I HEARD AN AD on the radio recently for a new casino. Didn't catch the name of it. It faces the same challenge as all new businesses, how to catch the attention of the public, and how to compete effectivelywith existig businesses of the same type, in the same market.
Native americans got the jump on the gambling industry in america, because other than las vegas, legalized gambling was hard to find in america, until the early nineteen seventies, when a supreme court decision, authored by liberal justice brennan, ruled that no state government could regulate the economic activity on native american reservation land.
Thereafter, all over the country, reservation casinos sprang into existence, as various tribes could see the potential value of having a virtual monopoly on a lucrative industry that is at once villified and heavily patronized by the american christian community, but entirely beyond the reach of the grasping hands of state and federal government.
If you didn't know better, you'd almost think that christian american society was getting a tad jealous of the incredible revenues generated by native american casino enterprise, as first state lotteries started appearing across the nation, and then non reservation casinos followed soon thereafter.
The radio ad i heard was being aired in a part of the country replete with reservation casinos, but was apparently itself not a native american enterprise. This became obvious when the narrator proclaimed "are you tired of going to casinos only to make a contribution to the tribe?"
"Are you tired of losing your rmoney to machines and tabless which are designed only to take it from you? Would you like a chance to try your luck in a fun environement where the slot machines are set more generously, and the gambling tables are looser and freer?"
and so on and so forth.This ad made no bones about it: if you gamebe in an indian casino, you are throwing your money away, because the place is rigged heavily against you, because its only purpose is to rake in money for "the tribe".
sheesh! as if the purpose of the non indian casino would be to enrich its customers, one and all, with easy to win games at gaming tables. as if the new casino would treat its customers more fairly, simply because it is not owned as a tribal enterprise. Like I am so totally sure. but, when in hot pursuit of profit, all bets are off, and its win at all costs, even if so doing takes a little dishonest, immoral racism.
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