Now the committees buckle down to examine the nitty gritty of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s tax and slots initiative. In Maryland politics, the devil is in the details, and so it is with the current Special Session of the General Assembly.
Take the gambling issue. A horse race is like the winner-take-all global economy. The race is run on an apparently flat track, but there is one winner and many also-rans.
Slots in Maryland would be rigged to be winner-take-all, in more ways than one. Pity the poor gambler. The machines are programmed to return 10 percent to the player and keep 90 percent for the house.
And who will get the 90 percent? One of the big winners would be Magna Enterprises, a big Canadian corporation. Magna owns the Pimlico and Laurel Park racetracks. Magna would send its profits back to the home office in Canada. Hah! That’s a good way to make sure Maryland money doesn’t end up in Delaware and West Virginia. Other gambling interests, from slot machine manufacturers to casino operators, would do very well under the Maryland program.
Maryland racetracks, horse breeders and gentleman farmers would get a government subsidy. It would work like the federal farm subsidy program. Farm subsidies were supposed to save the family farm. Instead, the subsidies go to big agribusiness corporations. At least agribusiness produces a needed product, food.
Slots would tax the poor, the middle class and senior citizens to subsidize gambling corporations and gentleman farmers. It’s a tax on the poor to subsidize the rich. What a concept. – Bernie
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October 31, 2007 at 6:40 am
[...] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerptNow the committees buckle down to examine the nitty gritty of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s tax and slots initiative. In Maryland politics, the devil is in the details, and so it is with the current special session of the General Assembly. … [...]
October 31, 2007 at 5:33 pm
SIR-
Slots return 90-98% of the money that goes into them. Las Vegas odds, Atlantic City odds. Why go to MD when Atlantic City is so close by? Therefore, they need to compete and be roughly equal.
As for the tax statement-a tax is an involuntary procurement of resources levied by a government, which is defined as a legitimate monopoly on martial force within a region. Your assumptions that the poor, middle class, and elderly as ignorant of their own funds and forced to lose money is classist and agist. I am not demeaning your character, but only wish to inform you that your opinion on the matter displays prejudice of low income individuals as well as the elderly, as well as a misunderstanding on the actual violence involved on the levy of taxes. Refuse to pay your taxes, then refuse to go to prison, that is your display of involuntary.
I am in agreement with you to avoid the subsidy, all subsidies are outright theft of goods.
But also note, the construction of racetracks, and the economic stimulation within an area does create new employment oppurtunities. Nearby restaurants, as well as touring areas will see a great improvement in income for the indivduals living there. You may say that it will be the poor serving the rich, or the poor coming in and not losing money. The fact is, the people of the area will have more business, and that equals more money, which equals more food and more chances to do better. Growing an economy is like eating an elephant, you do it one bite at a time. To want everything at once is folly and to believe it can be done is hubris.
And remember, after Mexico, Canada is the United States’ greatest trading partner.
November 1, 2007 at 7:19 am
Dear Grith,
Thanks for your views. Some believe that slots would be a voluntary tax paid by the poor, the middle class and seniors. Playing slots would be a voluntary choice for many. But for many more, it would soon become an addiction. Even for the unaddicted, the atmosphere in the casino and the programmed sights and sounds of the slot machine can be mesmerizing. Slot machines are said to be the most addictive form of gambling. Addition to gambling is a miserable fate. Wringing money out of addicted gamblers is a rather cynical approach to taxation. –Bernie