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These two qoutes from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria's Chairman Greg Sarris echo our own fears: that
gambling will destroy people's lives and become a scourge on our community. It's a very real fear: the only thing
that seems to increase in casino towns is crime, suicide, addiction and human misery.
What decreases are quality
of life, revenues to local businesses and property values. Loss of local business revenue, increased crime and reduced quality
of life due to the 24 hour activity, noise and lights make this development unacceptable.
According to statistics,
the largest percentage share of gamblers in casino towns are locals; they are us. Over 83% of the money gambled in towns where
casinos are located is not new money brought into the local area, it is money that is already in the community.
With the increased opportunity to gamble comes gambling addiction. With gambling addiction comes debt, bankruptcy, domestic
violence, drug and alcohol addiction, crime, and suicide. No other addictive population has as high a prevalence for suicide
attempts as do addicted gamblers.
CLICK HERE for California Attorney General's June, 2006 Report on Casinos
The cost of this human misery - suicide watches, family counseling, unreported lost job productivity - cannot be underestimated,
as these costs would be borne by the community and by the families and friends of the addicts. Also to be considered are the
court costs involved with the increases in divorces, crime and domestic violence and bankruptcy, but we cannot assign a dollar
cost for the effects of these events on family members, particularly the children.
Were a casino to be built in our
communities, we fear that the small-town atmosphere of Rohnert Park, cloverdale and Petaluma would be replaced by "...A
porn shop, more drunken drivers, traffic jams and lower property values...." as has happened in North Stonington, CT, home
of Foxwoods Casino, the most successful Indian casino in the country. According to North Stonington First Selectman Nicholas
Mullane, Foxwoods Casino has "... devastated our small town. We are looking over our shoulder to see what is going to be next."
(Hartford-Courant, January 21, 2002).
We in Sonoma County aren't looking over our shoulders; we're staring straight
at it, and we would foolish to ignore the lessons learned by other communities such as North Stonington. With a casino, our
rural, agricultural heritage and our small-town way of life, which we chose to protect with the passing of the Sonoma County
General Plan, would be gone forever.
CLICK HERE for More Information on Gambling
But more than all this, we most fear the real danger to the youth of this area. Gambling - and gambling addiction
- among youth is up by double-digits, and a recent Nebraska study reported gambling among children as young as ten.
Our community has an obligation to our youth, including the Sonoma State students who join us each year. It's
our job to make sure they all stay safe.
This is a community built on strong family values. Agriculture, the environment, family, work and school are integral
parts of what defines Sonoma County. Bringing a sprawling casino that would dominate the region in every conceivable way could
only have the end result of dominating Sonoma County youth, and coloring their values, their dreams and their aspirations.
CLICK HERE for More Information on Gambling & Children
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