HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1998-03-25, Page 4Page 4 . Times -Advocate, March 25, 1998
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Will money be leaving our community?
Most communities do not want
them, some charities count on them,
and Queen's Park is apparently caught
in the middle.
But if one were taking bets, smart •
money would he on Queen's Park al-
lowing pernianent charity casinos -. for
apiece of the action. that is. . .
in recent years, gamhling has turned
out to he a veritable pot of gold for .
charities. Many a "church roof has been
paid tor by. bingo, 50-50.draws and raf-,
Iles. Organizations - everything from
hospital foundations to sports groups - •
have grown to depend on Nevada ticket
revenue to top up. .or replace. donations..
and mond' from Rind raisers.
These days. "traditional" charities like
the Heart and Stroke -Foundation -and
Cancer Society are competing with
schools, hospitals and other-organiza-.
tions as government money dries up.
All of them.are looking at imaginative
ways to get funds: Increasingly. gam-
bling in its many forms is the answer.
'An argument in favor of permanent -
charity casjnos seems to he that chari-,
ties.will have a regular source of in- --
come.
The arguments against them arc so
numerous. a good many communities
have decided they do not want them. ,If
there are ;x"'nu. mber of gamhling dol-
lars available to charities,_and the gov`-
ernment is taking,a hefty cut. then char-
ities. especially local charities, will end
up with less. And if these casinos gen-
erate more 'gambling dollars all around,
it indicates money which once was
spent in the stores is now feeding casi-
no gambling.
It is easy to.say people entering a .
gaiinhling estahlishm'ent'should know
what they are getting into. Some do.
They regard the $20, $5() or $,100 as the
'cost`of a fun evening's entertainment,
and once the money is gone, they leave.
But gambling. for others, is as addictive
as heroin. .
Is it proper for charities and govern-
ments to make money off people's
grief? Government has been cashing in
on "sin taxes for years with cigarettes
and liquor. There are even those who
argue_ in favor of the government licens-
ing and selling marijuana the way it
does alcohol, just to get the drug under
government control and out of .the hands
of the criminals.
And then we have gambling. The very
.word -still triggers mental pictures of Las
Vegas showgirls, Mafia hitmen and
smoke-filled dens of iniquity - sin at its
worst. That is one reason people have so
much fun buying Nevada tickets and
playing the lotteries.
Government lotteries have done much
to make gambling socially acceptable.
What could be wrong with popping in at
the local convenience store and drop-
ping a couple of dollars on a 649 ticket;
especially when you have the chance to
win millions of dollars? Buying a Lotta-
rio ticket is not gamhling.
Or is it? Spending $20, $50 or more to
feed the dream of living.a life of luxury
seems not very. far removed from stand-
ing beside a casino scot machine and
-feeding in coins hour after hourinthe
hope of; hitting the magic number.
The pump has been primed. The stig-
ma.once attached to gambling has large-
ly disappeared. Those who are fighting
to. keep charity casinos out of a cominu-
nity are likely to discover, to their dis-
may, thatour society has already grown
quite dependent on money generated by
gambling. It is too late to close the door
-. the horses have left the stable and are
racing full tilt for the billion dollar prize.
Permanent charity, casinos are on their
way. whether we want them or not - per-
haps not in this town; perhaps not in any
town nearby, but close enough to draw
money from this community.
'c
What's on your mind?
The Times Advocate continues to welcome letters to the editor as a
forum for open discussion of local issues, concerns, complaints
and kudos. The Times -Advocate reserves the right to edit letters for brevity.
Please send your letters to P.O Box 850 Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S6. Sign your
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A View from Queen's Park
TORONTO - Premier Mike Harris's biggest
need is to show he has a heart and it will not be
as simple as getting a transplant.
The Progressive Conservative premier is un-
der immense pressure to demonstrate that he
can be compassionate. particularly because he
is commonly felt to have offered paltry com-
pensation to the surviving Dionne quintuplets
and increased it only after public outcry.
Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty is among
those who have warned that they will not let
the issue drop. McGuinty claimed it "showed
Harris's true colors."
Certainly the incident with the Dionnes was
only the latest in a long list in which Harris has
been judged as lacking a human touch.
This almost goes with the territory the Tory
premier has chosen, of drastically cutting ser-
vices, many used extensively and valued by the
public, to reduce taxes and deficits.
Ontarians are reminded constantly of some
results: dangerously sick left on stretchers in
hospital corridors for days, welfare benefits cut
By Eric Dowd
0+
Published Each Wednesday Morning at 424 Main St.,
Exeter, Ontario, NOM 1S6 by J.W. Eedy Publications Ltd.
Telephone 1-519-235-1331 • Fax: 519-235-0766
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Missiles- and musings
By Craig Bradford
Why supporting the hometeam is so important
Thiss-sports scribe Saw'something
on Sunday that was a site for sore
eyes — a packed arena.
