You have a good view about gambling. I really like gambling, too much, but, can't really afford to do it, cause - well, I guess I'm not good enough at it to win much. But, fortunately, whenever I go to casinos to play blackjack or, well, that's pretty much my favorite game, once my bankroll is gone, I've never had problems just walking away - usually sad, but, just walk away and never chased losses, so, I"m luck in that way.
There was a time - you'd remember - when casinos first became popular, and I grew up on the prairies, so, they had casinos in Regina, Calgary, Winnipeg, etc. and you could play blackjack and BACK COUNT, this actually really worked and for a very short time I made a little money whenever I went to casinos and played blackjack - it's impossible to do now.
They had shoes of 4 or 6 decks and didn't shuffle till the end - and when the casinos first started out they usually weren't packed, so, there was often empty chairs. So, if you stood behind the players and counted the cards, waited for the count to turn positive with lots of high cards, and then put down bets, you were always betting when you had a slightly better chance of winning. This wasn't always taken kindly by people sitting at the tables, but, so what.
It only lasted a while, soon, the tables were always full of players and now, they reshuffle or whatever - I don't even follow anymore. But, for a short time there, it was possible to make money at blackjack. I never made much and sometimes I still lost even in a system that favored the player but it was a great feeling going to the casino and back counting and knowing whenever I was making a bet, that I actually had a slightly better chance of winning the bet than losing.