Stop Predatory Gambling

The first question every legislator and member of the media needs to investigate and answer about predatory gambling

by Les

The Florida Legislature is holding a “Discussion on Gambling in Florida” in the state capitol this morning. These information gathering sessions are almost always dominated by predatory gambling interests. To help intensify the spotlight on casinos and lotteries, we shared the brief comments below:

The recent segment by 60 Minutes revealed to the nation one of the reasons why this issue that all of you on this committee are examining will be one of the biggest stories of the new decade. It showed that all forms of electronic gambling machines, regardless of whether they are Class II or Class III machines, have proven to be severely harmful for hundreds of thousands of Americans, including tens of thousands of Florida citizens.

So the first thing that needs to happen before this committee and all of the media in this state discuss or write about this issue any further is to answer this question: why are these machines still being promoted to the public without being proven they are safe?

In 2008, McDonald’s made national headlines when they stopped serving sliced tomatoes everywhere in the country after a handful of customers got sick in an outbreak of salmonella poisoning. Yet state government in its partnership with casino interests are offering the public slot machines which no one denies are making hundreds of thousands of people sick.

The casinos say it is not the machine – the gambler is the problem. But is there anyone who called those McDonald’s patrons “problem eaters?”

In the words of Rhode Island Hospital’s Dr. Robert Breen who appeared on the 60 Minutes segment, “Given the right circumstances, almost anyone can get hooked on slots.”

And if the Dr. Breen was here today, he would likely add that almost anyone can get hooked on internet gambling too. That’s why this committee, before it does anything else on the issue of internet gambling and these so-called internet cafes -which are simply mini-casinos – also needs to definitively answer the question is it safe for the public to use regularly?

There are probably a few of you asking yourselves how is drinking alcohol different than predatory gambling? Drinking a glass of wine or a can of beer is far different than buying a $20 lottery scratch ticket, playing a slot machine or internet gambling. No sip of a Miller Lite has ever offered the false promise of “life-changing jackpots.” While alcohol can be habit-forming, no one has ever compared the potency of its high or the speed at which it addicts people to cocaine – like it has been proved with an intense gambling experience. One out of five Americans don’t think the best way to achieve long-term financial security is to drink Budweiser. Most tellingly of all, the vineyard owner drinks his own wine – most predatory gambling operators don’t gamble.

I respectfully ask those of you on this committee and the media in this state to investigate this issue as deeply as 60 Minutes did. Because you will find, as we learned from the investigation of slot machines, that casino and lotteries are the most predatory business in Florida today and their financial windfall is coming at the expense of every Florida citizen. And most of all, you will find they represent one of the biggest failures of government policy in the last 100 years.