Guest Editorial

AMENDMENT I . . . BE AWARE

You need to look a little closer to learn exactly what this amendment is all about! Amendment l will open the door for casinos to be built on the White River, in the Rockaway Beach area, which is just down the road from Branson, Missouri. Most of the deceptive pamphlets that we are being mailed, urging us to vote "yes" on Amendment 1, do not even mention the word "CASINO." Television ads are not verbally mentioning the word -- they only mention "riverboats", and only on a muted part of the screen does the word "CASINO" appear.

Branson has always been known as a family-oriented vacationing area -- a wholesome and refreshing place to visit -- an environment where families can come and not have to worry about the entertainment being acceptable for the entire family. All of this will change if Amendment I is passed.

Originally, the Missouri Constitution allowed gambling to be located only on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. Next came the boats in moats (can be located up to 1000 feet from the rivers). At the present time there is a $500 loss limit for each two-hour session. There is now pressure to raise that limit.

While Rockaway Beach has suffered difficult economic times, bringing gambling casinos into the area is not going to have the beneficial effects that the citizens might hope for. Gambling will raise the local crime rate, decimate families, and bring into the community and surrounding areas an element of people very different from the family-oriented folks for which the area is known.

As noted on the "Casino Watch" Web site, "States cannot gamble themselves rich." A University of Illinois study suggests that gambling costs society two-and-a-half times of what it generates in new taxes. It has also been stated that for every casino in existence, $660 million annually leaves Missouri. Bankruptcies, embezzlement, money laundering, divorces, suicides, and widespread prostitution will result. It is a known fact that casinos very often supply prostitutes (many underage -- some as young as 13) to their high rollers.

Hopefully, Missouri residents will take the time to research these details on the internet at www.casinowatch.org , and then vote intelligently to defeat Amendment l.

Ruth Aston

Rock Hill, Mo