Bingo Reed-o!
Hello there, boys and girls.
We have a couple of court decisions to speak about this evening -- Bingo and Joe Reed. I'm sure you've probably heard of the first, maybe not the second. And if you have heard of the second, you likely don't know the behind-the-scenes facts.
Let's go with bingo first
I don't get why we continue to have a debate over "bingo." It's gambling. It's no different than blackjack, poker or slots. You pay a little money to play a game in which you can win more money. That's gambling. Sorry, but it is.
Now, none of this is a knock against gambling, because I truly don't care. Gamble, don't gamble -- it's up to you. It's a vice. People have them. I used to smoke a pack a day before I found this wonderful drug called Chantix that eliminated that nasty little habit (this is not an official endorsement of Chantix, just sayin' it worked for me). Anyway, smoking was my problem. And it was up to me to fix that problem, or at least manage it.
My only issue with gambling is how it affects me. When it comes to smoking or drinking, we have built in taxes on those items that help to offset some of the health care costs those products create. With gambling, since it isn't legal in most counties in this state, we're not getting enough tax revenue to cover the problems caused by the gambling -- both legal and illegal -- occurring within the state and the problems caused by those traveling out of state to gamble. And that jerks money away from me and away from everyone else in this state. That doesn't make me happy.
On to Reed
As you may know, Dr. Reed, former ASU board member, leader of the Democratic party in the state and legal somethingorother for AEA, sued the ASU board last year for age descrimination after he was forced to resign his seat once he turned 70. On Thursday, a federal judge ruled against Reed and his VERY LONG tenure on the ASU board is over -- maybe.
But here's the funny part: The bylaw in the ASU handbook which Reed was contesting ... he wrote it. Or at least, he helped to write it. And he was certainly in favor of it back in the day. You know, well before he was 70.
Anyway, it's the end of a very long run for Reed. He did a lot of good for ASU.
Unfortunately, his final years were pitiful. He fought like crazy to fire former head coach L.C. Cole, and then played at least a small role in the continued effort to ruin Cole ... for no reason other than Cole refused to be pushed out quietly. In the end, it's fitting that the Cole/NCAA fiasco ended up costing Reed his power on the board and his name on the Acadome. And make no mistake about it, it was the uproar and fan outcry during and following that whole charade that led to real pressure on the governor to appoint non-Reed guys to the board. And Reed's reign slowly came to an end.
photo cred: AP (Riley), Mobile Press-Register (Reed)
We have a couple of court decisions to speak about this evening -- Bingo and Joe Reed. I'm sure you've probably heard of the first, maybe not the second. And if you have heard of the second, you likely don't know the behind-the-scenes facts.
Let's go with bingo first
I don't get why we continue to have a debate over "bingo." It's gambling. It's no different than blackjack, poker or slots. You pay a little money to play a game in which you can win more money. That's gambling. Sorry, but it is.
Now, none of this is a knock against gambling, because I truly don't care. Gamble, don't gamble -- it's up to you. It's a vice. People have them. I used to smoke a pack a day before I found this wonderful drug called Chantix that eliminated that nasty little habit (this is not an official endorsement of Chantix, just sayin' it worked for me). Anyway, smoking was my problem. And it was up to me to fix that problem, or at least manage it.
My only issue with gambling is how it affects me. When it comes to smoking or drinking, we have built in taxes on those items that help to offset some of the health care costs those products create. With gambling, since it isn't legal in most counties in this state, we're not getting enough tax revenue to cover the problems caused by the gambling -- both legal and illegal -- occurring within the state and the problems caused by those traveling out of state to gamble. And that jerks money away from me and away from everyone else in this state. That doesn't make me happy.
On to Reed
As you may know, Dr. Reed, former ASU board member, leader of the Democratic party in the state and legal somethingorother for AEA, sued the ASU board last year for age descrimination after he was forced to resign his seat once he turned 70. On Thursday, a federal judge ruled against Reed and his VERY LONG tenure on the ASU board is over -- maybe.But here's the funny part: The bylaw in the ASU handbook which Reed was contesting ... he wrote it. Or at least, he helped to write it. And he was certainly in favor of it back in the day. You know, well before he was 70.
Anyway, it's the end of a very long run for Reed. He did a lot of good for ASU.
Unfortunately, his final years were pitiful. He fought like crazy to fire former head coach L.C. Cole, and then played at least a small role in the continued effort to ruin Cole ... for no reason other than Cole refused to be pushed out quietly. In the end, it's fitting that the Cole/NCAA fiasco ended up costing Reed his power on the board and his name on the Acadome. And make no mistake about it, it was the uproar and fan outcry during and following that whole charade that led to real pressure on the governor to appoint non-Reed guys to the board. And Reed's reign slowly came to an end.
photo cred: AP (Riley), Mobile Press-Register (Reed)
posted by Josh_Moon at
8:22 PM
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