many tech folk happy to take a dollar in return for building stuff that makes the world a worse place.

Sounds like whataboutism. Pointing at the dirty neighbors does not clean your own house.

So you are confirming the neighbour does indeed have a dirty house too?

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#33

Post by jordan_ »

dtft wrote: post #27
Apreche wrote: post #12

Yes. A casino exists only to take advantage of vulnerable individuals and drain them of their money. It is an immoral business. Therefore, working to help a casino is also immoral.

Devils advocate argument: I work at an e-commerce company that is designed and incentivized to sell as much product as possible. Are we taking advantage of "shopping addicts"? Where is the line drawn between capitalism and morality? Sidenote: Casinos also exist to provide entertainment value. I don't mind spending $20 on blackjack just to play with my friends and talk with new people. Just because there is a subset o…

Very good point. The distinction may be that a casino operates on the premise that playing will make you rich some lucky day - whereas when you shop, financial loss is not obfuscated away as a means to your big payday.

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#34

Post by jermaustin1 »

As a person who enjoys playing the lotto, losing money in poker, and buying high/selling low, yes. It is unethical. But most things that are fun are. I feel OK with gambling and do it every day in one of those three activities, but I have an income to support losing a few hundred dollars per day and it only kind of hurt.

I wish that casinos had to do more to ensure the person gambling had the ability to lose the money, but that adds a lot of regulatory burdens that a lot of people would find onerous on free market enterprises (I don't, but that is a political discussion not meant for this topic).

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#36

Post by bartedinburgh »

I used to work for one and was not proud of it because I felt our products did not provide any value.

My boss had this theory how betting small amounts of money is just another form of entertainment people enjoy, just like going to the cinema or playing a video game, and thus we were in the entertainment business. I didn't really buy it and I wondered if he truly believed it himself.

Not everyone has a chance to work on world-changing, truly innovative stuff, but there's a lot of productive, useful work to be done, and I just think that online betting is not one of them.

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#37

Post by Clubber »

jordan_ wrote: post #33
dtft wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Devils advocate argument: I work at an e-commerce company that is designed and incentivized to sell as much product as possible. Are we taking advantage of "shopping addicts"? Where is the line drawn between capitalism and morality? Sidenote: Casinos also exist to provide entertainment value. I don't mind spending $20 on blackjack just to play with my friends and talk with new people. Just because there is a subset o…

Very good point. The distinction may be that a casino operates on the premise that playing will make you rich some lucky day - whereas when you shop, financial loss is not obfuscated away as a means to your big payday.

Yes, but the marketing machine still makes you want that shiny thing that you don't need. It will make you happy for about 5 minutes.

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#38

Post by staticelf »

Is working for McDonalds unethical? Well yes, because people get obese and live shorter lives.

Is working for Tobacco companies unethical? Well yes, because people die from cancer which was caused from smoking for example.

Is working for the bank unethical? Well yes, because most banks make people buy bonds that have a high profit for the banks but lower for the customers.

Is working for your local grocery store unethical? Well yes, because you are again making people fat by placing candy at the exit so you profit more.

Everything is unethical to some extent, just decided what level you want to be on and be happy.

Re: Ask HN: Is working on online casinos unethical?

#39

Post by wu-ikkyu »

hapless wrote: post #8
jonnycomputer wrote: post #5

as unethical as working for tobacco companies.

Tobacco industry is made up of wholly legal and aboveboard business enterprises with many happy users. They have a long history of malicious behavior, but it is not, on the face of it, wrong to take such a job. But I still might avoid it, myself. Once bitten, twice shy. You spend fifty years conspiring to conceal damages to your own customers and maybe I prefer not to work for you even after you stop doing it

Tobacco kills around 10x more people than heroin (at least in the US).
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