[SNOWBALL138]

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I think it's a cop-out to just say that all these people are 'stupid'.
They're clearly are not THAT stupid.
Many are college-educated...have jobs...even as doctors, lawyers, psychologists, whatever.


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Part of whats happening is that people experience gambling decisions emotionally, and are confused by the meaning of their results, as well as the game itself. Instead of thinking "I have no idea whats going on" they pretend that they understand whats going on. They make up stories that can help them to explain events that are confusing, and emotionally intense (sometimes traumatic). Its a little more complicated than Voltaire's "god shaped void", but the principle is somewhat similar.

Also, sometimes people just want something to talk about. People will spit out any variety of canard to make conversations. Monkey see monkey do. Sometimes the smart monkeys take cues from the dumber monkeys, because its no big deal if they're wrong. People don't go into gambling environments to exchange meaningful ideas.