ìShall the Missouri Constitution be amended to authorize floating gambling facilities on or adjacent to the White River in Rockaway Beach, Missouri, to be licensed and regulated consistent with all other floating facilities in the State of Missouri.”

The Post Dispatch advises me to vote no.

Apparently back in 1992 we only voted on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. And if any part of Missouri wants to put a casino on a different river, the whole state needs to vote again.

I’d rather the language didn’t focus on Rockaway and the White River. Let’s get this over and done with. Why should we discriminate one river against another? If riverboats are allowed on the Missouri and the Mississippi, it should be allowed on any damn river in the state.

I’m not a big fan of gambling. It is generally a regressive tax. (Riverboat gambling is a little less regressive than the lottery, in that it attracts wealthier idiots. But it is still a tax on stupidity, especially the slot machines. There is skill invovled with poker and blackjack.) The “gambling supports education” canard leads many to vote against school levies since they feel “We’re already supporting education through the lottery and casinos” and Missouri ends up near the bottom in funding for its schools. I’d support an amendment eliminating casinos on all rivers. But I’m also going to vote Yes on this amendment. I just see no reason to discriminate against the White River.

(My thoughts on both amendments seem similar. Except I don’t feel marriage is stupid, and I wouldn’t support an amendment eliminating all marriages in the state of Missouri.)