No C.R. casino, no Pete Rose

CEDAR RAPIDS - The news that Iowa's Racing and Gaming Commission denied Cedar Rapids a casino Thursday is pretty raw to many here.

I had mixed feelings about the prospect of a casino here. I drive by what is now the former proposed site of the casino on the way to work every day, and I figure construction there could have added as much as an extra two minutes of driving time each way, so I didn't like that.

However, I have satellite radio, so I could have put that time to use listening to good music.

The bad side, for my selfish sake, is that I envisioned all sorts of major sporting events coming our way with a casino. Look at how many major boxing matches and UFC promotions are held in casinos. Almost all of them, in fact.

The home arena of the WNBA's Connecticut Sun is Mohegan Sun Casino in that state.

The Pacific-12 Conference plays its postseason men's basketball tournament in the MGM Grand's Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

And, of course, baseball's all-time hit leader, Pete Rose, works full-time selling his signature to fans in a Las Vegas casino's shopping mall.

Surely, Cedar Rapids could have grabbed some of that, right? Well, maybe not the Pac-12 tourney. Geography and all, you know.

OK, enough being flippant. I'm trying to find silver linings for our city on this rejection, and the best I can come up with is this:

Atlantic City has had casinos since 1978. Have you ever heard anyone who has been there say 'Wow, what a vibrant place! The casinos have transformed the entire city into a cleaner, safer, more progressive community. It's a model for what American cities can become.”

Nah, it's still a dump.

So we move on. We'll be fine. And to tell you the truth, I don't think Pete Rose would have uprooted and moved his operation here, anyhow.