Are super-casinos worth the gamble?

[oldman]

Scotland's first resort casino will be built in Glasgow, but MSPs and church leaders are opposed to the idea.

Gambling is a reserved matter and Westminster plans to give ministers in the Scottish Parliament the power to rule on casino applications.
Scotland's Deputy Finance Minister Tavish Scott said ministers would use their additional powers wisely, but one MSP branded the proposals "a recipe for chaos".

Do you think super-casinos would give Scotland's economy a much needed boost or merely exacerbate the country's gambling problems?

[chuchu59]

I dont know whether the proposal could help Scotland but the emergence of new super-casinos did give a much-needed boost to Macau. just last month,they announced that,due to the improve in their economy,tax rates will be cut and civil servants will get an across the board raise in salaries. Many stocks macau connections have risen so rapidly that there is a danger of them bursting. All these because of the super-casino concept.

[mary]

You have to look at it in context with other economic activities. Casinos literally just move the money around--as do sports stadia. They are great for an area that has been economically isolated, such as the Native American communities in North America, but can be bad for an area that already has a lot of entertainment businesses that the casino will compete with.

You also have to look at how the casino interacts with that community. Does it hire locally? Buy local produce for the restaurants? Pay taxes? Have local ownership? Will it require local expenditure for infrastructure--roads, water mains, fire, police, environmental costs?

Casinos (and other entertainment destination development projects) do not supply well-paying jobs, as a rule. They do not offer a product or service that has positive synergistic effects, such as a teaching hospital.

They are easier on the environment than shopping malls, since resources aren't being destroyed in making useless fashion junk which pauses in homes and then heads to landfills.

Theme parks pose many of the same problems. "Married to the Mouse" is an excellent book about Orlando's relationship with Walt Disney World. Basically, the Disney Corporation sucked a lot of money out of Florida.

[oldman]

Hmm.. So the answer is rather negative. And one more negative aspect is of course increase in problem gambling/gambling addiction.