We've
all heard the promises: lower taxes, economic development,
jobs, and lots of good clean fun. If you listen to the
people pushing for a new state-run casino, expanding
gambling is a good bet for everyone involved.
It's
hard to deny the allure of more gambling money. Who
wouldn't want more jobs, lower taxes, and more money
going to the schools or the environment. IF IT SOUNDS TO GOOD TO BE TRUE
... You can bet it is.
Proponents of gambling make a lot of promises about the benefits, but how much have you really heard about the potential costs of getting the government more addicted to gambling dollars?
Let's dispel the biggest myth first: a new state casino won't create any new wealth or jobs for Minnesota. While casinos might redistribute wealth from one region to another, in general they simply suck up resources that had previously gone to local restaurants and entertainment venues.
When governments pin their hopes on
casinos to revive a failing economy, you can bet they
will fail. Detroit, Atlantic City, East Saint Louis
and other cities have placed their bets on gambling
to revive a failing economy, and have paid the price.
In New Orleans a new casino promised to bring 50,000
jobs, and delivered only 5% of that number.
