Back about 1990 a Benton Park group held an annual pre-Thanksgiving Dinner.
Bill, the jovial leader, handed out attendance prize tickets — the two-part ones used for 50/50 contests and carnivals everywhere. When it came time to draw the prizes he’d announced the prize. If the gift was appropriate for a little boy he drew out a boy’s ticket. An adult woman prize, and adult woman ticket. So it went, unerringly.
He explained to me later that as a young man he was a traveling carny. He simply ‘coded’ each ticket as he dropped it in the container so with a deft touch he could pull a correct ticket. He also told of a few other tricks of the trade, such as the ‘dime slide’ where a rube thinking he was getting 10 dimes for his dollar only got 8 (while the carny kept two between his fingers) or the “back count” where you’d swear you got the right small bills from your $10 or $20, but, well…
Now comes a bit of right wing craziness on initiative petitions.
A group against sports wagering sued Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft claiming the secretary used flawed methodology in certifying the item for the ballot. They say the way the number of signatures needed was calculated – and the way they were apportioned – aren’t right. They want the proposal torn off the ballot. [St Louis Post Dispatch 8-23-24]
Now, I have two issues with this sports betting plan. The state’s 10% take on the action is considerably lower than the rake in other states. And, I’ve seen too many gambling addicts destroy their families by betting beyond their means.
Yes, I play the lottery and otherwise occasionally gamble. Like most, I seldom win but limit my losses. Yet, some good people can’t. Creating more legal and easy ways for them to lose money isn’t something I’ll support.
Still, the cynic in me suspects the gambling suit is really a carny’s diversion: getting sports off the ballot is just the first goal.
The second goal is taking a court decision on gambling and coming back the next day to ask the court to take the abortion proposal off the ballot.
Remember, state senator Mary Elizabeth Coleman and friends just launched a Cole County lawsuit on the abortion proposal. [MO Independent 8-23-24] They maintain that the initiative covers too many subjects and is poorly worded. With all the proposals proponents went through with the courts I doubt that move will fly. It will mean there will be an active court case to amend if the sports wagering suit scores points.
Simply, flawed methodology on gambling means flawed methodology on abortion.
Opponents of abortion obviously expect voters to approve the initiative: they think their best way to win is to get the courts to do the heavy lifting.
Perhaps the only good news is that the hard right wing of the GOP lacks the finesse of old carnies like Bill. It’s easy to see how they cheat us.
Glenn