More bizarre correlation studies alert!

Apparantly, according to a University of Northern Iowa Study there is a correlation between gambling and bankruptcy.

The study found that there were more bankruptcies in counties that had a casino - than in counties without one.

You can read the rest of the article here
Study ties gambling to bankruptcy

Personally, even without reading the research document itself, the correlation seems as scientific as saying gambling addiction is affected by the amount of rain that falls on the first monday of every month. Correlation is only useful if there is a proven cause and effect - does gambling cause bankruptcy or is gambling an effect of bankruptcy? I doubt the study tries to answer this - or even begin to question it. Hopefully a follow-up study will try to offer something more substantial

More interesting, however, are some basic facts about Iowa gambling

The average Iowa gambler spent about $123 a month on casino gambling over the last 12 months, according to a University of Northern Iowa survey.

TIMES: Among Iowans who said they had gambled at an Iowa casino over the last year, the average number of times gambled in that period was seven.

TRAVEL: The average distance traveled was 32 miles one way.

LOST: The largest amount lost in a trip to an Iowa casino was, on average, $73.