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Columnist: Keep
Expanded Gambling Out of Minnesota
Columnist D.L. Leary recently published a rant
against the notion of expanding gambling in Minnesota to include
government-owned casinos and slot machines at racetracks. Minnesota
is one of several U.S. states entertaining the idea of opening up
multitudinous gambling opportunities for citizens. The difference is
that those other states are looking at slots and casinos as a way of
funneling some desperately-needed funds into state coffers.
Minnesota, which has a state deficit rapidly approaching five
billion dollars, wants to use the money from these entertainments to
build a new stadium for their local NFL team, the Minnesota Vikings.
Leary admits that he is a huge proponent of tribal casinos, and has
been gambling at such establishments for the better part of a
half-century. Additionally, he is a self-confessed Vikings fan. With
that said, he believes that it goes against Minnesotan values and
common sense to bring slot machines into every neighborhood in the
state, as he puts it. Not only will the state disenfranchise and
anger the Indian tribes that currently operate the only legal
gambling operations in the state, but it will all but do away with
the concept of “destination gambling” and the inherent protections
from problem gambling that come with the inconvenience of travel.
If you make slot machines and roulette wheels easily accessible to
citizens, he believes, you will soon be faced with a wealth of
problems stemming from addiction and problem gambling. That’s not to
mention the fact that gambling is no longer “special” and perceived
as a use of tourism and vacation dollars.
Back to March 2009 Archive.
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SLOTS DATA
