It was completely unintentional on The Eagle’s part — really — but it was striking to see a large ad from Harrah’s Prairie Band Casino on the same page Sunday as a news article about the legislative debate on expanded gaming. The ad illustrated one of the more compelling arguments for a local casino: Wichitans are already going to casinos, only now it’s other communities and states that are receiving the economic benefit.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee
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22 Comments
And a greater per cent of the associated social costs.
Just like anything, there will be people who can enjoy gambling without any negative affect on their lives, and there will be those who will abuse it. The revenues generated can be a huge asset to a community, so I think it’s a good idea. People are responsible for themselves, the ones who are addicted to gambling find a way no matter what the local laws are. I know a man from Wichita who lost his house gambling in Las Vegas. I really don’t think it matters where the casinos are, people will find them no matter what, we might as well benefit from the revenue that will be generated.
But Harrahs, the state is not recieving much of anything from them. They keep all the money!
The revenues from the casinos need to be regulated by the state, just like the lottery. A percentage should go for schools, highways, etc. It would be great if more social programs for children and the disabled could benefit from legalized gambling. It would have to be strictly regulated in order to keep out the corruption.
It may have been unintentional that the ad ran on the same page as the article, but it was by no means merely coincidental.
Media critics for years have pointed out the collusion that occurs between advertisers and newspapers, putting the lie to the idea that media is “liberal.”
How can they be liberal when they’re paid by corporations (in advertising) and they’re owned by corporations themselves.
NBC=General ElectricABC=Disney Corp.FOX=Rupert Murdoch’s worldwide media empire
Only CBS still retains some autonomy from huge parent corporation.
Does The Eagle love casinos? Hell yes, they pay their bills . . .
Lib, your generalizations are quite amusing.
First, you refer to ‘the media’ as if it were a monolithic entity, when it is not. Then you claim the newspaper is biased because casinos pay their bills.
There is a vast business segment comprised of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations–with diverse ownership, intent, goal and business practice. Yet you lump them all into one homogeneous group. I somehow fail to equate The Village Voice with the Wall Street Journal. Nor can I find a possible connection between the Rush Limbaugh radio shows and Howard Stern. Yet, you lump all together as ‘the media’.
Second, how many casino ads have been in the Eagle recently? Every day? Every week? Not even close.
Facts are a nice thing, Lib. Stick with them and your views will be taken more seriously.
Ray, you make a good point. The media is a plural noun, plural for “mediums.”
But the refutation of your point is in your own post. “The Wall Street Journal” versus “The Village Voice”? Godzilla versus Bambi.
The number of overtly left-leaning publications and programs is tiny compared to the mainstream (read “status quo”) and right-leaning.
Polls repeatedly show for instance that a clear majority of Americans want a single-payer government run health care system like Europe, Canada, and Japan. But the media will invariably label such an idea “untenable,” “unworkable,” “lacking in support” etc. because that’s the consensus among the powerful, not the people.
For a much more in-depth discussion of the inherent collusion between corporations and their media outlets, see Noam Chomsky’s “Manufacturing Consent.”
You’re doing a heckuva job Brownlee. Using your (fuzzy) logic, we should also have a real water walk, a Cowboy Hall of fame, Worlds of Fun, a canyon, mountains (from the dirt dug our for the canyon), and, oh I don’t know, prostitutues…After all, Brownlee, doesn’t money leave Wichita for these activities?
oh for god sake>
you guys do not get it! it is all about the money. not who gets the dollars but who controls the message.
you want to blame the Eagle for printing a message you don’t agree with and then send the message that the public has no voice!
who do you think the Eagle sells papers to!
it is people who want to read their message.
if you do not like the message get of the subcriber list and/or the blog.
Challenging the media is wrong? Not in my free market, free speech, freedom world. How did you conclude, oh wise one, that I was against Casino’s? Wait, let me guess. You’re an intellectual elitist. No, my friend, I could care less pro/con Casino’s. I do care about journalistic excellence, and it ain’t the WE staff, pal.
Maybe esod could comment? You know who you are, so you will understand my point.
I think the headline here says it all. “Wichitans are already going to casinos, just not here.”
We used to say “Kansans will vote dry as long as they can stagger to the polls.” We loved liquor by the wink, not liquor by the drink. Now days, I guess as a state we will be anti-gambling as long as we can drive to the casinos in 4 hours or less. Or unless we have to pay for education.
Does it occur to anyone that the adage of “you cant legislate morality” might be true?
I see how well the war on drugs is working, how well the anti-choice laws worked, the prostitution laws, the old blue laws, inter-racial marriage laws, sodomy laws and anti-gambling laws work.
Did we learn nothing from Prohibition? One of the big problems with the human race is we never learn from our mistkes. You can have five years of experience or one year of experience five times over. Looks like the latter on morality laws.
It is truly revealing to see all the out-of-town casino money that is bankrolling our local “anti-gambling” legislators. WHAT A BUNCH OF LYING HYPOCRITES!
Valid pt ksfarmgirl, but then the question becomes “where do we draw the line?” What is your criteria for deciding what is legal and not legal? Just a guess, but I’m thinking a sex offender has a different boundary than yours.
Win–A sex offender has violated someone’s safety and health against their will or without their consent. Regulating what consenting adults do is a different subject.
I agree ksgirl … what two consenting adults do in the privacy of their home (motel room etc) is not my concern.
Two KC Casinos will be new and pretty. That will kill two of the Missouri ones and move the tax money to Kansas. Hooray!A couple near Wichita will help ruin one of them and Move some money to Wichita. Great!The problem is what does it do to Wichita? A WE editorial today suggests a zero sum game. Money now spent elsewhere will now go to a Casino. Since there is no sales tax on gambling we could get even less locally than we do now, certainly not much more. Corporations only pay taxes on profit.
Zero sum – yes. However, in this case we transfer it from Oklahoma back to Kansas.
I don’t think the Eagle editorial is correct when they imply that the money I currently spend going to Music Theater will shift to a casino. Instead, the money someone spends at a casino elsewhere gets shifted to the casino here.
In the first place, why on earth would a casino be required to “give” money back to the community? It’s a business, folks. The money they earn is called profit. They (the casinos) need to be privately owned and operated, more than one for competition, and government (of any form) needs to keep their noses out of it, at least at the same limits as any other business. It would be nice to see a successful business in Wichita for a change. The city dads need to allow a vote, so the people they are supposed to be representing can have their say.
I am inclined to believe the ones against casinos, are afraid a private casino would soon become corrupt. If this is true let the state get involved, we need the revenue and the jobs. I have watched the local gamblers leave Sedgwick County to go to Topeka for too many years. Maybe the local businesses in Topeka would prefer to keep the money coming their way by means of gas and motel money, if those politicians in Topeka allow a vote in Sedgwick Co. and it passes the locals would loose alot of money.If Sedgwick County dropped off the face of the earth Harrahs in Topeka would loose half their business.Let Sedgwick County vote!