theQuestion: Should a new casino be welcomed south of the Fraser?*
If you frequent a B.C. casino in this province, you should be disturbed by Petr’s column. Unless you are one of the few that pop in for an “hour of fun” and leave $20, according to Petr, you are likely one of the targeted “poor” and “those with mental illness.”
His statements are insensitive, considering the gaming population in some areas skews towards a wealthier Asian demographic. I’d pay good money to see how well this announcement would go over on the floor of Richmond’s River Rock Casino — “Attention players, please step back from the tables and slot machines, and those who are poor, make your way to social services set up at the south parkade, and those who are mentally ill please see the health-care workers at the west parkade.”
It’s convenient for the left to demonize gaming while out of office. But when in power, they not only welcome gaming revenue, they seek to grow it. In the 1990s, the BC NDP were the first provincial government to drastically expand gaming in this province. In an effort to make B.C.’s casinos more competitive with American casinos across the border, then-Premier Glen Clark championed the introduction of slot machines in the province.
Slot machines arguably have the most pernicious effect on low-income, marginalized citizens, and yet it was the left that brought these one-armed bandits into the province. If you follow the argument that gaming targets the poor and mentally ill, then the BC NDP are masters of taking advantage of the very constituency they purport to protect. That is deplorable.
Hypocrisy is a function of left-thinking, which Petr demonstrates aptly this week. He claims if a new casino is built south of the Fraser, there would be an increase in the number of people battling gambling addictions. Yet in a Duel last December, Petr argued strenuously in favour of expanding the sale of beer and wine into grocery stores. This effectively rejects the argument that increasing the availability of alcohol would increase alcohol addictions, which studies show there is a correlating effect. It’s a stretch to believe the impact of alcohol abuse on society is any less serious than gambling.
If a casino is desired by a community, it should be welcomed. Social engineers should stay out of the way.