Babel citizens are being asked for their opinions on having a casino. City council members do not know what to think. And when our city leaders have to ask for direction, you know that nobody knows what to do. Either that or they are afraid they will incur the wrath of Babel’s Pentecostal church leaders for encouraging gambling.
The problem is that Ontario is still a repressed society. People grow up in this province with heavy-handed government control of liquor, racing, gambling, banking and many other aspects of our daily lives. Even the new immigrants, who add so much to the cultural growth of our society, come mainly from countries where they lived under the heavy hand of police and government. The more open approach to Canada’s rights and freedoms since the 1980s is only now slowly awaking our society to our possibilities.
Some of the old repressions continue to this day. You will hear people quote the old Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) arguments against the ‘Demon Rum.’ Some continue to worry that casino gambling is addictive. Which, it can be. It is just less addictive than smoking, drinking or drugs.
But the blue-stocking crowd no longer run Ontario. Gambling is now legal. What we have recognized is that gambling is an attraction for tourism, for conventions and can be part of the mix that creates a holiday destination. We need more of those in Ontario. And we want to bring people to Babel and have them enjoy our beautiful parks and waterfront. And we want them to spend money while here that works its way into our local economy.
And we have an even better deal for a casino-resort-entertainment complex than you would expect. It is at the corner of Lakeshore, Tiffin and Essa. It is fronted by the historic Allandale train station that we have spent so much on restoring. It is located at the GO station that can bring visitors and holiday travellers to our casino-resort. It can bring conventioneers to our casino-convention/entertainment centre. It is an ideal location and we can be confident that all parties interested in this property would agree. There is certainly enough money to be made by all.
Of course there are the foot-draggers on council who are unlikely to ever agree to a casino. They quote the social costs of gambling. They fail to provide any firm statistics or even anecdotal examples. One councillor claimed to a reporter that he “will never, ever, support it (a casino), even if 100 per cent of the people told me they support it.” There is a guy who sticks by his convictions!
Another member of council states that he is concerned about the business case for a casino when Georgian Downs in Innisfil already offers slot machines. The facts are that while a slot machine operation is cheaper to operate and can be a stand-alone entity, the public prefers casinos that are complete with table games. A full casino operation is best in a resort-entertainment centre location.
But that is only this Babelite’s opinion.
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Copyright 2012 © Peter Lowry
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