I guess the law of averages indicated that Ron Williams would make a good point sooner or later.
It was political cowardice for Schwartzkopf & Company to kowtow to (Dover Downs:Denis McGlynn, Delaware Park:Bill Rickman and The Delaware State Fair:Gene Bayard) who’ve made a fortune off the state Lottery Office. It’s also going to ensure sports betting will fall flat on its face for two reasons. One, people simply are not going to drive to one of the racinos, park their car — or even use valet service — walk to the building, place a parlay bet, walk back to their car and drive home.
That is actually two good points in one paragraph. A NEW RECORD! It was political cowardice of the most rank and transparent variety and the sports bettor is a different breed of bettor than the slot machine feeder. Williams, who does not get out much, continues…
But put together a few dozen workers with cookie-cutter protest signs and deploy them at the three public hearings of gutless legislators, and Delaware’s supposedly independently elected officials come off like a bunch of plantation slaves answering only to the Big Three owners.”
While it is true that Schwartzkopf caved eagerly to the pretend vox populi ginned up by the race tracks, Maria Evans points out at Delaware Politics that the crowds at these hearing have been neither as manufactured nor as employed by race tacks as the newspapers are reporting:
The crowd, incidentally, was way more than just bussed in casino employees. Many Kent Countians were just there to check out the goings on, like the woman I spoke to from yet another institution of higher learning in Dover, who thought the expansion seemed like “knee jerk” legislating. All you really had to do was walk about 30 paces away from the press area to find concerned, non casino affiliated citizens.
So what gives? Are Delawareans clamoring to protect the race track monopoly? Clearly, no.
Is Pete Schwartzkopf clamoring to use the fig leaf provided by the race track’s prepackaged “instant protestors.”
It sure sounds like it.