Welcome to Breakpoint, a daily look, and an ever-changing culture through the lens of unchanging truth.

For the Colson Center, I'm John Stone Street.

Last month, the National Basketball Association was rocked by the arrest of players and coaches

that resulted from an FBI probe into sports gambling. The charges range from mafia-linked

poker games to rigging basketball games and more

indictments are expected. This month, two major league baseball pitchers were arrested in connection

with a pitch rigging scheme, also tied to sports betting. ESPN's Michael Wilbon was dismissive

about the whole thing, saying, and I quote, I don't care. But then, almost immediately

after, he put his finger on why the problem is actually so serious, quote, at the highest levels

of the pyramid in this country, of this culture, everybody's betting now. Well, sports has long been

plagued by gambling scandals, but today, sports gambling has become so normalized and it's pervasive across

homes, high schools, locker rooms, all across the country. A recent video in the What Would You Say

Series discuss sports gambling and why it's such a big deal. Here's a clip. Betting on sports is

nothing new, but since a 2018 Supreme Court case struck down a federal

ban and paved the way for 38 states along with Washington, D.C. to allow sports gambling,

it has exploded in popularity. So far, this national experiment has been a disaster for individuals

and families. The next time someone says, sports gambling is harmless fun, it shouldn't be regulated.

Remember these three things.

First, sports gambling is addictive and destroys lives.

During the 2024 NFL season,

$34 billion in bets were placed.

That's a third more than the prior year and 100% more than

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