Maryland has fallen prey to the short-sighted belief that gambling will be the economic Messiah it has been praying for. In an attempt to correct a fiscal crisis brewing on the horizon in the Maryland state legislature to pay for a floundering public education system, as well as shore up a declining racing industry, policy makers and other state leaders such as the Baltimore AFL-CIO and the Governor have turned to a quick-fix idea that has been attempted in at least 37 other states prior to this past November 4th general election. The long-term effects of casino gambling have yet to be fully felt.
The purpose of this essay is to substantiate the argument against the installation of some 15,000 slot machines throughout the State of Maryland on the grounds that they will contribute to the decline of local economies; the “invisible costs” of gambling such as increased crime and poverty in relationship to the proximity of casinos; and finally the dangerous precedent set by radically amending the state constitution to allow a risky, if not entirely unproven “money-making” venture to replace the fiscal discipline and resourcefulness needed by state leadership in a time of economic crisis.
The idea that casinos generate “revenue” is, in itself” a fallacy in reasoning. Casinos and slot machines are merely a form of wealth redistribution. Nothing “new” is created, manufactured or developed. A viable argument can absolutely be made that casinos are in essence a form of “sin tax” which is disproportionately placed upon the poorest and most vulnerable of the social classes. To then in turn argue that the economy will be helped, overlooks the reality that casinos draw approximately 80% of their business from a 35-50 mile radius (NCALG, par. 2) and decimates local hotel, restaurant and entertainment industries.
The Term Paper on Pestel Analysis Of Gambling And Tourism Tourism Essay
... in Frontier Areas. Lexington Books, Maryland, U.S.A. Frey, J. H. and Eadington W. R. (1984). The Casino Gambling Industry: A Study of political ... 16, 2010, from http://www.gamblingplanet.org/GP_editorial_200508a Hulse, J. W. (2004). The Silver State: Nevada’s Heritage Reinterpreted. University of Nevada Press, Reno, Nevada. Insider ...
By understanding that casinos operate in a manner that is not even on par with service industry jobs where people and not machines provide a service and are thereby paid a wage, and that casinos in fact draw business away from low-paying service industry jobs such as restaurants and hotels, casinos by definition cause harm to local economies and businesses. Another plank in the case against slot machines in Maryland can be attributed to the “invisible costs” of this highly addictive form of gambling. Referred to widely as the “crack cocaine” of gambling, “Machines are the most continuous medium of gambling.
Bets can be made and decided in a matter of seconds, with virtually no delay before the pattern is repeated. Machines are non-threatening and user-friendly to the uninitiated, thus they may offer an unparalleled “gateway” activity to gambling” (Breen & Zimmerman, 2000).
Welte, Weiczorek, Barnes, Tidwell & Hoffman discuss at length not only the considerable arguments supporting increased addiction rates, but also the substantial link between poverty, rise in crime rates and the disproportionate burden and cost placed upon impoverished municipalities where casinos are often located (2003).
The trade-off of the purported financial gain from casinos is utterly diminished when one fully weighs the “invisible costs” associated with long term poverty and socio-economic losses attributed to increased crime and addiction. A final question that should have been weighed carefully in deciding for or against the slot machines proposal in Maryland would be whether or not this issue, which is in essence a mechanism to remedy a fiscal imbalance brought on by years of poor stewardship of resources by the State Legislature, was truly an issue worthy of changing the governing document for the State of Maryland.
The Term Paper on America’s Gambling Gamblers Casinos People
Should Gambling Be Legalized? Over the past twenty or so years, great wealth and improved economic and social conditions have been promised to the communities that have embraced legalized gambling. However, with twenty years of experience it is time to look back and analyze whether this is true or not. It could easily be said that gambling is as American as apple pie. Gambling has shaped American ...
Amending the Constitution of the State of Maryland to allow slot machines cheapens the very nature of the document and what it stands for, and sets a dangerous precedent for the people of Maryland. What will happen the next time the budget doesn’t balance? Perhaps amending the Constitution to allow blackjack, craps and roulette tables next will be the answer to the infrastructure problem the State is facing.
References
Breen, R. B. , Zimmerman, M. (2000a, June).
Rapid Onset of Pathological Gambling in Machine Gambling [Abstract]. Retrieved from http://www. ncalg.org/Library/Studies%20and%20White%20Papers/Addiction%20and%20Health/Breen%20Rapid%20Onset. pdf Getting Started with Basic Gambling Facts. (n. d. ) In The National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling. Retrieved November 23, 2008 from http://www. ncalg. org/Gambilng%20Inside%20Story.
htm Welte, J. W. , Weiczorek, W. F. , Barnes, G. M. , Tidwell, M. C. , & Hoffman, J. H. (2003).
The Relationship of Ecological and Geographic Factors to Gambling Behavior and Pathology. Retrieved November 23, 2008 from http://www. ncalg. org/Library/Studies%20and%20White%20Papers/Addiction%20and%20Health/welte%20ecological_and_geographic_factors. pdf