• On Sunday night 'our Exeter Jr. D
Hawks ,hockey team squeaked by
the Scaforth Centenaires 2- I In
their seventh and 'deciding game at
the South Huron. Rec Centre. There
wasn't an empty scat in the house
and even. the standing -room -only
space was At a -premium. The Karn
was filled to the rafters with young
sters, teenagers, young adults.
moms and dads. grandparents and
other hockey folk from throughout
the region. .
It was.exactly the kind of crowd a
seventh and deciding playoff series
game should have. Thcrc were oohs
and aahs on close calls around the
Cents crease .and the tell -talc hoos.
when :the ref called a penalty.
against the Hawks the faithful felt
was inappropriate whether the hook,
was clear as day or not.
The short of .it is hockey is
healthy in Exeter. at least -at a game
seven during the -playoffs. Not only
. did the full house" {most the spirits
of out lads on the ice (though some
of_ them may have been too fo-
' cussed to' notice): it also hoisted
the coffers of the Jr. 1) franchise
that depends on playoff action to
make end, meet. enough warm bodies at the rink•
We should remember, this last ' during the season to _justify putting
fact. It IS a simple equation — butts a team on the icc. •
-
pn. bencjles, equals money in the , We should learn from these un -
hank. But all too often during the .pleasant reminders that small town
regular season those putts aren't on • hockey isn't just important for the
those benches. It's tlrue the game in players.. the organizations and the
December or January
tor in the club's demise. we should
remember to appreciate what we
have before it's too late: Semi -pro
and senior hockey, in other 'burgs
have up -rioted at an owner's or
league's whim because there wasn't
isn't a season slake or
breaker. but without
those paid spectators. a
Jr. D team. or Jr. B or A
team can't pay the hills
fans. but for the entire
Aren't we community. Aren't we
poorer without poorer without the op -
the opportunity portunity to take pride in
our home team"
to: take pride in Take the time and the
•
• for travel. • ice time and ' our home
the plethora of other ex- - team
pense's that keeps a club .
from moth -balling then ier.eys.
Exeter and arca hockey aficiona-
dos can still vividly remcmher Sr.
A Mohawk action that thrilled wit-
nesses at the Bee Centre. Though
attendance wasn't the deciding lac -
effort to support our
sports teams. including
the proposed Hcnsall
Senior A hockey club and all our
other winter and summer -sports.
with your biased interest and your
hometown pride. Without it we may
have less to cheer about.-
to
bout.
to near -starvation levels, abused women unable
to find shelters and university students incurring
huge debts as tuition increases, to name just a
few.
The most recent example this week is deaf stu-
dents losing part of funding that helped them ob-
tain higher education. These stones do not earn
a premier a reputation as overflowing with the
milk of human kindness.
Harris, when he talks, also tends mostly to em-
phasize achieving financial goals, and someone
who seems obsessed with money and statistics
has difficulty appearing warm-hearted.
The premier additionally has handicapped
himself in gaining a kinder image by constant
sniping at opponents and some in need. He sug-
gested that hard -up welfare recipients can man-
age easily by buying dented cans of tuna on sale
as he once did, although his family could not re-
call it.
Harris said many who live on the streets do so
by choice, implying there should be less sympa-
thy and support for the homeless, and gratui-
Harris needs to show he has heart
tously, long after their bitter strike. said teach-
ers do not work hard. which is unfair to many:
and he calls every union leader a "union boss."
But Harris can counter the charge that he is
hard-hearted more effectively than he does by
emphasising some humane consequences of
his programs.
New jobs are increasing rapidly in Ontario
(and some other jurisdictions) because of
stronger 'consumer and business confidence,
and some of this has to be due to Harris's cuts
in income tax. Unfortunately, many are in retail
and other low -paid service industries.
Harris's tax cuts make life a bit easier for indi-
viduals and families, although low -paid work-
ers get only small relief. The difficult part for
Harris in making them look humane is that the
better -off are helped most.
Eliminating annual deficits by the year 2000
and then starting to cut the massive debt accu-
mulated over decades, toward which Harris has
made strides, will help remove a burden from
taxpayers that is like an extra mortgage they
have to pay for which they see no benefits.
Harris also can explain that sometimes when
he sounds tough he is being compassionate. as
when he has chased deadbeat fathers refusing
to pay wife and child support and got some
jailed, which could get families their cash.
Some earlier premiers tugged every heart -
string trying to look human. Tory Bill Davis
sent voters a picture of his dog, Thor. declaring
he "only cost us $2.25. but we wouldn't part
with him for $1 million.
Liberal David Peterson liked to show he was
just a homebody by saying when political life
looked bleak he "could always. go home for a
hug from my mom" and New Democrat Bob
Rae let a sympathetic world know that his fami-
ly "live frugally with a car -loan and a mortgage
like everyone else."
But Harris would be better off trying to point
factually to where his cuts help people than
sounding like everyone's benevolent old uncle,
because the change would be too drastic to be
believed.