Ohio voters have rejected casino gambling in the past. They should do so again, keeping in mind its false promise
Proponents of casino gambling in Ohio believe in a try, try, try again approach. Actually, voters have decisively defeated three casino gambling issues since 1990. Yet gambling interests are back this year with another proposed amendment to the Ohio Constitution, Issue 6 on the statewide ballot. The amendment would permit a single casino near Wilmington, in Clinton County.
We strongly recommend a ''no'' vote on Issue 6 on Nov. 4.
In 1996, supporters of a casino petition drive abandoned their efforts, vowing to return in tougher economic times, pitching a casino resort as a job-development plan and a reliable source of tax revenue. Now they are back, championed by Lakes Entertainment, a Minnesota-based casino operator. The MyOhioNow committee is spending millions on television ads pledging the creation of 5,000 jobs and tax revenues of more than $200 million to be distributed among Ohio counties based on population.
Mind you, none of the money is guaranteed by the amendment, which would grant Lakes Entertainment what amounts to a monopoly license, the profits flowing out of state. In terms of economic impact, the casino would produce a net loss. Even if 5,000 jobs were created in a casino complex with a hotel, restaurants, golf course and theater, most would be low-wage, dead-end service jobs. More, studies of gambling have shown that for every $1 in economic benefits, there are roughly $3 in costs, most notably in the form of families ruined at the gaming tables.
Neither is a 30 percent tax on gross casino receipts, generating $240 million a year, a sure thing. The amendment calls for enactment of a tax of ''up to'' 30 percent. A good bet is, Lakes Entertainment will lobby for a lower rate. Gambling in the Midwest also could hit a saturation point, revenues declining.
Neither are gambling revenues big enough to solve local government needs. MyOhioNow projects Cuyahoga County, the state's largest, would get $26 million a year. Sounds great, but the county is projecting annual budget shortfalls of more than $65 million by 2010. Worse, passage would likely convince Cuyahoga County voters they had solved the crisis, just as passage of the Ohio Lottery wrongly convinced voters school funding had been fixed.
The other loophole in the amendment is created by language that any tax on the Wilmington-area casino cannot exceed the tax paid by another gambling facility in Ohio. How is that a loophole? Approval of casino-style gambling would open the door to an Indian casino, something eyed by the Eastern Shawnee. Under federal law, such an Indian casino could not be subject to any state or local taxes. Thus, the 30 percent rate could fall to zero.
Issue 6 is a dangerous distraction at a time of economic turmoil. Voters should reject this latest gambling scheme and shift their attention to making long-term investments in education and infrastructure that promise true improvement for Ohio.
Proponents of casino gambling in Ohio believe in a try, try, try again approach. Actually, voters have decisively defeated three casino gambling issues since 1990. Yet gambling interests are back this year with another proposed amendment to the Ohio Constitution, Issue 6 on the statewide ballot. The amendment would permit a single casino near Wilmington, in Clinton County.
We strongly recommend a ''no'' vote on Issue 6 on Nov. 4.
In 1996, supporters of a casino petition drive abandoned their efforts, vowing to return in tougher economic times, pitching a casino resort as a job-development plan and a reliable source of tax revenue. Now they are back, championed by Lakes Entertainment, a Minnesota-based casino operator. The MyOhioNow committee is spending millions on television ads pledging the creation of 5,000 jobs and tax revenues of more than $200 million to be distributed among Ohio counties based on population.
Mind you, none of the money is guaranteed by the amendment, which would grant Lakes Entertainment what amounts to a monopoly license, the profits flowing out of state. In terms of economic impact, the casino would produce a net loss. Even if 5,000 jobs were created in a casino complex with a hotel, restaurants, golf course and theater, most would be low-wage, dead-end service jobs. More, studies of gambling have shown that for every $1 in economic benefits, there are roughly $3 in costs, most notably in the form of families ruined at the gaming tables.
Neither is a 30 percent tax on gross casino receipts, generating $240 million a year, a sure thing. The amendment calls for enactment of a tax of ''up to'' 30 percent. A good bet is, Lakes Entertainment will lobby for a lower rate. Gambling in the Midwest also could hit a saturation point, revenues declining.
