Camille Torfs-Leibman 12/31/12 English 2

TGD Essay: Legal Gambling

When I am working on a problem, I never think about beauty but when I have finished, if the solution is not beautiful, I know it is wrong.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/problem.html#sjuIIDmelWVd6M6E .99 For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/problem.html#sjuIIDmelWVd6M6E .99 There are horrible people who, instead of solving a problem, tangle it up and make it harder to solve for anyone who wants to deal with it. Whoever does not know how to hit the nail on the head should be asked not to hit it at all. Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/problem.html#MZguL1iWEmi2wTv w.99

If we can really understand the problem, the answer will come out of it, because the answer is not separate from the problem.
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Legal gambling is supervised gambling. I was once in Las Vegas, the famed gambling city. I spent three days there before going on a trip through the four corners region. I was about nine the time, but I still remember the countless policemen constantly patrolling the casinos. Almost every hotel on the Las Vegas strip has a casino in it that you must pass through to get to your room. One day, my family and I were walking through the casino on our way out of the hotel. My grandmother had to use the bathroom

so we stopped. After a short thirty seconds two police men approached my cousin and I, Excuse me, one of them said, You will have to leave the casino floor, no children under the age of eighteen may stand in the casino so close to the machines. I thought this was quite ridiculous until I realized they were attempting to prevent underage kids from getting the chance to develop early gambling habits. Without this supervision associated with legal gambling, the activity can become unpredictable, developing illegal gambling and the crime created by it. Casinos create jobs: 1. In November of 2010 the residents of Cape Girardeau voted to build the Isles of Capri Casino. The project report states that the new Casino would bring an extra $55 million in revenue to the state of Missouri and create 726 jobs for Cape Girardeau residents (Hannah Parent, Casinos Create Jobs Within the Community). 2. Indian Sovereign Nations under federal law may not be recognized as separate entities from the states they are in, but they are granted the freedom of controlling their own economic development. Many Native American tribes decided to build casinos on their property. These casinos have increased adult employment by 26%, and in counties around them the employment to population ratios have increased as well (The Social and Economic Impact of Native American Casinos). 3. Not only do casinos create jobs, employees such as Mark Witter a Training Manager for the American Gaming Association, feel there is opportunity for advancement while having fun. He says on the American Gaming Association website, The best parts about my job are meeting casino guests and working with my team members. The guests are here to have fun, and I get to participate in that fun. The employees here are like family. I have been able to advance really quickly. Each day is different here. There are a variety of ways that I can prove my abilities every day.

Percentage of Profits used for social services: 1. Our state, Maryland recently voted on whether we should build a casino in Prince Georges County, the motion passed with a 52% in favor vote. Maryland saw the opportunity extra revenue would bring to the state, the percentage of casino profits that are planned to go into social services. MGM Resorts International Chairman and CEO Jim Murren said in a statement. "They (Marylanders) want good jobs and more money for their kids' schools."(Michael Neibauer, Washington Business Journal) 2. The document, Where the Casino Money Goes explains to the Cherokee nation what is done with gaming revenues, Revenues from Cherokee Casinos directly benefit the Cherokee Nation and its citizens by contributing 100% of its profits to job growth

initiatives and vital government programs and services. The Cherokee Nation entered into a gaming compact with the state of Oklahoma. Under that compact, a portion of gaming revenues was allocated to public education. 3. The state of Ohio opened four casinos in 2012, one in each of the following cities: Cleveland, Toledo, Columbus and Cincinnati. With this new economic development came an amendment to the Ohio Constitution, stating that casinos have to pay 33% tax on gross revenue (Rich Exner, Cleaveland.com). The Hollywood Casino in Columbus Ohio reported a $17.9 million gross revenue in December of 2012 (Jeff Bell, Columbus Business First), meaning that $5.907 was divided among the following causes: 51 percent - Ohio counties based on population. 34 percent - Ohio school districts, distributed in proportion to enrollment. 5 percent - Casino host cities: Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus and Toledo. 3 percent - Ohio Casino Control Commission 3 percent - Ohio State Racing Commission 2 percent - Ohio law enforcement training 2 percent - Ohio gambling and substance abuse treatment (Rich Exner, Cleaveland.com) Casinos Draw in Tourists: 1. Any effective tourist destination aims to bring in money from outside the region. Similarly to what Disney World does to bring tourists from all around the world to Florida, casinos draw in tourists to places all over the U.S.(Economic Impacts of Gambling). Atlantic City (the home of many casinos) currently contributes to 44% of New Jerseys over all tourism revenue (Tourism Industry and Gambling). That is almost half of the total revenue brought in by all tourist attractions including amusement parks, beaches, and natural recreational areas. 2. For many years cities such as Las Vegas, Monte Carlo, and Sun City have been drawing in tourists to their historic casino districts. Governor Andrew Cuomo proposed a plan to build three new casinos in upstate New York to for the same purpose, to attract tourists. Cuomo described it as a way to attract the 50 million tourists that visit New York City every year to the rest of the state. I believe if they visit, they will come back and they will stay but we have to get them there, Governor Cuomo said (Matt Richmond, WRVO Public Media). 3. According to Mississippi officials, tourism made up $6 billion of the states economy. The Mississippi tourist industry created more than 94,000 jobs and contributed $482 million to Mississippi's general fund tax revenues In A 1999 study conducted by D.K. Shifflet; Associates found that gambling was the top tourist activity in Mississippi. Gaming was selected by 46% of respondents, compared to other entertainment options (32%), dining (25%), shopping (21%), and sightseeing (15%). (Library Index).

