34 South Main St., Attleboro, MA - (508) 222-7000
Opinion
GUEST COLUMN: Why I oppose casino gambling
Top Headlines Massachusetts has one of the most successful state lotteries in the country. It provides more than $800 million in local aid to our cities and towns each year, or about twice what Connecticut earns from its two casinos. If we invite casinos into our state, the increased competition for gambling dollars will hurt the Lottery. Making up the losses won't be easy. It will take about $10 in casino gambling to offset every lottery dollar lost. Gambling exploits the desperate dreams of people with little hope, and is widely viewed as a tax on the poor. Locating casinos near low-income communities, where the jobs are needed most, is counterproductive. As we have seen in Atlantic City, they drain away what little wealth there is, and lead to increased crime and further neighborhood decline. The gaming industry understands well the brain chemistry of addiction and compulsive behavior. It informs every aspect of a casino's design, from lighting and layout to the audio and visual feedback of slot machines. That is why compulsive gambling increases two percentage points within 50 miles of a casino. Under the governor's three-casino plan, that's an additional 54,000 families at high risk for bankruptcy, spousal abuse and divorce. The economic, social and personal costs would be staggering. The developing brains of young adults are particularly vulnerable to gambling addiction. With our many colleges, inviting casinos into our state would be like permitting tobacco companies to spike cigarettes with extra nicotine and then allowing them to hand out free samples in front of schools. Finally, there is the issue of political corruption. Once established, the gambling industry, flush with cash, will become an irresistible political force. They will use their money and influence to force concessions from the state and reduce our share. As we have seen in neighboring Rhode Island, it won't be long before the tail wags the dog. Massachusetts has the best-educated workforce in the country. Let's provide our children with a future built on our strengths rather than our weaknesses. STEVE D'AMICO of Seekonk is state representative for the 4th Bristol District.
Post Your Comments nortongaming wrote on Mar 26, 2008 1:30 AM: " Representative D'Amico has received his casino information from an unreliable source. He misunderstands casino terminology. Casino shouldn't cost the lottery anything; if the experience of other States with casinos and a lottery is a fair example.
His concern about compulsive gambling, ought to have him take a close look at his own MA State Lottery, with 8,500 outlets in every State community. Other States, have found that the highest per capita spending is often in neighborhoods with the lowest incomes. In MA the average adult betting approximately $1,000 each year in Lottery games and Keno. Casinos require time, transportation, and often accommodations and often attract visitors, not for the gaming, but for shows and sporting events. The Governor's proposal was referring to 3 casinos with an average of 6,700 jobs each. Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun employ in excess of 20,000 for 2 properties. the 3 largest casinos in Atlantic City would have paid $500 million at the proposed tax rate. Certainly the Life Science industry will do a lot to keep college graduates from leaving the State. But the State is gambling $1 billion to attract this new industry, while gaming companies would probably bid over $1 billion to get the 3 casino licenses. This year, two race tracks in Indiana, just paid license fees of $500 million, for the right to add 2,000 slots to each of their tracks; and in addition, pay a tax rate on slot win, that escalates from 41% to 51%. " mr23257 wrote on Mar 25, 2008 11:12 AM: " Should I laugh or cry? Laugh because D'Amico's op-ed was buffoonish, or cry because he's paid to represent us.
If casinos are small business threats, why does Southeastern Connecticut have that state's lowest unemployment rate? Why is SECT New England's premier, gaming, entertainment and tourist destination? And why was SECT the ONLY New England region that experienced home value increases last year? Where'd you get $10 in casino revenues is needed to replace every $1 in lottery revenues? The lottery and keno have the absolute worst odds and derive 80% of revenues from poor, working poor and lower middle class communities? Both CT and RI have seen increases in lottery revenues since the casinos and slot parlors opened. Probably Bay Staters spending their money there, too. Attleboro/Seekonk residents spend more on the lottery, per capita, but the local aid's distributed more, percentage-wise, to Weston and Wellesley. Do you get your info from your colleague Dan Bosley, who championed energy deregulation legislation because, he pledged, it would increase competition and lower our electric rates. The bigger companies bought up the smaller companies, reducing competition, and Massachusetts now has the nation's 4th highest electric rates. Dan Bosley, who pushed through the tax breaks for Fidelity and Raytheon, and after they got the tax giveaways, moved jobs and operations to Texas. Bosleynomics doesn't work. So, stop writing op-eds that embarrass you! " or
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