Although the US has long had a reputation as a society that encourages freedom and limits the involvement of government, like any nation, it has its particular areas of controversy where questions of liberty and ethics overlap, leading to developments that may seem strange to outsiders.
Gambling was not outlawed in the US for most of its early history, at least, not in a systematic fashion, but attitudes changed at the end of the 19th century. In 1900, lotteries were outlawed...