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Tribune slants the story and hides the facts

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* The Tribune has a terribly slanted story today which begins with an interview of the wife of a Republican South Dakota gubernatorial candidate and highlights quotes from Focus on the Family. The resulting hed: 1 state’s video-gambling experience bodes ill for Illinois - ‘A devastating development for South Dakota.’

Is video gambling a “good” thing?

Of course not.

But prohibition hasn’t worked in Illinois. We have over 60,000 machines right now, and most of them illegally pay out to “winners.”

* Back to today’s Tribune story…

By legalizing video gambling, Illinois is poised to go down a path that led Sioux Falls, S.D., to accumulate mom-and-pop casinos, pawn shops and payday lenders on almost every major street.

The gambling outlets do not have clocks on the walls and curtains are drawn, leaving gamblers no hint of how much time they have spent inside, said De Knudson, a City Council member and wife of a gubernatorial candidate. Money is only a few steps away and snacks are free, so even gamblers’ stomachs don’t rebel.

…Adding… Wordslinger writes in comments: “Poor folks must have pawned their watches and cell phones, too! Or maybe since they’re apparently too stupid to make their own choices, they just don’t know how to tell time.”

Exactly. “No hint” of the time? Did the Tribune lay off all their editors?

* South Dakota has more casinos than Illinois, and their video lottery is somewhat different than what is heading for Illinois. From the South Dakota Lottery website…

…the current levels of approximately 8,900 terminals in 1,470 establishments across the state.

South Dakota’s video lottery terminals offer variations of poker, blackjack, keno, and bingo games, with both quarter and nickel games available. The maximum bet is $2 and the top prize is $1,000.

That top prize is twice what Illinois’ would be. There’s no mention of that fact in the Tribune story, though.

* Also not mentioned anywhere in the Tribune story is that opponents of South Dakota’s video lottery have put a statewide initiative on the ballot four times and failed every time…

“With 795 of 818 precincts reporting [in 2006], Initiated Measure 7 to repeal video lottery lost by a healthy margin: 67 percent were against the measure and 33 percent were in favor.

“In 1992, 63 percent of voters chose to keep video lottery. Two years later, the vote was 52.8 percent. In 2000, 53.7 percent of voters supported video lottery.

So, about two-thirds of South Dakota voters backed video lottery in 2006, but that doesn’t rate a mention in the Tribune, yet the games are a “devastating development” for the state which “bodes ill” for Illinois?

What a horrible piece of slanted journalism.

* Related…

* Lottery sales continue to climb during recession

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 10:26 am

Comments

No surprise from the World’s Greatest Newspaper. The Governor and Legislature did not do its bidding this spring, so anything that was passed is now the Worst Thing Ever.

Next thing you know, video gambling will help unqualified people into the U. of I. Or stealing the recipe for beer can chicken…

Comment by DuPage Dave Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 10:51 am
–The gambling outlets do not have clocks on the walls and curtains are drawn, leaving gamblers no hint of how much time they have spent inside–

Poor folks must have pawned their watches and cell phones, too! Or maybe since they’re apparently too stupid to make their own choices, they just don’t know how to tell time.

I’ve always said, adults just cannot be trusted to make any choices on their own. Free will? No way. Listen to your betters and do what you’re told.

I’m glad the Trib has the time to send reporters to prowl the mean streets of Sioux City.

That must account for why those reporters aren’t on the streets of the West Side and South Sides explaining what’s going on there at night.

How about a little in-depth coverage of the bloodbath occurring under your nose, in your town, every night?

Comment by wordslinger Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 10:51 am
===I’m glad the Trib has the time to send reporters to prowl the mean streets of Sioux City.===

It doesn’t even look like the reporter went to Sioux Falls. She just quotes somebody else about the horrific conditions and the clockless walls.

Nice pickup by the way on the clock thing. Heh.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 10:54 am
Personally, I am an agnostic on the expansion of gambling, video or other, but I find it very funny that they put Sioux Falls out there as the scary example of what Illinois might become when the city is regularly ranked as one of the best places to live in the country by Money Magazine.

Comment by montrose Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 10:59 am
I’m still for putting a casino on top of the new Stratton Building.

