Buckeye RINO

I am providing links to 2 different sources that speak out against Issue 6.

The first comes from WSPD radio (hat tip to Maggie Thurber, who pointed me in the radio station’s direction).  Brian Wilson hosts Jeff Hooke of the Buckeye Institute.  When I listened to the audio, I had to be patient, as it seemed a bit choppy, but the audio is here.

Hooke isn’t taking a stand against gambling itself.  He’s just pointing out that even if you favor gambling, Issue 6 is a bad way to introduce gambling to Ohio.  Hooke suggests the state introduce gambling by auctioning off licenses.  Personally, I think both the auctioning method, and the casino monopoly proposed by Issue 6 are both counter to America’s spirit of free enterprise.  I’m against gambling altogether, but if I were outvoted, and a majority of Ohioans wanted to legalize casinos, then I’d advocate a more libertarian approach (mentioned in my first anti-Issue 6 post), which would allow anyone to operate a casino business just like anyone can operate a restaurant business.  If it’s made legal, we shouldn’t curb competition.  A person shouldn’t have to be well-connected to a politician in order to set up shop, as that approach only breeds corruption.

Hooke also deflates the assertion that the casino would create new jobs.  At best, the casino would simply shift jobs within the entertainment and hospitality industry.  I’ve posted about opportunity cost, which gives more details.

The second link is to Capital Blog (hat tip to JMZ for pointing me in the blog’s direction), which has three video segments, here, featuring Ohio Roundtable and U.S. Senator George Voinovich.  In the first videosegment, Voinovich delivers a speech explaining his opposition to Issue 6 and to gambling, itself.  The second segment is a question-and-answer session with the press.  The third segment is a speech from David Zanotti, of the Ohio Roundtable, debunking some claims made by casinos.  Obviously, I am much more aligned to the Ohio Roundtable’s views on this subject than I am to the Buckeye Institute’s views.