Horse Racing in Maryland, a $2 Billion Industry? Wanna bet?

The MoBseen: Life’s observations as seen through the eyes of Mark.

We, the voters of the Free State, will have the chance to vote on slots coming to Maryland.

Current polling by Gonzales Research & Marketing Strategies and the Washington Post Polling suggest that Maryland residents are in favor of Maryland slots and those favoring slots continue to outnumber those opposing slots. The question remains of course, where to put the parlors and who will be the beneficiary of the millions generated by this new gambling.

I should point out to those opposed to Maryland slots that we already have gambling in Maryland and on a very broad scale; We have The Lottery, Lotto, The Daily Pick 3, The Daily Pick 4, (twice a day!) Bonus Match 5, Mega Millions, Multi Match, Racetrax, Maryland Hold’em, Keno, Scratch-Offs, and of course horse racing. We also have Off Track Betting (OTB) and XpressBet.

The fact is, we have no shortage of vehicles to separate money from man and woman here in the Free State! These, of course, are all state-ordained gambling games. This in addition to all of the illegal numbers that are run everyday and the illegal slot machines in bars throughout the state, bingo nights at churches, VFWs and fire halls (these licensed by the State) and of course the office pools during March Madness.

The politicians, led by the both Governors Ehrlich and O’Malley, have and are supporting slots. This in itself is not what puzzles me, it’s the justification that is used to “sell” the slots to the constituents. Continue reading Horse Racing in Maryland, a $2 Billion Industry? Wanna bet?