Too Far: With Raiders’ move, legalized gambling is on its way – Chambersburg Public Opinion

Graham Messner, For Public Opinion 4:47 p.m. ET March 28, 2017

Raiders owner Mark Davis, center, meets with Raiders fans after a speaking engagement in Nevada recently. The NFL has approved a move from Oakland to Las Vegas.(Photo: Associated Press)

Can we quit pretending that legal gambling is a bad thing?

Do we realize that what is worse is what we have now? Our current system (wink, wink) is called illegal gambling. Illegal gambling is where the muck lives. Illegal gambling is, at its highest level, where match fixing scandals are born.

Thats all about to change.

The first salvo across the bow is the Oakland Raiders' move to the United States gambling capital of Las Vegas.

Think about it.

The NFL was so against legalized gambling that it wouldnt even let Las Vegas host the Pro Bowl in 2013. That was absurd. The Pro Bowl isnt even a real game.

But Las Vegas is giving the Raiders $750 million in love money. Funny how things change.

Of course, the NFL isnt admitting it is heading the way of giving the nod to legalized gambling, but no private or public entity ever tells you that allowing a little gambling is truly the path to full-blown gambling. Slot machines lead to table games and table games lead to video gambling in bars (at least thats the Pennsylvania model).

Its all in the name of revenue.

I guess its easier to make money on peoples vices than to tighten the belt and get rid of redundant programs and/or jobs.

I get it.

I also understand where people get skittish about legalizing sports gambling, but I can guarantee you that legalizing sports gambling would actually legitimize the whole thing. Legalized gambling allows for the point spread to shift and is monitored in real time. If some crazy betting occurs on a certain games, thats a red flag and the odds can change in real time and even the game can be blacked out from wagering.

Plus, legalizing it everywhere would cut off a major money stream to organized crime. Its not like legalizing marijuana, whereas illegal marijuana is actually still sold on the black market for a cheaper price than what the government sells it for legally. A bet is worth the same amount any way you slice it.

Thats the way it works in Las Vegas.

The fact that this Commonwealth of Pennsylvania sells lottery tickets and gets revenue from casinos while cracking down on Super Bowl pools and/or the number of fish tickets a veterans organization sells is whacky. Just legalize it all, monitor it, profit share and be done with it.

Both NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman have given a wink and a nod toward moving forward with being OK with more legalization of sports gambling. The NFL is right on their heels. Its free money.

Im just not surethe opposition for keeping the current national illegal system makes sense. Who cant make a bet if they really want to? Everybody knows a guy who will take a wager and anyone who has problem with gambling is still going to have a problem with gambling. Just go online if you dont think you can bet on sports. Lottery tickets are gambling.

Of course, while everyone focuses on the gambling aspect of moving an NFL team to Las Vegas, there areso many, many more ways to get into trouble in Sin City. A young player who has a propensity for getting into trouble is going to be at the trouble smorgasbord every night. Money will fly out of their hands and their bank accounts.

There isnt anything you cant do in Las Vegas if you want to take part in spooky deviant behavior. If I were the NFL, thatd be a much larger concern than legal betting. Its the (insert bad behavior description here) capital of the USA.

And by the time the Raiders actually move to Las Vegas (2019 or 2020), it wouldnt have mattered what city they decided to move to would have been, because legalized gambling will have likely spread to a city near you.

After all, its free money and were running out of vices to tax.

Things have gone too far for too long.

Graham Messner has been a writer for many years and has also been involved in real estate, fundraising and coaching. He can be reached at toofar@gmx.com.

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Too Far: With Raiders' move, legalized gambling is on its way - Chambersburg Public Opinion