Trained Catholic exorcists in the US

Two professions whose business depends on people losing control of themselves, climbing the same hill in lockstep. The blackjack tables and the rite of exorcism, somehow on the same payroll schedule. It would be tidier if the demons just took the chips.

American casino revenue has roughly tripled since 2005 as states liberalised gaming laws and online sports betting arrived. The roster of trained Catholic exorcists in the US has also grown sharply over the same window, expanding from a handful in the early 2000s to over a hundred today, after the Vatican loosened authorisation rules in 2014. Both are stories about regulation: things that used to be rare or forbidden became, in their own ways, easier to license. Different doors opening on the same hallway.

When two markets grow together, look for the rule that changed. Permission, more often than possession. The supply usually follows.