Despite at least two separate votes by the people of Maine recently, saying “No” to the suggestion of further casinos or racinos within Maine, the issue just doesn’t seem to go away.
The most recent volley into the war to bring organized gambling to the Pine Tree State is a bill, proposed by Rep. Sawin Millett, to allow a casino to be built in Oxford County, as long as a host community were permit such a development.
The Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee, co-chaired by Sen. Nancy Sullivan of Biddeford, split the vote, five to five, to forward the bill onto the Legislature for further debate. As Sullivan said in an Associated Press report, the forwarding of the bill “does conclude the battle, but does not conclude the war.”
We cannot agree more.
For nearly a decade, efforts to bring either casinos or racinos to Maine, and particularly the southern portion of the state, have spawned fiery debates and massive petition campaigns both for, and against.
The most recent was in November 2008 when out-of-state developers attempted to do the very same thing Millett’s bill would permit; bring a casino to economically-disadvantaged Oxford County. By a hefty margin, the referendum, and a move to allow the Scarborough Downs harness racing track to add slot machines, were defeated.
Even though the voter turnout in November 2008 was one of the largest in history, apparently the voice of the people was not heard. Now it is the Legislature’s turn to figure out the casino issue.
Yes, Hollywood Slots exists in Bangor, much to the chagrin of those opposing such gambling parlors. The question, then, is why can it hold a monopoly in the state?
The answer has been the frequent pushback by the people saying, essentially, “One is enough.”
Gambling is a vice, and profiting from the weaknesses of people should not be a primary form of economic development. Though studies for and against show varying details about regional growth or a rise in crime, the primary issue with casinos is the use of vice to gain cash.
Mainers do enjoy gambling and pursue such activities out-of-state. We think it should stay that way. Even though Maine might lose those revenues, municipal and state officials and the populace in general can sleep better at night knowing the hard-earned funds frittered away in slot machines isn’t being used to pad budgets here.
We hope the Legislature listens to the voices of Maine, particularly when it comes to casinos. The bill before the body should be quickly discarded knowing that the will of the people has been expressed numerous times, and there is no reason to question the outcomes of recent referendums regarding casinos.
— Questions? Comments? Contact Publisher Drew McMullin at 282-1535, Ext. 326 or dmcmullin@gwi.net, or Managing Editor Nick Cowenhoven at 282-1535, Ext. 327 or cityeditor@gwi.net.
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