Gambling destroys people

Retired Princeton professor Sheldon Wolin says nothing about casinos or gambling in his book, “Democracy Inc.” (2008) but he writes a lot about truth. Telling the truth is crucial in a self-governing society. “Self government is, literally, deformed by lying.”

For Wolin, public perceptions are shaped by a “relentless culture of advertising and its exaggerations, false claims and fantasies.” These same forces support the allure of casino gambling. Paths to finding truth become obscured.

Can one discover any truths in a casino? No matter who you are, how deep your hope, how fervent your religion, how daunting your intellect, you must realize that a casino has no volition. It doesn't know or care who you are. It will destroy the energy and resources that you might have used to pursue real truths. The only truth that you are likely to find in a casino is that you will lose all your money.

Casino operations are managed and manipulated from the start. Gambling adds little complexity or challenge to human understanding and requires little, if any, thinking.

Gambling losses destroy people and hollow democracy. The operation makes rich investors richer and hurts the poor. Gambling at a casino will not open any pathways to truth.

I don't want a casino in Cedar Rapids. If you do want to go to a casino, several are nearby.

Hal Sondrol

Cedar Rapids