Neither are gambling revenues big enough to solve local government needs. MyOhioNow projects Cuyahoga County, the state's largest, would get $26 million a year. Sounds great, but the county is projecting annual budget shortfalls of more than $65 million by 2010. Worse, passage would likely convince Cuyahoga County voters they had solved the crisis, just as passage of the Ohio Lottery wrongly convinced voters school funding had been fixed.
The other loophole in the amendment is created by language that any tax on the Wilmington-area casino cannot exceed the tax paid by another gambling facility in Ohio. How is that a loophole? Approval of casino-style gambling would open the door to an Indian casino, something eyed by the Eastern Shawnee. Under federal law, such an Indian casino could not be subject to any state or local taxes. Thus, the 30 percent rate could fall to zero.
Issue 6 is a dangerous distraction at a time of economic turmoil. Voters should reject this latest gambling scheme and shift their attention to making long-term investments in education and infrastructure that promise true improvement for Ohio.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Friday, October 31, 2008
Issue 6 - Dickensian sentence to parasitism. Vote NO.
I love Joe at Plunderbund. But I oppose Issue 6, strongly, and I will take Joe’s reason’s for supporting Issue 6 one at a time. Before doing so, I need to lay out my fundamental objection.
Issue 6 is another example of the filthy rich attempting to buy a license to print their own money on the backs of the poorest Ohioans. That’s what a casino is. It’s not a business model, it’s not an industry, it is free money based on nothing but the desperation of poor people.
Just walk into a convenience store and see who’s buying lottery tickets, every single day, so obsessively they can’t even wait to get out of the store before scratching the damn thing off. These people are poor. They are desperate. They see a lottery ticket as their only way out. It’s another example of the Dickensian nature of today’s America. And I oppose it to my core.
Now on to Joe’s reasons for supporting Issue 6.
1. The economy sucks and these guys want to invest 600 MILLION DOLLARS into Ohio. You really want to tell them no?
Yes. I want to tell these people that if they want to invest $600 million into Ohio, they can figure out a way to do so without being parasites on the poorest Ohioans. Gambling is a regressive tax on the poor, and those dollars are nothing more than a down payment on making Ohioans even poorer. Build a wind farm, dig for coal, make a high speed rail line, fund an internet startup. If it’s really a $600 million investment in Ohio, then make it an investment, not a Dickensian regressive tax.
2. Ohio is hemorrhaging jobs and this project could bring up to 5,000 new jobs to the state. You want to be the one to tell the 6,000 former-DHL employees in the same county as the proposed casino that they won’t have any other options?
Yes, I want to be the one to tell those people, and their representatives in government, to find other options, and advocate for jobs that are not a Dickensian sentence to a parasitic existence relying on taking money from poor people. These will not be good jobs. They will not be stable jobs. They will be low wage, low skill, low benefit, sweat shop scraps from the table of a developer who walks away with a fortune.
3. The casino people aren’t asking for tax abatements or trying to get the state or city to help with construction costs.
Riiiiiiiiiight. Give them about 45 seconds after the issue passes before they do so. Maybe 15 seconds. These people have spent millions trying to get Ohio’s constitution changed so they can print money. You honestly think they’ll just build the damn thing? They haven’t even begun to lobby.
4. They aren’t trying to trick the voters by pretending this bill will fix Ohio’s fucked up system for funding education. It’s a proposal to build a casino, period.
So? This is relevant how exactly? The trick they are trying to play is that somehow these jobs will be anything other than crap. The trick they are trying to play is that somehow a casino won’t be a massive vacuum cleaner taking money from poor people.
5. The people who are most concerned about the Ohio casino are the Casino owners in Indiana. They are so concerned, in fact, that they are willing to spend $40 million to try to defeat it.
Again, so what? So one guy with his own mint wants to keep another guy from building another mint next door? Cry me a fucking river.
6. Yes, it requires a change to the Ohio Constitution. But that’s the only way to do it. And for anyone who wants to claim it’s a sacred document, blah blah blah - remember: we changed it a few years ago to TAKE AWAY rights from same-sex couples.
