I have several reasons why I'll be voting no on question 7. (Do you favor the expansion of commercial gambling?)
- Out of the 32 countries I've been to a handful of them have had gambling. The areas that have gambling get this depressed vibe that's similar to what I've felt in communist countries. Call me weird but that's just what I feel.
- Specifically, I've been to Las Vegas about 30+ times for work events. I don't want my home state to have the feel that Las Vegas has. It brings the horrors of gambling addiction into an erie mix of casino profit excess. It's fun to visit one or twice but don't bring it to my home.
- I like the way Warren Buffet explains the economic impact of gambling in this 2010 interview.
- The second half of This American Life(transcript, Audio) episode has an interesting segment on gambling addiction. They cover brain scans of pathological gamblers and predatory practices of casino owners.
- Have you ever seen a poor couple at a lotto card ATM machine on a gambling bender? It's unbelievably sad. It's even sadder when their ATM card doesn't work for refills.
