First, a huge thanks to all who helped win this David v. Goliath fight to keep New Hampshire free from slot casinos. You have defended and protected New Hampshire's reputation and our high quality of life that gives us our healthy communities and a relatively strong economy. (If casinos are so good for the economy, why is our unemployment rate lower than 9 out of 10 casino states?)
Unfortunately, our stunning victory does not end the war. We can all now see the cynical tactics that Millennium Gaming has used and will keep using to checkmate our state into giving it a no-bid slots monopoly.
Tactic One: an ugly preview of casino-controlled politics.
Millennium literally bought supporters with explicit and implicit promises of money and perquisites to selected beneficiaries. Those watching the budget process looked on in horror as a small group of legislators publicly announced that their highest policy priority had become getting Millennium its slots monopoly.
Tactic Two: pure Alice in Wonderland.
Millennium and its army of paid shills almost got away with its crazy claim that the slots tax is not a tax. Not only is the slots tax a tax, it is a 49 percent tax ... the highest rate of any ever proposed for New Hampshire. Some have been suckered into the notion that only gamblers will pay it. In fact, we will all pay in jobs lost (perhaps our own) at existing New Hampshire businesses and increased costs of welfare and crime.
Fortunately, an informed public cannot be suckered. Look at the below polling on the Maine referendum to legalize slots in 2003. The more the public learns about the economic and social costs of slot casinos, the less we buy the phony promises of magic money from nowhere.
Millennium knows that it will never get its no bid slots monopoly if the public is informed. It will try to bury the ugly facts by spending millions more dollars on lobbyists and TV ads.
To continue our success at countering this, we need your help:
· talk to your friends, neighbors, and representatives
· write letters to the editor
· email or phone (271-2121) the Governor, asking him to be sure his gambling study commission does not whitewash the facts
· make a tax-free contribution to us
Our win is proof positive that you can make a difference.
