Bowles to Lottery: Keep your blood money
Submitted by James Protzman on Mon, 07/16/2007 - 7:55am
One of my favorite topics is back in the news, this time because of the good judgment of Erskine Bowles, president of the UNC system. Bowles has personally decreed that advertisements for the lottery have no place in sports events held by public universities. The N&O editorializes today on the subject.
Erskine Bowles, president of the University of North Carolina system, has done well to say so. He's also taken a position unlikely to win him friends in the Governor's Office, where the lottery is viewed as a wonderful benefit to North Carolina. And it's true that the university system benefits from lottery money.
But Bowles got to the heart of the issue when he said, "While it is legal for our students who are 18 or older to participate in the lottery, the lottery is nonetheless a form of gambling, and I feel strongly that we should not encourage gambling by our students." Amen, Brother Bowles.
There you have it. Our state government doing its damnedest to encourage citizens to gamble - and the head of our revered university system saying "not so fast." I put this in the category of a moral dilemma, and the only honest answer I can come up with is to end the lottery altogether.
People say that can't happen. People say North Carolina has too much invested in the scheme to back away now. People say George Bush is a brilliant leader. You can't trust what people say.
I predict the lottery will be dead and gone in less than six years.
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If I Knew Then -
What I know now ....
Thank you, sir.
Too bad. Gov's leaving; we're staying. I don't feel the lottery is
"such a wonderful benefit".
Does it bring in $$? Sure, it does.
Are they 'healthy' $$? I don't think so.
Gambling can become an addiction.
Is it for everyone? Of course it isn't. Neither is alcohol, tobacco, or McD's. But that doesn't make it good for you, either, now does it?
A dollar in my hand is always worth more than 2 dollars in someone else's hand. YMMV.
I am less concerned
with the morality argument and much more concerned with the idea of college sports events encouraging gambling.
I think its a great move by Bowles.
"Keep the Faith"
It's Not About Morality -
It's about Economics.
$$ - moola - payola - graft - bread - grease -
I can't do a thing about anyone's morality, nor do I care to try. It's not my business.
But business - state business - is my business and it's yours as well.
And college sports and skyboxes and kings and kingmakers, dealbreakers ... absolutely not.my.thing.
Never has been - never will be.
Well said.
It's not up to me (or anyone I care to vote for) to legislate morality - especially to college students, who let's face it, are usually over 18, and therefore legally allowed to make their own decisions on everything except alcohol (that's another thing I think is absurd.)