Editorial: Yes on one will put casino and fortune in the cards for Maine
October 9, 2010
This coming November, Maine voters will be dealt the perfect hand in a game of wits. To play it wisely would garner riches as colorful as a sea of assorted poker chips, holding back would cause the same plastic ocean to dry up so fast, it would appear as nothing more than a gambler’s fantasy.
Like card games, ballots are made for taking chances and it’s about time for Maine to go all in and vote yes on question one on the 2010 referendum or fold yet again on positive economic gain.
The Maine Oxford Casino Initiative, the first question that voters will see in the booth come Nov. 2, calls for a casino to be erected in Oxford. The establishment, if the initiative were to pass, is expected to dedicate 46 percent of net income from slot machines and 16 percent of net income from table games to the state as well as provide 2,700 people in the area with employment according to a Portland Press Herald article (“New casino in Maine? Voters get to decide,” Apr. 6).
For once, the concept of the house always winning is actually desirable.
Oxford in particular could use a little luck, especially when it comes to job opportunities. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Oxford County had an average unemployment rate of nearly 10.7 percent from January to the end of August. The state of Maine average was around 8.1 percent.
Would it make sense to fold in a game of poker when you have a royal flush? Is it rational for Maine to pass on a chance to create jobs, spark tourism year-round and alleviate heavy taxation when the possibility presents itself all in the same suit?
Risk is essential to both success and failure. In this case, a gambling establishment in Oxford presents the opportunity to both attract a faltering state economy and, alternatively, fuel gambling addictions, crime and other irresponsible behaviors. But the odds of generating $60 million in tax revenue and supplying thousands of people with work seems like a bet worth taking when the only perils are based on assumed human behavior.
You can’t play your cards right if you don’t get in the game and if you never try your luck, your situation will hardly change.
On election day, we at The Maine Campus will be wagering a chance for prosperity in this state by voting yes on question one. We challenge you to buy your way into the game.
Related Posts:
- Casino Night plays all the right cards (April 19, 2004)
- Maine voters face casino referendum (October 27, 2003)
- Op-Ed: ‘Yes on 1’ voters mummified institution of marriage in Maine (November 5, 2009)
- Opinion: Casino in Oxford County would bring jobs, tax revenue (October 27, 2008)
- Opinion: ‘Profoundly flawed’ casino question is a slap in the face to Maine’s Native Americans (October 21, 2008)
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<a href="http://mainecampus.com/2010/10/06/editorial-yes-on-one-will-put-casino-and-fortune-in-the-cards-for-maine/?ref=opiniontag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://mainecampus.com/2010/10/06/editorial-yes-on-one-will-put-casino-and-fortune-in-the-cards-for-maine/?ref=opinionThu, 07 Oct 2010 04:10:08 GMT 00:00″>Editorial: Yes on one will put casino and fortune in the cards for Maine
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