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Degenerate players!

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by Packer, May 8, 2015.

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  1. Packer

    Packer VIP Whale

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    After reading 1000s of post I want to ask you? What constitutes a true Las Vegas DEGENERATE VMB style?

    Is it losing your whole bankroll the first two hours you are there?
    Is it gambling for 4 hours a day?
    Is it drinking til you pass out wake up and start in on the bloody Mary's at breakfast? (Assuming you aren't an alcoholic)
    Is it playing 3 card poker, war or the big wheel?
    Is it sitting at a penny slut machine for 2 days in a row?
    Is it gambling 20 hrs a day?
    Is it when you go up to your friend and say it's time for dinner as he is playing bj and you can't pry him away from the table then come back to the same table asking him the same thing at 8am for breakfast as he is sweating and twitching?
    Is it losing money you can't afford to lose?
    Is it seeing Elton John for the 10th time or seeing a Cirque du Soleil show for the 40th time?
    Is it burning through your credit line and then going to the bank before it closes to get more money?
    Is it going to the atm at 11:59pm and again at 12:01am 3 days in a row?
    Is it keeping busy 21 hours a day? ie.. Going to breakfast, lunch and dinner, hoover dam, redrocks, downtown, strip, visiting 10 hotels/casinos, checking out pawn stars, going to the pinball HOF, walking the strip and all in 2 days?
    OR, Staying in the room for two days with a hooker or hookers or maybe a gigolo depending if you are female? Or not.

    And so on....

    What do you think constitutes a true degen? What have you done or seen to earn this true distinction?

    Oh, and since I started this thread I get to make the call of you are a true VMB DEGENERATE! And please remember this is all in fun so don't take it the wrong way.
     
    Last edited: May 9, 2015
  2. newmans

    newmans VIP Whale

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    In my opinion, being a true degen is when the gambling is not entertainment. When you are chasing losses and losing money that you can't afford to lose, you're a degen.

    I'm in Vegas a lot. I love doing a solo trip. I may gamble between 6-12 hours a day. I throw in a little shopping, pool time, spa etc and have nice meals. I never play/lose more than I can afford. For me, my host takes care of me and I'm treated well and I gamble at a level where I'm comfortable.
     
  3. katmu

    katmu Well-Known Member

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    I have never done a single thing on your list so I guess I'm not a true degenerate. I set my budget for the day with a smaller reserve set aside but don't ever go over the reserve as for me that wouldn't be fun.

    I don't think of most of the VMBer's who might classify themselves as degens are true degens though either. I think newman's point about it having something to do with when it becomes something more than entertainment is the key.
     
  4. TheCooler

    TheCooler Professional Gambler and the Best Football Handica

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    I would say everyone has their own definition of what constitutes a true degenerate. Let me share my story.

    I made my first trip to Vegas when I was 21. I went with some older friends who had all been to Vegas before. At this point I was a seriously low roller. We were in town for five nights and I budgeted $600 for the entire trip. This was for food and everything. We all split a room at Harrah's, which was already paid for. So the first night we're playing at Harrah's where I bought in for $100 at blackjack. I lost that in minutes. After several more buy-ins and subsequent losses, I was down to $30 to my name with 5 full days left. I had two choices. I could eat at the McDonald's outside of Harrah's for five days and do nothing else. Or, I could go on a heater.

    The choice here was clear, for me at least. I put $20 on red and won. Repeat. And repeat again. After getting back to something around $100 I bought back in at a blackjack table. I then proceeded to run that back up to my original $600. I should have stopped here and thanked God. But little did I know at this point, I was and still am a degenerate. I began betting more and more, and was eventually wagering $50 per hand. This seemed liked a fortune to me at the time. To this day I haven't felt the rush like I did that night, even though I play at a significantly higher level now. I left the table at 3 or 4 am with over $3k in my pocket. After treating my friends to dinner at Toby Keith's (what was I thinking?) I had enough of a bankroll left to enjoy the rest of the trip.
     
    Last edited: May 8, 2015
  5. Kickin

    Kickin Flea

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    I think your list spans from things that are no big deal to things that are pretty extreme.

    Here's a list of signs and symptoms of compulsive gambling from the Mayo Clinic

    1. Gaining a thrill from taking big gambling risks
    2. Taking increasingly bigger gambling risks
    3. Preoccupation with gambling
    4. Reliving past gambling experiences
    5. Gambling as a way to escape problems or feelings of helplessness, guilt or depression
    6. Taking time from work or family life to gamble
    7. Concealing or lying about gambling
    8. Feeling guilt or remorse after gambling
    9. Borrowing money or stealing to gamble
    10. Failed efforts to cut back on gambling
     
  6. BlacklabberMike

    BlacklabberMike MIA

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    any drug user will tell you, you can't repeat that first high.
     