Comment by Capitol View Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:10 am
I just think it is funny when the gambling proponents bristle at any logical opposition.

Gambling never has or ever will be an effective tool in economic development. There are no success stories. Why do politicians keep going that route? $$$ in their pockets

If we are to use the standard of ‘they are doing it anyway’ to justify new laws, then a survey of the incarcerated should be conducted immediately so we can get started in building a new world.

Comment by Plutocrat03 Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:18 am
Plutocrat03, you don’t look at what the criminals are doing, you look at what otherwise law-abiding citizens are doing when entering a discussion of ending a prohibition.

Seriously, do you follow every law 100 percent of the time throughout your entire life? And, if not, why haven’t you turned yourself in?

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:19 am
hmmm, while I’m not really in favor of gambling and don’t want to downplay the seriousness of addiction to it, the papers slant on it was a bit over the top, dramatization.

The mental picture left standing from it pretty much sounds like many ‘entertainment’ establishments now. And pawn shops and payday lenders are a dime a dozen. Do the writers not get out much or just into selected choice areas which are pretty much sheltered from what’s out there right now?

Comment by Cindy Lou Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:21 am
Even though the projected revenue is grossly overstated and will not come close to paying for the pork bill this “sky is falling” reaction by the Trib is really funny. We already allow many different kinds of gambling in Illinois. What difference will a few poker machines make? The only people that should be somewhat upset are the mobsters that own the machines because of all the extra overhead involved with paying off the state.

Comment by Bill Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:25 am
Is that 60,000 number substantiated by anyone? The number seems to have been cited and recited with little evidence that the original number was accurate.

The fact is that we are probably in for a major expansion of gambling in Illinois. Rebuffing a poorly written article does not change the core problem.

We can’t build on a casino mentality. Sustainability will entail fostering the virtue of saving for tomorrow. Casinos, prison jobs and the easy road in Spring patch seem to go together.

Comment by vole Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:25 am
I think you are absolutely on target - chastising, high-minded moralizing is a waste of time, and a tremendous loss of revenue. Since when is taxing a destructive addiction wrong? We do it on booze, cigs, but legalizing/taxing gambling is immoral? Acknowledge reality and if you must, use the marketplace to educate as to its evil. Prohibition gives do-gooders something to do, and organized crime something to exploit.
If taxing it could save thousands of jobs, isn’t that the moral thing to do?

Comment by You Go Boy Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:26 am
My bad, Sioux Falls, SD. Sioux City is in Iowa.

Rich, I think you’re right the reporter didn’t go to Sioux Falls. She didn’t hit the google either.

By any measure, Sioux Falls is a success story. Low unemployment, good schools, low crime, diversifying economy, colleges, festivals, etc.

Sounds like a swell place to live.

Nice hatchet job, Trib.

Comment by wordslinger Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:26 am
===Is that 60,000 number substantiated by anyone? ===

Yes. That’s the approximate number of “entertainment only” machine licenses issued by the state.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:34 am
It seems to me that the people who are so afraid of this haven’t been to many bars, especially in small towns. Where I’m from there are a few of these in every bar in town. I’ve never seen anyone losing their rent money on them, they’re just a cheap entertaining way for people to do a little gambling and pass the time.

Comment by Small Town Liberal Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:49 am
Sioux Falls is a nice town–in fact, one of my daughters just got her waterproof cast there (so much for her Jedi skills).

I go through South Dakota two to three times a year since I have in-laws living in Southwestern Minnesota right by the SD border. There is an overabundance of trashy convenience stores kind of like along most highways. The big difference is that they also advertise gaming.

I am not a fan of easy video poker, but as been pointed out, it’s going on without licensing now. If South Dakota is the example, the impact is pretty benign to towns overall.

Comment by archpundit Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:52 am
it is a horrible story.

I have a problem with the States reliance on these types of sin taxes to fund so much of its ecoomic sructure. instead of looking atgambling, drinking and smoking as a way to fund the State, we should consider other revenue streams. My comment is not about the legalization, it is about the tax rates on these services, and the over reliance on such revenue streams.

We need a progressive tax structure.

