GOVERNMENT PROFITS

Regarding "Dying To Gamble: Do Floridians Want To Bet On It?" (Commentary,
Nov. 24):

I remember as a youth the "numbers racket" that was run by clever
underworld crooks and thieves. The only ones who profited were the crooks.
The government outlawed it and shut them down. After a brief intermission
and a good look at the profitability of the games, governments got into the
business - lotto, scratch-offs, etc.

Marijuana and drugs, a mainstay of the underworld, were outlawed - probably
because governments could not find a way to profit from it, even though it
really only hurt and killed the users.

But tobacco, which kills not only the user but everyone around it because
of secondhand smoke, was found to be a great source of income for
governments and politicians; therefore, it became a legal drug. We will
never have any real control over this insidious drug so long as the tobacco
companies are able to "buy" control of our government officials.

Now because of a so-called need for education funds, Floridians will take a
look at expanded gambling. Does anyone with a rational mind believe that
this will be a panacea? Or will this too become another way for politicians
to pad their pockets at the cost of the people?

Bradford J. Angers,

Riverview