Casino revenue too tempting for politicians
The only basis on which some councillors promote the idea of establishing casinos in Waterloo Region is money.
However, the acute need for monies is due, in part, to faulty governance in the first place. The huge sums squandered by debacles such as RIM Park, eHealth, the Ornge air ambulance service, to name but a few, now has the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. urging municipalities to solve their money problems through casinos.
I’m reviewing more than 20 research papers on the effects of casinos in a given community. Does no one in the gaming commission, and so few councillors, read the research on how casino money is inextricably bound to deleterious effects in a community?
Casinos increase gambling in their vicinity and with it the public health issues of problem gambling and accompanying physical and mental disorders.
Will the gaming commission state the inherent damage casinos inflict on the social fabric, as well as fund the added heath care costs? The corrosive effect on families and children due to gambling addiction is measurably alarming. Studies also reveal that the unemployed and the poor, as well as single seniors, are disproportionately drawn to casino gambling in their vicinity.
The gaming promoters posit casinos as healthy recreational activity. Our region is blessed with marvellous and beneficial recreation and cultural venues: thousands of kilometres of trails, sports, theatres, museums, music, parks, symphonies, bands, a growing presence of culturally diverse restaurants, clubs, great libraries for all ages, and creative programs for seniors ... the list goes on.
Where are the carriers of values: churches, synagogues, mosques, educators, addiction counsellors, parents, and those who hold a vision of a value-oriented future for subsequent generations?
We who are able should be willing to add to our tax bill to pay for the services we vote for; we should not give faulty governance cover for their managerial debacle.
Governing bodies slumbering at due diligence got their tails in a financial wringer; casinos should not be cover for the dereliction.
Since money is the only temptation blinding politicians, we can still take moral courage, fashion responsible governance and reject casino money with its inevitable train of social detriments.
Jack Dueck
Waterloo
http://www.therecord.com/opinion/letters/article/909900--casino-revenue-too-tempting-for-politicians
However, the acute need for monies is due, in part, to faulty governance in the first place. The huge sums squandered by debacles such as RIM Park, eHealth, the Ornge air ambulance service, to name but a few, now has the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. urging municipalities to solve their money problems through casinos.
I’m reviewing more than 20 research papers on the effects of casinos in a given community. Does no one in the gaming commission, and so few councillors, read the research on how casino money is inextricably bound to deleterious effects in a community?
Casinos increase gambling in their vicinity and with it the public health issues of problem gambling and accompanying physical and mental disorders.
Will the gaming commission state the inherent damage casinos inflict on the social fabric, as well as fund the added heath care costs? The corrosive effect on families and children due to gambling addiction is measurably alarming. Studies also reveal that the unemployed and the poor, as well as single seniors, are disproportionately drawn to casino gambling in their vicinity.
The gaming promoters posit casinos as healthy recreational activity. Our region is blessed with marvellous and beneficial recreation and cultural venues: thousands of kilometres of trails, sports, theatres, museums, music, parks, symphonies, bands, a growing presence of culturally diverse restaurants, clubs, great libraries for all ages, and creative programs for seniors ... the list goes on.
Where are the carriers of values: churches, synagogues, mosques, educators, addiction counsellors, parents, and those who hold a vision of a value-oriented future for subsequent generations?
We who are able should be willing to add to our tax bill to pay for the services we vote for; we should not give faulty governance cover for their managerial debacle.
Governing bodies slumbering at due diligence got their tails in a financial wringer; casinos should not be cover for the dereliction.
Since money is the only temptation blinding politicians, we can still take moral courage, fashion responsible governance and reject casino money with its inevitable train of social detriments.
Jack Dueck
Waterloo
http://www.therecord.com/opinion/letters/article/909900--casino-revenue-too-tempting-for-politicians
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