The folks who are trying to control everything are known as and called control freaks. And they are called freaks for a reason. And the primary reason is that there is no way one can control everything. In fact, it is impossible to control even the tiniest part of everything. But that's not all. The most ironic, and ultimately pathetic, moment is that the more one tries to control things, the more they tend to get out of hand, so such effort often turns out quite counterproductive, essentially, an exercise in futility as well as stupidity. Hence freaks
Controlling the time and what luck has decided for us is totally different from controlling oneself. A person can definitely limit his desires. For instance, a gambler can never blame his fate to be a witch if he keeps on staking his money on random games. After ending up a beggar, he should only consider his unlimited playing habit to be the reason behind his destruction. Humans can always master themselves, just a matter of choice
But what is choice really?
And how much of it comes through actual thought and self-control? As much as I would like to agree with your view, I don't think we are as rational as we think we are. Most of our decisions are made on the spot without thinking twice (or even once, for that matter). It just happens that our instincts and urges that "guide" our decisions in everyday life are working more or less fine most of the time. And when they don't work, the consequences are not serious, so the negative effects of our actions can be easily corrected or alleviated
But this no longer works in gambling. If you lose money, you can't claim it back. Indeed, you can start chasing your losses, but how much of that decision is rational and thought-out in itself? Not much, I daresay. As it turns out, it is not that easy to master ourselves. We more often than not fall victim to our gut feelings, desires and impulses