The Ohio constitution is, in fact, a farce, which has become nothing more than an ATM for whoever has the most money to manipulate it for their own license to print money for themselves. That does not mean I need to accept it.
7. Ohio’s voters have proven, year after year, they aren’t ready to approve a broader gambling bill that brings gaming to the whole state. This single-casino option seems like a pretty good compromise.
The reason Ohio’s voters don’t want a broader gambling bill is that Ohio’s voters don’t want our state to become a giant black hole in which poor people are consumed by parasites for eternity, like the seventh circle of Dante’s inferno. This isn’t Las Vegas, where there was nothing before gambling. This is Ohio, where desperate people cling to nickels and dimes in their pockets after decades of decay. A single casino is not a compromise, it is just the first step on the road to a state full of them.
8. It also seems like a reasonable test case for gambling in Ohio. Let’s try it out with one casino and see if it works. If it doesn’t, fine. Pro-casino people can admit they were wrong (myself included) and we can close down the one and only failed casino and move on to more important things. But if the casino succeeds, then we just brought some new jobs and much needed tax revenue to the state.
Test case? ROFL!!! You think a license to print money is going to just disappear because “it doesn’t work”? Dude, it prints free money! You can’t break it! It’s not a business, it’s a mint.
9. Unlike the previous proposals, this one will actually create a real casino with table games. It’s not just about adding lame slot machines to racetracks.
So we can take money from poor people in a more sophisticated, glamorous fashion? Ahoy!
10. I like to play poker and I don’t want to drive 3 hours to Indiana to do it.
NOW, we get to the truth. Look Joe, if you want to play poker that bad, a 3 hour drive to Indiana is the least you could do to keep a bunch of sick parasites attaching themselves to every poor person in Ohio and taking every last nickel they can. Gas prices are down, you can afford it. Suck it up, mojahmbo.
I love Joe at Plunderbund. But I oppose Issue 6, strongly, and I will take Joe’s reason’s for supporting Issue 6 one at a time. Before doing so, I need to lay out my fundamental objection.
Issue 6 is another example of the filthy rich attempting to buy a license to print their own money on the backs of the poorest Ohioans. That’s what a casino is. It’s not a business model, it’s not an industry, it is free money based on nothing but the desperation of poor people.
Just walk into a convenience store and see who’s buying lottery tickets, every single day, so obsessively they can’t even wait to get out of the store before scratching the damn thing off. These people are poor. They are desperate. They see a lottery ticket as their only way out. It’s another example of the Dickensian nature of today’s America. And I oppose it to my core.
Now on to Joe’s reasons for supporting Issue 6.
1. The economy sucks and these guys want to invest 600 MILLION DOLLARS into Ohio. You really want to tell them no?
Yes. I want to tell these people that if they want to invest $600 million into Ohio, they can figure out a way to do so without being parasites on the poorest Ohioans. Gambling is a regressive tax on the poor, and those dollars are nothing more than a down payment on making Ohioans even poorer. Build a wind farm, dig for coal, make a high speed rail line, fund an internet startup. If it’s really a $600 million investment in Ohio, then make it an investment, not a Dickensian regressive tax.
2. Ohio is hemorrhaging jobs and this project could bring up to 5,000 new jobs to the state. You want to be the one to tell the 6,000 former-DHL employees in the same county as the proposed casino that they won’t have any other options?
Yes, I want to be the one to tell those people, and their representatives in government, to find other options, and advocate for jobs that are not a Dickensian sentence to a parasitic existence relying on taking money from poor people. These will not be good jobs. They will not be stable jobs. They will be low wage, low skill, low benefit, sweat shop scraps from the table of a developer who walks away with a fortune.
3. The casino people aren’t asking for tax abatements or trying to get the state or city to help with construction costs.
Riiiiiiiiiight. Give them about 45 seconds after the issue passes before they do so. Maybe 15 seconds. These people have spent millions trying to get Ohio’s constitution changed so they can print money. You honestly think they’ll just build the damn thing? They haven’t even begun to lobby.
