Friday Five: Gambling Researcher John Warren Kindt

'You cannot gamble your way to prosperity, but you can gamble your way into more recessions and even depression.'

For years, a group of doctoral-level academics has been compiling data that exposes the truth about gambling.

Leading the effort - which has been in the works for 20 years - is John Warren Kindt, professor of business and legal policy at the University of Illinois.

The hefty, three-volume United States International Gambling Report took five years to compile and is intended to serve as a warning, Kindt said.

"The United States and the international economies are headed in the wrong direction thinking that gambling will help them," he said. "It's Economics 101 that you cannot gamble your way to prosperity. But you can gamble your way into more recessions and even depression."

Kindt spoke with CitizenLink recently about his life's work.

1. What prompted this work?

There's been a significant compilation of data over the last two decades. Given the fact that big gambling, like big tobacco, is discouraging and suppressing the dissemination of valid, academic information on these issues - because they obviously benefit monetarily when the public and decision-makers are unaware - editors and academics decided there was a strong need to preserve and disseminate the best and most authoritative academic data to the public.

The goal is to preserve historical and leading-edge documents in this issue area and to make them readily available to the public.

We were approached as academics over 20 years ago to analyze the costs/benefits of bringing legalized gambling to Illinois. The reports, which have been confirmed for many years - including in sworn testimony before the U.S. Congress - conclude that the cost of legalizing gambling to the taxpayers is at least three dollars for every one dollar in theoretical benefits.

Despite those factors, special-interest lobbyists have dominated state governments with gambling dollars and dictated much of state economic policy - to the detriment of the public health, safety and welfare.

2. In all of your work, is there something that really stands out, that you were shocked by?

The most shocking thing is the influence of big gambling interests in state and local governments. They are virtually dictating economic policy in at least 26 states and trying to keep a low profile so they can continue to do so.

The other thing is the ethical bankruptcy displayed by government decision-makers, who know the proposals put forward by big gambling are not in the best interest of the public and that they will result in long-term pain.

The most obvious, nonsurprising conclusion is that gambling should be re-criminalized across the board. It's simple, basic economics that if you want to have a vibrant consumer economy, you're simply going to have to bite the bullet, get rid of the gambling and wipe the slate clean.

3. In this culture, how realistic is it that our country would re-criminalize gambling?

There are quite a few congressional leaders and state leaders who know gambling is sapping the economic vitality out of the U.S. economy, and they are oriented toward the re-criminalization of gambling. At some point, as the economic crisis deepens, the public is going to support the basic principles that will assist in bringing the economy back to vitality. It's a historical lesson to see the fight between good-faith government decision-making and the huge special interests of big gambling.

4. Has this work put a big target on you?

In the book, there is a section for the press and for the media, which starts off with a quote from Walter Cronkite. This section highlights the pushback that big gambling has made against academia, business leaders and government officials.

Across the academic disciplines, there has been inappropriate pressure placed on good-faith business and government officials, as well as on academics and academic professionals. And that is well-documented.

5. I would assume our state family policy councils that are fighting gambling legislation would really benefit from this work, as well as other community groups working in this area. Who will benefit the most from this work?

The goal of the work is to add to the academic literature and to libraries by preserving important historical documents, as well as what we call "fugitive literature."

The copyright belongs to a charity, and any author or editorial potential financial gains were pre-designated to charity. So, none of the academics and business people participating in the project receive anything - except criticism.

It supports what many good citizens know instinctively, and that is that gambling is to the socio-economic detriment of not just the United States and its national security and its economic security, but to the detriment of local citizens as it creates addicted gamblers, bankruptcies and crime. Government should not be utilizing predatory gambling to cheat its citizens out of their hard-earned money.

The public (can) simply call for state and federal legislative hearings, where people (have) to explain how slot machines work, and if the odds are fair, and if they're being regulated fairly. If the public really knew what was going on with slot machines - which are 90 percent of gambling - they would be shocked to realize they don't have a chance.

FOR MORE INFORMATION
You can purchase the entire United States International Gambling Report or just one volume.

Visit the Focus on the Family Action gambling research Web site.