Stop Predatory Gambling

Big Deception will win the Derby

by spgadmin

On the eve of Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, much is being written about the economic decline for horse racing. Money bet on horse races, known as the handle, is off nearly 30 percent, to $12 billion in 2009. Casino interests have taken advantage of the downward spiral of horse racing over the last two decades, claiming that legalizing slot machines will “save horse racing.” The facts are clear that slots have not and will not save it yet casino interests continue to deceptively perpetuate the myth as they lobby for slots at even more racetracks.

Harrah’s executives explain why in this recent story:

Harrah’s calls racing a giant waste of money and resources — including real estate that could be used for more profitable enterprises.

“It’s like a horse and buggy manufacturer getting a subsidy from an auto manufacturer,” Harrah’s spokesman Gary Thompson says. “We’re subsidizing a dying business.”

Using slot money to support tracks never made much economic sense to begin with, though racetrack casinos were more politically palatable at the time, adds Jan Jones, the company’s senior vice president of communications and government relations.

“Horse and dog breeders have their share of political influence,” Jones says. “There were jobs at stake. And these facilities existed to begin with. It just seemed easier to put slots where betting was already taking place.”

The notion that casinos will save racing is nothing more than a big deception in a business based on deception.