Letter: Casino influence makes a state lottery impossible

Monday, April 21, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Don't believe the nonsense that Nevada doesn't have the population to support a lottery, as our burgeoning permanent population is augmented by tourists who would consistently buy chances on a lottery. The real reason is that casinos don't want the competition for the bucks people might otherwise throw away on their games. I've even heard the argument "We don't need a lottery -- we have Megabucks!" which, of course, does not generate money for school aid or anything else, other than lining the pockets of the casino fat cats.

We have protested uncontrolled growth without the supporting infrastructure, the sneaky incursion into the Red Rock area by gambling and home builders, and the politicians' attempt to justify keeping taxes on gross receipts from the casinos to 6 percent -- half what it is elsewhere. Our protests have meant nothing and never will. We get condescending smiles and the mantra "Growth is good; increasing casino taxes is bad," accompanied by untrue, shameless, dire predictions of loss of jobs. The same predictions would be made to argue against a state lottery.

Mary L. Allen,

Indian Springs