Open betting: Upcoming legislature should consider allowing casino gambling halls to open

It appears that gambling will once again become an issue when the legislature convenes in January. The city of Granjeno hopes to use charity exemptions to build a municipal casino in Hidalgo County, and Cameron County officials already have made a conditional lease agreement with developers to build a casino on South Padre Island as soon as gaming is approved.

We're gravely concerned with such heavy involvement of government officials in such enterprises, especially when South Texas is already known as a cesspool of official corruption. County government should not be involved in land speculation, and cities should focus on serving their residents and resist the urge to open private enterprises. We need only look at the city of Edinburg's unsuccessful attempts to run a major golf course and a water park to see that elected officials can't compete with business professionals who know what they're doing. City officials are apt to pour taxpayers' money into trying to keep losing endeavors afloat, costing residents both the money and the services that it could have provided.

But private residents should be free to create such enterprises. After all, after nearly 20 years of a state lottery and even longer periods of bingo halls and similar enterprises, games of chance are hardly foreign to Texas residents. Even casino-type games are common, ranging from the myriad arcades that can be found in Texas towns large and small, to restaurants with adult themes, like Dave & Buster's, and even children's pizza parlors.

The state already allows pari-mutuel betting at horse and dog tracks such as Valley Race Park. Three dog tracks and five horse tracks operate in the state.

In addition, gamblers can go to Eagle Pass on the U.S.-Mexico border and visit the Kickapoo tribe's Lucky Eagle Casino, or board the Texas Treasure at Port Aransas. The ship is a floating casino that begins operating once it reaches international waters.

These should be enough options to evaluate gambling opponents' contention that such facilities would only create legions of gambling addicts filling crisis centers and driving their families to ruin.

Certainly, some people have found it difficult to stop pouring money into high-risk ventures. Most, however, seem able to have some fun while controlling their spending, and state lottery alone allows people to spend beyond their means if they are so inclined. In the end, however, the decision on whether to gamble, and how much, should be left up to individual Texans and their families, who have shown that they are quite capable of making such decisions.

South Texas already is a popular resort and tourism area, with South Padre Island, ecological and hunting venues, border attractions just some of the venues that draw Spring Breakers, Winter Texans and vacationers. Gaming centers would only add to the attractions, and offer new sources of revenue to the local economy - revenue that can provide hundreds of jobs and drive economic progress.

Granting gaming rights to the city of Granjeno might not be the best idea, but the right people could create casinos in the Valley that could enable local residents and visitors to inject their money into the local economy rather than taking it to Las Vegas or Louisiana.

Lawmakers should allow such progress in the next legislative session by opening up the state to casino gambling.