With the Governor's latest railings against the video slot machine racket and Ron Sparks' borrowing of the Don Seigelman playbook for yet another education lottery program, the gambling debate has returned to Alabama once again.
Gambling already exists in this state.
Victoryland and Wind Creek Casino are becoming tourist destinations, and you can't throw a stone in Walker County without hitting a few slot machines.
Finally throwing open the floodgates of gambling legalization could add much-needed funds to state education coffers and bring regulation and the rule of law to an industry in need of reining in.
Part of us want to live in a state with legalized gaming and a state lottery. If people are going to gamble, we might as well keep the money here.
If you allow poker, Rod, our photo editor, promises to blow tons of money at the tables.
However, legalizing gambling and creating a state lottery may not be the best solution in this state.
Such a proposition would certainly involve the State Legislature and we wouldn't trust those shady politicians to water our ficus if we went on vacation.
With the potential billions of dollars at stake with legalization, Montgomery would erupt into a no-holds-barred cage match of pain broadcast live on Alabama Public Television.
We'd watch it.
We worry Alabama doesn't have the population base necessary to sustain a state education lottery like Georgia or Florida, and we worry that a lottery fund meant to help supplement the education fund would eventually become the education fund.
Even if we can sustain a lottery, we worry the citizens enjoying the lottery are those who can ill afford to spend their money that way.
That's an Alabama we don't want to see.
Legalizing gambling would also require amendments and revisions to our already ludicrously long state constitution.
Gambling and lotteries are quick fixes to a problem that requires thoughtful reflection and planning and we should tread carefully if we choose to walk along that path.
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