  7. Hobofrank

    Hobofrank Prime Minister of Idiocracy

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    #4,5,6 and 10
     
  8. Hobofrank

    Hobofrank Prime Minister of Idiocracy

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    is this part of the GA 12 step checklist?, never read it
    but it sounds like it
     
  9. Hobofrank

    Hobofrank Prime Minister of Idiocracy

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    I agree, we call ourselves that jokingly, but of the 3 times I've over stepped my "line in the sand"? it was under $300 at the ATM when I went on tilt
    and that is since I was 21
     
  10. Malibugolfer

    Malibugolfer High-Roller

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    Got me big time on 1-6 Kickin' Luckily that's it. Although if I get hammered like last visit it may be time for breaking out the piece and ski mask and heading down to the convenience store for #9.
     
  11. sindustry

    sindustry VIP Whale

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    Uh-oh...I am guilty of all the above except "borrowing money or stealing to gamble."
     
  12. Kickin

    Kickin Flea

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    Don't feel too bad. Most of us are probably guilty of #3 and #4 just by virtue of posting on this board.

    I also think #6 is way too vague. You can say that about any activity like fishing or playing golf or just going to the gym.
     
  13. shifter

    shifter Degenerate Gambler

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    a degen is not something you do, it's something you are.

    it has nothing to do with being addicted and it has nothing to do with losing money you can't afford to lose.

    it's about the risk and the gamble being in your blood and a part of your soul.

    some of us are and some of us aren't and neither one can change it.
     
  14. carolineno

    carolineno VIP Whale

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    "Is it gambling 20 hrs a day?"

    ^^^^pretty sure I did this once...


    That being said, I am quick to judge I guess.... but dedicating oneself to any negative expected value game seems degen-y to me. Not that there's anything wrong with that though!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj3VphK9AMk
     
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  15. Catzilla

    Catzilla VIP Whale

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    No...not at all!

    Would spending $100 to win a $50 mini jackpot because it's due to hit qualify? ;)
     
  16. Packer

    Packer VIP Whale

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    Well said and I agree. For the rest of you don't use my examples but your own. We all joke about being DEGENERATES but truly I think we are just people who don't sweat the small stuff and enjoy life. After all the true meaning is "Having lost the physical, mental, or moral qualities considered normal and desirable; showing evidence of decline". Well maybe in like that a little. Lol
     
  17. Fafa2e

    Fafa2e High-Roller

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    I never risk more than i can afford to lose and usually stick to my budget; however, when I saw this list I have to answer yes to most of these, as follows:

    1. No. I do not take big gambling risks that if lost would have a detrimental effect on my life.
    2. Yes. I've increased my bets over the years commensurate with my disposable income.
    3. Yes. I am constantly reading this website and other Vegas related websites.
    4. Yes. I will post trip reports and other gambling related stories on this board.
    5. No. I gamble for entertainment, but I will sometimes gamble when I'm bored.
    6. Yes. I take time off from work to travel to Vegas, primarily to gamble.
    7. Yes. I will sometimes lie about the amount I gambled or travelling to Vegas because of other people's perceptions.
    8. Yes. I will sometimes be pissed at myself for not leaving the table while I was ahead.
    9. No. I have never borrowed or stole money to gamble; however, I have borrowed money from a friend at the table, but repaid shortly thereafter. (Should this be a Yes?)
    10. No. I haven't really tried to cut back, but i have taken short breaks from gambling successfully.

    I do not consider myself a compulsive gambler; however, when I read these indicators it made me think.
     
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  18. Packer

    Packer VIP Whale

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    One of my many degen Lost Wages stories is...
    In my early 20s there were countless times I would Save money approximately 1000 and fly to Vegas with a friend. We would stay in those days at GEEZERS. I would lose it all and more and literally save money for a cab and taco bell. The plane ride was always something I would never forget to this day, not one word, not one smile just pure pure disdain and feeling like the loser I was. After getting home with zero in my pocket, zero in the bank, I would call my girlfriend to pick me up at the airport (she hated me going to vegas) and drop my sorry ass off at home. Couldn't even face her. I did that for probably 15 trips in my very early 20s.. The is a true degen and not proud of it. To add, after college something hit me and I NEVER did that again. Never. Well, until I was at pt's party a few months ago when I went home with no cash in my pocket! Obviously these days it's different with credit cards, bigger bank accounts, and never spending/losing more than I plan on.
     
  19. RC

    RC Low-Roller

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    It is being the guy Anthony that I shared a table with a while back that told me that he lived in the NYC area and that a certain AC casino sent a car for him and his crew for 62 straight weekend trips to AC.
     
  20. chitownjohn

    chitownjohn High-Roller

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    I would love to answer but I'm heading off to the track to drink and wager on the ponies.
     
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