To frame the conversation about the desparate move of putting 2500 slot machines in the state's 7 horse tracks, I think it is helpful to demonstrate how commerce breaks down into a hand full of general categories.
The first category of commerce is the extraction of raw materials and natural resources from the Earth, endeavors that include mining, oil, farming and fishing.
The second category is manufacturing in which raw materials are transformed into value added items.
Next is business support infrastructure such as banking, transportation, and government.
Fourth is retail and services, provided at a cost by those who provide a particular item or service to the rest of the community.
And finally, there is the entertainment purveyors who through some vehicle or talent provide diversion at a price.
As you look through the different categories it should strike one that the first two support highly compensated workers and provide society with the means of progress. The third and fourth categories help make life for those who work in the first two categories more pleasant and functional.
When you consider gambling and casinos and horse racing, forms of entertainment to be sure, there is no tangible benefit to society: there is simply a transfer of money, from losers to winners, with the house taking a slice of the transaction. The value of entertainment is largely in the diversion from the everyday drudgery of life, much the way drugs and alcohol provide escape from reality. When you factor in the stress gambling losses inflict on a person and their family, gambling is actually a net taker from society. Is there any amount of tax revenue that can justify making that poison more readily available?