Opposition-Refute (Increase in illegal gambling): 1. Currently 20 states have legalized casino gambling. In the other thirty states gambling still takes place, instead it is illegal, underground, dangerous, and unsupervised. Billions of dollars are already being made all across the United States, through underground gambling. Sometimes it includes the mobsters, bookies, and threats of violence we imagine, but the majority of the time illegal gambling happens right in plain sight. Technology has made illegal gambling much more accessible. The same computer you use for work or to connect with friends can be used to wager outside the law (The Big Business of Illegal Gambling, CNBC). If gambling becomes outlawed on a national level the amount of illegal gambling will only increase, similarly to the increase in illegal alcohol consumption during Prohibition. 2. Prohibition just like the policy proposed here was intended to help society, instead prohibition failed, tearing the countrys citizens away from their lawmakers. Supporters of prohibition predicted that all kinds of economic developments would be made if alcohol was banned. PBS produced a film called Prohibition by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, in the summary Unintended Consequences; they state When the law went into effect, they expected sales of clothing and household goods to skyrocket. Real estate developers and landlords expected rents to rise as saloons closed and neighborhoods improved Theater producers expected new crowds as Americans looked for new ways to entertain themselves without alcohol. But none of this happened The closing of breweries, distilleries and saloons led to the elimination of thousands of jobs, and in turn thousands more jobs were eliminated for barrel makers, truckers, waiters, and other related trades. Rather than economic development people found other ways to get their alcohol. 3. Authorities in Jackson and Clarke counties, Georgia had been investigating illegal casinos in the area for quite some time. When the day came to raid these illegal casinos, the police uncovered gambling operations in local convenience stores and residential homes (Joe Johnson, Authorities Raid Illegal Casinos in Clarke and Jackson Counties). During the prohibition and the outlaw of alcohol everyday people found secret places to drink, if we outlaw casinos all across the United States, who says, people in your neighborhood will not open up small casinos in their homes and stores? Conclusion: It has been proven that gambling can ruin a persons life. I cannot say it has not. If casino style gambling remains legal we can help pathological gamblers at the casinos. We can work with casino owners to supervise the games, and ensure that the activity remains a pastime rather than exchange of death threats. As a leisure activity gambling brings much needed profits to

communities and provides locals with jobs. Legal casinos are economic development, lets keep moving forward.

Works Cited Bell, Jeff. "Columbus Casino Take Drops in December, Others See Gains." Columbus Business First (2013): n. pag. Columbus Business First. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/news/2013/01/07/columbus-casino-take-dropsin.html>. "The Big Business Of Illegal Gambling." CNBC. CNBC LLC, 2013. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.cnbc.com/id/34039744/Crime_Inc_The_Big_Business_of_Illegal_Gamblin g>. "Casinos: The Effects of Casinos - Tourism." Library Index. Net Industries and its Licensors, 2013. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/1593/Casinos-EffectsCasinos-TOURISM.html>. "Employee Stories." American Gaming Association. American Gaming Association, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.americangaming.org/getinthegame/employee-stories>. Exner, Rich. "How the Casino Tax Money will be DividedAmong Schools, Cities, Counties and Other Governments." Cleaveland.Com. Cleveland Live LLC, 2012. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/index.ssf/2012/05/how_the_casino_tax_money_ will.html>. "IX. Economic Impacts of Gambling." Library.CA. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.library.ca.gov/crb/97/03/chapt9.html>.

Johnson, Joe. "Authorities Raid Illegal Casinos in Clarke and Jackson Counties." Online Athens Athens Banner-Herald 28 Mar. 2012: n. pag. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2012-03-28/authorities-raid-illegal-casinos-clarkeand-jackson-counties>. Neibauer, Michael. "Maryland approves expanded gambling, Prince George's casino." Washington Business Journal (2012): n. pag. Washington Business Journal. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/blog/2012/11/maryland-approvesexpanded-gambling.html?page=all>. - - -. "Maryland Approves Expanded Gambling, Prince George's Casino." Washington Business Journal (2012): n. pag. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/blog/2012/11/maryland-approves-expandedgambling.html>. Parent, Hannah. "Casino Creates Jobs within Community." The Arrow 29 Oct. 2012: n. pag. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.southeastarrow.com/story/1909071.html>. Principal Chief, ed. "Where the Money Goes." N.d. PDF file. Richmond, Matt. "Cuomo Says Proposed Casinos Would Draw Tourists Upstate." WRVO Public Media. WRVO Public Media, 2013. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://wrvo.org/post/cuomosays-proposed-casinos-would-draw-tourists-upstate>. "The Social and Economic Impact of Native American Casinos." The National Bureau of Economic Research. National Bureau of Economic Research, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.nber.org/digest/feb03/w9198.html>. "Tourism Industry and Gambling." Virtual Confrence. University of Nevada Las Vegas, 2003. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www1.american.edu/ted/gaming.htm>.

"Unintended Consequences." PBS. WETA, 2011. Web. 24 Jan. 2013. <http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/prohibition/unintended-consequences/>.