Granite State Coalition Against Expanded Gambling

Granite State Coalition Against Expanded Gambling NoSlots.com Blog & Alerts A fascinating experiment in competing economic strategies can be seen by walking just four blocks on either side of Checkpoint Charlie along Freidrichstrasse at the site of the former Berlin Wall. On one side of Checkpoint Charlie, Freidrichstrasse is a street bustling with tourists and locals shopping, socializing in cafes, and doing business in Berlin's thriving new media and creative economy. There are no casinos. On the other side of Checkpoint, there is almost no one on the street, seedy-looking storefronts, and a slots casino on each block. One of Adolph Hitler's first decrees when he came to power in 1933 was legalize one casino in Baden-Baden, arguing that it was better for Germans to lose their money in Germany than in neighboring Switzerland. In Germany, as in every US state to have legalized casinos, politicians become addicted to the new gambling tax money, with casinos and slot machines proliferating statewide. Germany now has about 40 state-licensed, relatively upscale casinos ... plus thousands of noticeably downscale slots parlors like those in the pics I snapped last week (some in Berlin, some near Munich). As you can see from the pics, casino proliferation is decidedly unglamorous and a mark of economic desperation. One casino leads directly down a rathole visibly characterized by neighborhood and community deterioration. Three Lessons From History for New Hampshire Candidates: There is no way to have just one or two casinos. Politicians get quickly addicted to the tax money and casinos and slot machine parlors proliferate statewide. Casino proliferation in the heavily saturated New England gambling market would be noticeably downscale and would seriously damage New Hampshire's healthy, family-friendly brand image. Casinos generate no new workforce skills, no value-added or exportable product or service, and are not a component of any credible plan to strengthen New Hampshire's economy. Talk With the Candidates: Tell them you are opposed to slots and casinos in New Hampshire. Ask them for their positions and (if they are not firmly opposed) to justify themselves given the damage to communities and the utter lack of long-term economic benefit. Ask each to sign our pledge to oppose legalized casinos and slot machine gambling. Click here to print out a copy of our anti-casino pledge. Best Regards, Jim Rubens Chair, GSCAEG

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