Text Read the text about teenage gambling. For each question 25-30, choose the best answer: a, b, c or d
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Text 5. Read the text about teenage gambling. For each question 25-30, choose the best answer: a, b, c or d. Jerry is sixteen years old and has just started his fight against his addiction. He takes part in Gamblers Anonymous meetings every day. 'I started by betting on sports games’, he says. 'I'm an American football fan, but I bet on every sport: basketball, baseball, soccer, even tennis. I did pretty well at first. I made a lot of money and really enjoyed it. Then I discovered Internet gambling. This was even better; I could stay up all night betting. True, I had problems at school, but who needed school? I had all this money and I didn't think I needed an education. But then I started losing. I couldn't make a single good bet, and if I won, I put all the money on another bet. I tried to stop but I kept going back. It was as if the computer owned me. I was at it all day and all night sometimes, trying to make up the losses. And I was finding it harder and harder to do my school work. It became really desperate and I had to steal from my parents. When the truth finally came out, the family was thousands of dollars in debt.' Seventy years ago gambling was considered immoral and it was illegal to gamble in the USA. Today, however, you can gamble in all but three states: Hawaii, Utah and Tennessee, and there are a lot of people like Jerry. It is possible to win a lot of money and gambling can be difficult to resist, particularly for people who need money. This isn't a problem for most gamblers, who are able to gamble for fun and stop when they want. Others, however, find it impossible to stop and become trapped in an addiction as powerful as drug addiction. You would hope that the law would protect teenagers from such a dangerous problem. However, even though it is illegal for teenagers to gamble, a recent survey of 21,297 high-school students found that 53% of the students had gambled in the last twelve months and 7% reported significant gambling problems. Gambling as an addiction can be treated in the same way as other addictions. To recover, gamblers first need to be honest with themselves and others, go to recovery group meetings, such as Gamblers Anonymous, and help other people there. Secondly, money should be carefully controlled. Addicted gamblers shouldn't be allowed to have large amounts of money with them. Instead someone responsible should keep the money and give them the exact amount they need each day. After the gambler begins to recover, they can gradually take control of their finances. Statistics show that 50% of gamblers overcome addiction with treatment only, and 70% if they go through treatment and then regularly attend Gamblers Anonymous meetings. 25. What do we first learn about Jerry? a He is having treatment for an addiction. b He does not need treatment any more. c He is planning addiction therapy. d He has refused therapy. 26. When Jerry first started gambling, he a did not enjoy it very much. b gambled on the Internet. c gambled to finance his education. d had a lot of success. 27. When Jerry started losing, a he stopped making new bets. b he gambled even more. c his parents lent him some money. d he wanted to sell his computer. 28. Today, in the USA a everyone gambles. b gambling is illegal in only a few states. c people think gambling is immoral. d gambling is less popular than 70 years ago. 29. A survey of high-school students showed that a most know that gambling is illegal. b most would like to try gambling. c more than half gambled last year. d drugs are more of a problem than gambling. 30. Gambling addicts who are being treated a should not be able to get money easily. b must not contact other gamblers. c are less likely to recover if they go to meetings. d are given drugs to help with their addictions. |
