Government Protection from Yourself

How can government protect you from your own harmful desires like gambling and drinking? New ‘self-exclusion’ policies allow people to plan ahead for those moment of impulse. One such self-exclusion plan available for gambling addicts in Canada encourages people to give their photos to casinos in a moment of clarity so that when temptation strikes, the casinos will not allow them onto the floor. Psychologists say these ‘pre-commitment’ strategies are far more effective in achieving people’s long term interests—what they want to want—than belief in their will power alone. The degree to which government should act to limit behavior currently left to the people is up for debate.