4. They aren’t trying to trick the voters by pretending this bill will fix Ohio’s fucked up system for funding education. It’s a proposal to build a casino, period.
So? This is relevant how exactly? The trick they are trying to play is that somehow these jobs will be anything other than crap. The trick they are trying to play is that somehow a casino won’t be a massive vacuum cleaner taking money from poor people.
5. The people who are most concerned about the Ohio casino are the Casino owners in Indiana. They are so concerned, in fact, that they are willing to spend $40 million to try to defeat it.
Again, so what? So one guy with his own mint wants to keep another guy from building another mint next door? Cry me a fucking river.
6. Yes, it requires a change to the Ohio Constitution. But that’s the only way to do it. And for anyone who wants to claim it’s a sacred document, blah blah blah - remember: we changed it a few years ago to TAKE AWAY rights from same-sex couples.
The Ohio constitution is, in fact, a farce, which has become nothing more than an ATM for whoever has the most money to manipulate it for their own license to print money for themselves. That does not mean I need to accept it.
7. Ohio’s voters have proven, year after year, they aren’t ready to approve a broader gambling bill that brings gaming to the whole state. This single-casino option seems like a pretty good compromise.
The reason Ohio’s voters don’t want a broader gambling bill is that Ohio’s voters don’t want our state to become a giant black hole in which poor people are consumed by parasites for eternity, like the seventh circle of Dante’s inferno. This isn’t Las Vegas, where there was nothing before gambling. This is Ohio, where desperate people cling to nickels and dimes in their pockets after decades of decay. A single casino is not a compromise, it is just the first step on the road to a state full of them.
8. It also seems like a reasonable test case for gambling in Ohio. Let’s try it out with one casino and see if it works. If it doesn’t, fine. Pro-casino people can admit they were wrong (myself included) and we can close down the one and only failed casino and move on to more important things. But if the casino succeeds, then we just brought some new jobs and much needed tax revenue to the state.
Test case? ROFL!!! You think a license to print money is going to just disappear because “it doesn’t work”? Dude, it prints free money! You can’t break it! It’s not a business, it’s a mint.
9. Unlike the previous proposals, this one will actually create a real casino with table games. It’s not just about adding lame slot machines to racetracks.
So we can take money from poor people in a more sophisticated, glamorous fashion? Ahoy!
10. I like to play poker and I don’t want to drive 3 hours to Indiana to do it.
NOW, we get to the truth. Look Joe, if you want to play poker that bad, a 3 hour drive to Indiana is the least you could do to keep a bunch of sick parasites attaching themselves to every poor person in Ohio and taking every last nickel they can. Gas prices are down, you can afford it. Suck it up, mojahmbo.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
No On Issue 6
The No on Issue 6 Committee today released the following statement in response to the
announcement of the filing of an election complaint by MyOhioNow:
"The so-called election complaint filed by the supporters of Issue 6 is
a desperate -- and pathetic -- attempt to get some free publicity for their
ill-conceived casino scheme.
"We have not yet seen the actual complaint. But based on MyOhioNow's
press release, none of the specific statements they are complaining about
are contained in our advertising. Basically, the casino proponents have
distorted what our advertising says, and then complained about their own
distorted language.
"Every statement made in our advertising is backed up by solid evidence
from impartial sources such as the Ohio Department of Taxation and other
public records.
"We look forward to presenting our case to the Ohio Elections
Commission, because it will give us the opportunity to put an end to the
casino supporters' ridiculous allegations and also allow us to demonstrate
that it is the MyOhioNow committee that is really trying to deceive the
voters of Ohio."
announcement of the filing of an election complaint by MyOhioNow:
"The so-called election complaint filed by the supporters of Issue 6 is
a desperate -- and pathetic -- attempt to get some free publicity for their
ill-conceived casino scheme.
"We have not yet seen the actual complaint. But based on MyOhioNow's
press release, none of the specific statements they are complaining about
are contained in our advertising. Basically, the casino proponents have
distorted what our advertising says, and then complained about their own
distorted language.
"Every statement made in our advertising is backed up by solid evidence
from impartial sources such as the Ohio Department of Taxation and other
public records.
