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Questions mount over Rhode Island expanded gambling30 August 2007PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island -- As reported by the Providence Journal: "In a private meeting with Governor Carcieri in May, one of the owners of the state's largest slot parlor laid out a wish list for Twin River that included the introduction of 'virtual' blackjack, reel-to-reel slot machines akin to what gambling aficionados might see in a casino outside Rhode Island, and 24-hour gambling. "...In recent days, state Lottery Director Gerald Aubin acknowledged his own unannounced decision to allow the installation at the Lincoln dog track of one or more varieties of virtual blackjack, an electronic game in which five or six players sit at a table signaling their moves to a simulated — and in promotional photographs, blond and buxom — 'dealer' on a video screen. "With the governor and the owners of Twin River now arguing that Aubin also has the power to allow 24-hour gambling without public or legislative approval, critics are raising warning flags about what they call 'casino creep' without voters ever again having a chance to say yes or no to a question they defeated a year ago: Do you want a full-scale casino? "...Amid mounting legal questions about this latest venture, Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch served notice earlier this week that he intends to weigh in on whether virtual blackjack falls under the state Constitution's requirement that any new type of gambling win statewide and local approval. "...Governor Carcieri has said he does not oppose all-night gambling but would not push for the change unless it had local support, and that is anything but a sure bet..." |