Predatory gambling interests attempt to promote the perception they are concerned about the addicts they create and exploit for profit but the reality is they don’t have a business without them. Casinos commonly use tactics like those in the story below which describes the Seminole Tribe’s payment to “fight compulsive gambling.” Florida state government itself stands to collect an average of $240 million a year over five years from the casino, most of which will be coming from addicted citizens. How much did the casino tribe donate to help its victims? $1.75 million. Yet another reason why the most predatory business in the country is so profitable.
Investigative Journalism
How Vegas Security Drives Surveillance Tech Everywhere
Popular Mechanics examines how the predatory gambling trade employs the most effective and invasive surveillance technology in the world.
Portrait of Poverty in Oregon
Native Americans in Oregon have the state’s highest overall poverty rate, 29.4 percent. The report concludes that “given this high rate of poverty, it’s obvious that constructing gambling casinos hasn’t worked in bringing Oregon’s 40,700 Native Americans out of poverty.”
Gary Braden, executive director of the Native American Rehabilitation Association NW Inc. in Portland, said “The idea that the casinos have made all Native Americans rich is a myth.” The unemployment rate among members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation remains about 20 percent despite the tribe’s Wildhorse Casino, said Debra Crosswell, the tribal public affairs manager.
The Secrets of a Slot Machine
Dennis Bailey, the former Executive Director of Maine’s Casinos No!, wrote the excellent piece below which details how slot machines are heavily weighted in the casino’s favor.
Mayor Testifies Foxwoods Casino Has Not Brought Economic Benefits to Town
The former mayor of Ledyard, Connecticut, Wesley Johnson, testified his town has not seen any positive economic impact since the Foxwoods Casino was built there. “There has been no economic development spin-off from the casino. Businesses do not come here,” Johnson said.
Casinos Use Surveillance to Help Only Their Profits, Not Their Patrons
This Associated Press story shows the reality of the use of video surveillance in casinos. While many may think they are safe at a large, well-known casino, this story tells that the many cameras installed are used not to help secure the safety of casino hotel workers and patrons, but for making sure no one is cheating while playing their games. This just goes to show where casinos’ priorities really are.
Tribal casinos mostly benefit the casino operators, not the tribes
This Associated Press story below spotlights how many tribes have not benefited long-term from casinos, despite the fact that the Indian Gambling Regulatory Act of 1988 was passed in the name of helping Native Americans advance economically. This excerpt says it all:
“Of more than 500 American Indian tribes across the country, 124 have notified the U.S. Interior Department of intent to share gambling revenue with members, according to the Indian Gaming Office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. But government officials say they take a hands-off approach and do not know how many actually make payments or how much they share.
Valerie Red-Horse, a financial analyst familiar with Indian casinos, said some tribes have probably paid out too much, but the distributions often barely meet the needs of tribes who live on distant reservations with meager resources and limited access to government services.”