The Supreme Judicial Court has seen fit to allow us to reconsider the state legislature's unfortunate decision to allow casino gambling in Massachusetts.
This is an issue that's been bothering me ever since the 2011 law passed. I don't argue that people shouldn't gamble, but giving greedy corporations licenses to prey on vulnerable Massachusetts residents and take the profits out of state strikes me as supremely wrong. I don't buy the argument that casinos will produce thousands of much needed jobs; the net effect of casinos on the local economy has to be negative, or else Steve Wynn and MGM couldn't profit by them. Casinos do not generate wealth; they redistribute it, and they do so regressively, transferring it from people who work for a living to rich corporate parasites.
The corrosive effect of casino industry money on state and local politics can already be felt, even with the first casino yet to open. Once we let these leeches and vampires set up shop in Massachusetts, we will never be rid of them; they will be a burden on our economy and a corrupting influence on our politics for decades to come.
There's one universal rule in any casino: the house always wins. For everyone else, it's a black hole, sucking up money like a million vacuum cleaners on steroids. The casino industry is going to pour millions of dollars into defeating this ballot initiative, each and every one a testimony to the validity of the case for it.
I haven't been very active politically lately; however, on this issue I believe I and like-minded Bay State residents can make a difference, and I am going to look for things I can do to help keep casinos out of my Commonwealth.