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Report: Military Casinos Don't Have Negative Impact

14 May 2002

WASHINGTON, DC – As reported by US News: "…The Pentagon might seem an unlikely casino operator. But since 1981, the Department of Defense has been raking in a tidy sum from more than 7,000 slot and video poker machines on 94 U.S. military installations overseas. In 2000, for example, the betting devices raised $125 million, all of it earmarked to pay for various morale boosters like family picnics and the construction of clubs, bowling alleys, and golf courses on military bases. Service members, their dependents, and civilian employees spend more than $1 billion annually gambling on base.

"…Pentagon officials contend that gambling revenues are an essential and harmless source of funding. What's more, by providing slots, the Pentagon says it is giving service members a safe alternative to gambling off base. "…Last year, Congress ordered the Pentagon to investigate the impact of the slots on armed forces personnel. The Defense Department initially hired a private consulting firm to conduct the survey but dumped it midcourse, claiming it could adequately perform the review in-house. The Pentagon's Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Department took over the review, the same department that relies on the minicasino revenues for its survival. Its conclusion: Slot machines have no negative impact on troops overseas."

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