"We look forward to presenting our case to the Ohio Elections
Commission, because it will give us the opportunity to put an end to the
casino supporters' ridiculous allegations and also allow us to demonstrate
that it is the MyOhioNow committee that is really trying to deceive the
voters of Ohio."
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Vote No On Issue 6
There is a very good reason that proponents of a gambling casino in Ohio have spent much of their time and money in pointing fingers at other states, including West Virginia, during recent weeks. They would prefer that Buckeye State voters focus on an imaginary enemy at the gates rather than on the casino proposal itself.
It is true that other states already have gambling casinos. No doubt some of their operators would prefer that if Ohioans want to gamble, they travel a bit to do so.
But many of us in West Virginia have no direct stakes in casinos. On the other hand, we have mountains of experience with them - and with the techniques they use to write gambling laws that favor "the house."
Issue 6, the Nov. 4 ballot issue asking whether voters will allow a gambling casino in southwest Ohio, is a bad deal. Here are just a few of the many reasons why:
The "MyOhioNow" scheme makes much of the claim that the casino, if built, would provide about $240 million a year to Ohio and its 88 counties. That's chicken feed in terms of what a casino rakes in from gamblers. Here in West Virginia, we know that. The portion of the proposed casino's take that would go to local and state governments is a measly 30 percent.
"MyOhioNow" proponents have written an escape clause into the law that would allow them to pay over even less.
Should voters make the mistake of allowing one casino, there is absolutely no doubt - take it from us, where it has happened - that gambling interests will demand more. But the language of Issue 6 provides that if other casinos ever are approved in Ohio, government's take from the original one would drop to no more than 25 percent.
Ohioans aren't as gullible as "MyOhioNow" promoters think. Three times during recent years, voters have rejected expansions of legalized gambling. We think they ought to do so again on Nov. 4.
Before you listen again to the claims that surrounding states don't want the Ohio casino because they don't want competition for theirs, consider this: The proposed "MyOhioNow" casino will be located far enough away from this area that it is highly unlikely to affect business at either gambling facility in the Northern Panhandle. In other words, we have "no dog in this fight."
Except for this: We at The Intelligencer don't consider Ohioans to be "neighbors." To us, East Ohioans are part of the Ohio Valley community we all call home. And we don't want to see any members of our community played for suckers by the gambling industry.
We urge Ohioans, then, to vote "no" on Issue 6.
It is true that other states already have gambling casinos. No doubt some of their operators would prefer that if Ohioans want to gamble, they travel a bit to do so.
But many of us in West Virginia have no direct stakes in casinos. On the other hand, we have mountains of experience with them - and with the techniques they use to write gambling laws that favor "the house."
Issue 6, the Nov. 4 ballot issue asking whether voters will allow a gambling casino in southwest Ohio, is a bad deal. Here are just a few of the many reasons why:
The "MyOhioNow" scheme makes much of the claim that the casino, if built, would provide about $240 million a year to Ohio and its 88 counties. That's chicken feed in terms of what a casino rakes in from gamblers. Here in West Virginia, we know that. The portion of the proposed casino's take that would go to local and state governments is a measly 30 percent.
"MyOhioNow" proponents have written an escape clause into the law that would allow them to pay over even less.
Should voters make the mistake of allowing one casino, there is absolutely no doubt - take it from us, where it has happened - that gambling interests will demand more. But the language of Issue 6 provides that if other casinos ever are approved in Ohio, government's take from the original one would drop to no more than 25 percent.
Ohioans aren't as gullible as "MyOhioNow" promoters think. Three times during recent years, voters have rejected expansions of legalized gambling. We think they ought to do so again on Nov. 4.
Before you listen again to the claims that surrounding states don't want the Ohio casino because they don't want competition for theirs, consider this: The proposed "MyOhioNow" casino will be located far enough away from this area that it is highly unlikely to affect business at either gambling facility in the Northern Panhandle. In other words, we have "no dog in this fight."
Except for this: We at The Intelligencer don't consider Ohioans to be "neighbors." To us, East Ohioans are part of the Ohio Valley community we all call home. And we don't want to see any members of our community played for suckers by the gambling industry.
