I think I understand your friend's point of view. He fears that the West, or the United States and European countries in general, created gambling games with the aim of exploiting poor people. I think this is a common belief among a large portion of these people.

Also, a large portion of people do not gamble because they believe that gambling is too risky, causes people to lose money, causes many social problems due to addiction, and, in some cases, leads to suicide for those who have lost everything they own in gambling or have accumulated debts due to gambling.

These are personal freedoms, and every person is free to gamble or refrain from gambling and believe whatever they wish. You don't have to convince everyone.