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Gambling Allowed on U.S. Military Bases

``Since 1981, the Department of Defense has been raking in a tidy sum from more than 7,000 slot and video poker machines on 94 U.S. military installations overseas.

``In 2000, for example, the betting devices raised $125 million -- earmarked to pay for various morale boosters like family picnics and the construction of military base clubs, bowling alleys and golf courses.

``Service members, their dependents and civilian employees spend more than $1 billion annually gambling on base.

``Two Pentagon studies found that 2 percent -- or an estimated 30,000 service men and women -- "possessed the indicators of probable pathological gambling."

``Pentagon officials contend that the revenues are essential and gambling is a harmless source of funding. But experts on gambling addiction argue that gambling often fosters a dependency that results in criminal behavior. However, the military's only gambling treatment program is at Camp Pendleton, Calif..."

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