Casino revenue is a false promise

Once again our legislators plan to introduce bills calling for new casinos when they come back to Springfield next week. They are chasing the illusion that gambling can solve present cash shortfall.

People will have to gamble more than $55 billion in order for the state to get even a fraction of the revenue it wants for capital works projects. What a depressant that would be to Chicagoland businesses to have that amount of people's discretionary funds taken out of the economy. As the late Donald Stephens once said, casinos and their slot machines are vacuum cleaners that suck up people's money.

Legalizing two or three new casinos will not result in "instant cash" to fund large construction projects. It would only finance upward of $10 billion in state construction borrowing.

Casinos will make taxpayers the losers. The costs of addiction, bankruptcy, crime, embezzlement, child abuse, divorce and suicide will be passed on to taxpayers, even if you don't gamble.

Tell legislators to stop chasing the false promises of gambling to solve budget crises.

Beth Paschall

Palos Heights