Approving casinos in Ohio.

[NW Admin]

Many of you have probably been watching the controversy of approving casinos in Ohio on the news. Whether you live in Ohio or not, I am sure much of the US knows about the debate. I wanted to throw in my two cents on the matter.

First off, I have never understood what the big deal is with the people who are against gambling in the first place. It's just a game where you can win something... just like Monopoly, the lottery... heck... even Uno. We even have horse racing here where horses come from all over the world to win money. How is it any different then the professional athletes who get payed to win games? They are taking the chance that they will lose. They get paid bonuses when they win. How is it any different?

A lot of people try to say... "Oh well gambling promotes crime and decline of communities." That is a load of crap. Sure, some people develop an addiction to gambling and make stupid choices that ruin their lives... but people do that anyway... gambling or not. Take sex, for example. How many people ruin their lives over sex? A LOT. But sex isn't banned. That would just be stupid. How many people develop an addiction to food and become so overweight that they ruin their lives? A LOT. Some people are just ignorant and make stupid choices. And just like with anything else, they will have to learn the hard way. That is no reason to keep gambling out.

The other issue at hand is that people are saying "Issue 3 will send Ohio money to other states. Issue 3 will give Ohio jobs to people from out of state." That is just a load of crap too. Of course the casinos will have to INITIALLY bring in some people from out of state who actually KNOW HOW to run a casino. If they didn't do that, it would never get off the ground. People in Ohio don't know how to run a casino. How do you think they will learn if no one comes here to teach them? Surely no one thinks the casino owners will be able to teach brand new employees everything on their own. That would just be stupid. So of course, they will bring employees in from out of state. But that should not be a problem. Obviously they are not going to have every one of their new Ohio employees be from out of state. I mean, how would they pull that off? How could they run their out of state casinos if they have no employees left their? And those people who do come here from their out of state casino to work are most likely going to be here temporarily. And if they stay, so what?! Is there something wrong with people moving here from out of state to add to our economy? It is undeniable that these casinos will create new cashflow and new jobs for WHOEVER wants to make use of them.

These adds that carry on about how bad it would be to bring in people from other states or the ads that say how bad it is the other states make money off of us... it just makes Ohio look bad. I think it makes us look like we think we are better then everyone else and that we are in it for one thing... ourselves. And like we don't welcome anyone who wants to come here from another state. This is supposed to be the UNITED states. Not the DIVIDED states. We are so willing to help other countries, but we are so divided internally. I have lived in several different states in my life and many Ohioans certainly seem to have this sense of entitlement.

So I am all for the casinos. I think it would be beneficial to our state. New jobs, new income, and something new and fun for the community.

[NW Admin]

Oh geeze... that's really what come's to mind after seeing this stupid commercial over and over for the last two days. It has a woman narrator talking about who supposedly profits from Issue 3 which would allow casinos in Ohio. It clearly was made by some religious over bearing group trying to scare god fearing people into voting no against issue 3. That is just ridiculous to me.

The commercial goes on to talk about the rich and well known people who will profit off of the Ohio casinos. First off, of course there is going to be some rich person somewhere that is going to profit off of it. I mean, do they think the average joe with mid range income is going to be able to start these casinos? Duh! Obviously someone with power and money would have to get the ball rolling. And of course they will profit. Why not? What the heck would be the point if they didn't profit? I also don't care who is profiting or what state they are in. America needs money right now no matter what state they are in. And the buck doesn't just stop at the big ballers. It flows on down to Ohio citizens who also need it.

Now this is what really kills me... the commercial shows images of how casinos supposedly destroy homes, encourage abuse, increase bankruptcy, and spawn prostitution and crime. Then they say "The devil is in the details" and show a cartoon of the devil. That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. It's not the casinos or the gambling that is the problem. It is the community and government responsibillity to enforce rules and maintain expected behavior. Places like Las Vegas that have high crime rates and prostitution are that way because of the laws (or lack there of) that they have in place and how they enforce them. Las Vegas legalized prostitution so of course they have it in the casino capital of the world. It was not because of the casino that there is prostitution. People everywhere partake in prostitution regardless of casinos being nearby. I would also like to know what scientific evidence they have to show that casinos cause all those terrible things and just how it supposedly happens. Honestly, it's not the casino that is the problem. It's the people of the community and government in that area that are the problem.

This whole issue really reminds me of how far tattoos have come over the centuries. The issues are very similar. In earlier days, tattoos were associated with criminals. So for the longest time, anyone with tattoos was considered a criminal or low life. There was a long transitional period where people realized, it's not the tattoos that make people bad... it's the people wearing the tattoos. Over time, tattoos have become more socially acceptable as an expression of art and self and seen as beautiful to many.

Casinos are much the same as tattoos. Because of everyone's closed minded views about how gambling is so terrible, in the earlier days, it was primarily low lifes and criminals who gambled and went into casinos. "Good people" just assumed you were bad if you went into a casino. And what do you know... over time... it started to become more socially acceptable. More and more people started to realize... it's just fun and games as long as you don't act like an idiot about it. Clearly there are still many people with the closed minded idea that the casinos are this evil thing that will ruin society, but that simply isn't true. There is no reason why responsible good people can't enjoy casinos and have fun playing games... and maybe winning some money at the same time. The only way the casinos will be full of losers is if we, as a community, allow it.

So the important thing here is to have rules in place to maintain peace and order in the casinos. Make sure they are not harboring undesirable individuals or allowing illegal activities to take place. Make it classy, not trashy. Maybe have some dress codes in place like many local clubs do. That helps to keep a lot of unwanted people out. I mean, if you have any sense about you, then it wouldn't be a problem to not show up with your pants sagging to the ground or body parts hanging out of your super skimpy clothing. Seriously, it's not that hard to make something good out of this.

The people running these commercials have hidden agendas. Either they do not want the money leaving their state or casino to come to Ohio, or they just have a warped sense of ridiculously old fashioned views and are living in the past. It's time for change. Time to move into the future and stop living off of ideals that do nothing but suppress our potential.

[NW Admin]

I do want to update (although a bit late), that I am very happy and excited that Issue 3 to allow the building of new casinos in Ohio was passed. I just wish it wouldn't take them so long to build and open it. I can't wait to check it out. And I already know a lot of people anxious to work there.

So many people are still negative about the whole situation, but I'm certain good things will come of this.