As a youth, the major adverse choice I had to make was alcohol and its abuse. I am a grandparent whose children are teaching their children responsible and healthy choices. Besides alcohol, they have to deal with TV, the printed word and computers.
In less than a decade the amount of money the people of Canada lose gambling has quadrupled. The true figure may be as much per person as $1,000 Canadian. Staff in corner shops now regularly ask their customers whether they want a Lotto ticket.
The province of Quebec has an estimated 125,000 pathological gamblers. The coroner's office there blames gambling for 71 suicides the last three years.
Gambling brings crime, marital breakdown, child poverty and stress.
Problem gamblers are invisible. Gambling cannot be smelled on their breath. They don't stumble or slur their speech. The State of North Dakota won't or can't tell us of the social cost of the gambling we now have.
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Now back to our grandchildren. Do we want the lottery as a factor in their lives? Do we want our grandchildren to have to adjust to the norm of a society with lotteries? Do we want our grandchildren to have to confront the lottery ticket sales place each time they leave the grocery store? Do we want our grandchildren to have to pay the extra tax burden that lottery gambling will add to their social tax burden?
Vote no on Measure 2.
Harvey Sand
Langdon, N.D.
