Why I Voted Against the Ohio Casino Amendment

Today the State of Ohio votes to amend our constitution to allow casino gambling in our state. According to the pundits it should be a very close contest. I voted against Issue 3. Hopefully it will come down to one vote.

There are a lot of issues surrounding this relatively simple ballot item. Liberty, jobs, state's rights and revenue are among them. Defending the few liberties we Americans have left is high on the list of priorities these days, but we are free to fly to Vegas or drive to Indiana or michigan to gamble. To me, that's not the real issue. I've played poker since I was ten and made a craps blanket with friends in 7th grade. Let our citizens gamble if they want to.

Jobs are important, especially when some are trying so hard to remake our country and eliminate some traditional industries. Still, it is not the government's responsibility to create jobs. That duty falls to small companies and private industry. Government's job is to get out of the way and let all Americans flourish and pursue the American dream.

Our great nation went to war over state's rights when the northern states asserted that slavery was wrong and tried to impose their will on the southern states. It was the ugliest period in our short history as a nation. May we never repeat it.

Those issues are all important, but it was taxation that swayed my vote. Proponents of Ohio Issue 3 call it revenue, but make no mistake, it's a tax on the citizens and guests of the state of Ohio. In fact it's a huge tax with estimates as high as $1 billion. A billion? Shouldn't that make us taxpayers shudder? Are we really going to give the government another billion? We Ohioans pay enough. When I was in Junior High School Ohio had the 5th lowest tax burdon in the nation. According to the Tax Foundation, last year we had climbed to 43rd. Enough is enough! Remember how the Ohio Lottery was going to fund schools and keep property tax rates down? Didn't work folks. Does anyone think that the Casino Tax will cause our property taxes, state income taxes, sales taxes, or any tax to decrease because we are taxing the gamblers of this state A BILLION BUCKS? I don't. That's why I voted against Ohio Issue 3. The answer isn't more tax, it's less spending. C'mon man! Thanks for reading.