We urge Ohioans, then, to vote "no" on Issue 6.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Vote No On Issue 6
Issue 6 is a Constitutional amendment that would allow one out-of-state casino operator to build a mega-casino in Southwest Ohio. But Issue 6 is a mess. It is filled with deception and loopholes that make it a bad deal for Ohio.
• Issue 6 doesn’t guarantee Ohioans anything. Even the sponsors of the issue admit that because of a serious loophole, there is no guarantee the operators will have to pay any casino taxes on profits raked in from a casino monopoly.
• Issue 6 prevents the state from providing meaningful regulation for the casino. While it calls for a state regulatory bureaucracy to be established after it is passed, there are no specific provisions for rules on who can get a casino license. It prohibits the state from regulating the hours of operation, the size of the casino and the types of games it can offer. I n fact, it specifically ties the type of casino games that may be offered to rules for the state of Nevada and states adjacent to Ohio. Out-of-staters – not Ohioans – will be making decisions for Ohioans on regulating the casino.
• Issue 6 eliminates any kind of local control on the casino. It prohibits the local community in Clinton County where it will be built from holding any kind of meaningful hearing or vote that would let residents and taxpayers decide whether or not they want a casino, and it severely restricts the communities in the area from exercising even their normal zoning procedures.
• Issue 6 would give the operators a Constitutionally-protected casino monopoly, with practically no accountability to anyone. The company that would likely operate the casino – an out-of-state firm that operates Indian casinos in other states – would get a total monopoly on casino gaming in Ohio – virtually for free. And they could take hundreds of millions of dollars in profits out of the state with no significant accountability to Ohioans.
• Issue 6 doesn’t guarantee Ohioans anything. Even the sponsors of the issue admit that because of a serious loophole, there is no guarantee the operators will have to pay any casino taxes on profits raked in from a casino monopoly.
• Issue 6 prevents the state from providing meaningful regulation for the casino. While it calls for a state regulatory bureaucracy to be established after it is passed, there are no specific provisions for rules on who can get a casino license. It prohibits the state from regulating the hours of operation, the size of the casino and the types of games it can offer. I n fact, it specifically ties the type of casino games that may be offered to rules for the state of Nevada and states adjacent to Ohio. Out-of-staters – not Ohioans – will be making decisions for Ohioans on regulating the casino.
• Issue 6 eliminates any kind of local control on the casino. It prohibits the local community in Clinton County where it will be built from holding any kind of meaningful hearing or vote that would let residents and taxpayers decide whether or not they want a casino, and it severely restricts the communities in the area from exercising even their normal zoning procedures.
• Issue 6 would give the operators a Constitutionally-protected casino monopoly, with practically no accountability to anyone. The company that would likely operate the casino – an out-of-state firm that operates Indian casinos in other states – would get a total monopoly on casino gaming in Ohio – virtually for free. And they could take hundreds of millions of dollars in profits out of the state with no significant accountability to Ohioans.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Stop the Deception!!! No On Issue 6
NO ACCOUNTABILITY TO THE PUBLIC
Issue 6 lets politicians and lobbyists decide how much the casino will pay and how and where the money will be spent - with no voter approval.
NO GUARANTEE FOR COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Under Issue 6, there is NO revenue dedicated to schools, health care, or economic development - services our community needs.
NO GUARANTEED CASINO TAX ON PROFITS
Issue 6 sets NO guaranteed casino tax. In fact, loopholes in 6 could enable the out-of-state operator to avoid paying any casino taxes on hundreds of millions in profits.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Stop the Deception!!! No On Issue 6
Issue 6 Claims that it would create jobs. But jobs for who?NO JOBS FOR OUR COMMUNITYIssue 6 would create just one casino in rural Southwest Ohio. OUR community and the rest of Ohio will be locked out.
Issue 6 Claims that it would create jobs. But jobs for who?NO JOBS FOR OUR COMMUNITYIssue 6 would create just one casino in rural Southwest Ohio. OUR community and the rest of Ohio will be locked out.
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