Comment by Ghost Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 11:55 am
The argument that “people are doing it anyway so we might as well legalize it” applies to other crimes as well. Will legalizing prostitution be the revenue source for the next capital plan? Or legalizing drugs?

The fact that a bar is now engaged in illegal payouts is a new low standard to qualify for a gaming license.

Comment by reformer Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:09 pm
===The argument that “people are doing it anyway so we might as well legalize it” applies to other crimes as well===

That’s not the argument.

The argument is that a whole lot of law-abiding people are violating a stupid law.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:10 pm
slanted journalism and electronic media reporting abound in Chicago. in my view the electornic media in chicago are far worse than those who work in print.

Comment by Will County Woman Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:13 pm
To believe legalizing video poker is going to change things much might be naive. Every machine in the state pays out now.The odds are far worse for the customer in contrast to casinos.The machines are owned by an “amusement company”who have a contract that doesn’t allow using the machine for gambling,so if the tavern owner,who splits the profits with the “amusement company gets busted and the machine is siezed,it’s back in the “amusement company’s inventory the next day.If the machine is owned by a tavern and it’s siezed,it usually has some other game in addition to gambling,making it a legitimate “amusement device”and it will be returned to the tavern owner.These machines are computers that tabulates payouts,total cash paid in and much more. They can be connected to the net or even by phone line to report what taxes are owed daily right now.The only change will be creation of a convoluted bureaucratic monster the Gaming Comission is now envisioning

Comment by mac Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:16 pm
“Yes. That’s the approximate number of “entertainment only” machine licenses issued by the state.”

So, waht’s taht include? Video poker; Pinball Machines; Donkey Kong? What else?

Comment by sal-says Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:20 pm
The state’s gambling statute prohibits gambling except when the state licenses it. If that’s stupid, should it be repealed?

Comment by reformer Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:22 pm
Reformer, what’s your point? You seem to be contradicting yourself. The state has now approved video gaming, which is clearly within its right to do so.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:23 pm
sal-says, those are the video gaming games. Not pool tables.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:25 pm
===the argument is that a whole lot of law-abiding people are violating a stupid law===
The stupid law would be the state gambling statute?

Comment by reformer Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:40 pm
LOL

Nice try, but silly rhetorical tricks won’t work.

Instead of arguing over goofy semantics, how about just getting on with the actual issues involved?

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 12:42 pm
More improtantly, which is a better source of news articles, the Tribune or the new york post….

Comment by Ghost Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 2:07 pm
So I guess it is a matter of popularity?

There are a ton of folks in jail because the violated a statute. Do we repeal or modify every law on the books because someone believes the law is stupid.

Whose opinion counts to desriminate between what is stupid or not?

That attitude reminds me of high school rebellion movies.

Comment by Plutocrat03 Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 2:12 pm
==There are a ton of folks in jail because the violated a statute. Do we repeal or modify every law on the books because someone believes the law is stupid.===

Since you apparently cannot read, I am finished discussing this with you.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 2:21 pm
…As an addendum, not only can you not read, you cannot accurately sum up somebody else’s position without resorting to gross distortions. That makes you the lowest of the low, in my book.

Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 2:23 pm
No one is suggesting legalizing anything that is widely considered unacceptable. The state and its residents have accepted gaming in Illinois. We have Bingo at church, raffles for civic groups, lottery, racing, and more. The question is how to best regulate it and keep criminal elements out while at the same time allowing the citizens as whole share in any economic benefits. The Capital Bill accomplishes this. Opponents call this an expansion while reality shows that it is actually a reduction in both venues and devices.

Comment by TheTruthWillSetUFree Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 3:21 pm
Name calling is alway the highest form of debate.

All I am asking is what constitutes a ’stupid’ law. What is the criteria to determine when the legislature should change laws and what conditions.

Comment by Plutocrat03 Friday, Jul 24, 09 @ 5:15 pm
Kristen Kridel wrote that piece. At first, I was surprised that it was a “Special” to the Chicago Tribune. Expecting her (?) to be a free lancer I googled the name and discovered KK was a writer for the Tribune and previously for other newspapers.

In the end I don’t have much to add except to ask what the word “Special” means these days.

Comment by Lou Grant Saturday, Jul 25, 09 @ 7:16 am