Pd, my post was a bit on the sarcastic side, but if you think about it, this theory isn’t that far off. The average Pennsylvania family is going (well, is SCHEDULED) to see a few hundred dollars is property-tax relief this year. I’ve known some families that have (unfortunately) blown through much more than that at slots parlors and race tracks every year. If you consider that the Commonwealth has slapped a healthy tax on the slots parlors, and also remember that the majority of parlor patrons are Pennsylvanians (as intended by proponents), it’s not exactly a stretch to theorize that the average family’s few hundred dollars in relief will be absorbed right back into state coffers via gambling. Do I have any “statistics”? No. It’s just a theory. To me, it makes sense, but obviously you disagree.

Oh, and my “indignation” flares any time taxpayers are given a raw deal by any government (federal, state, local). This could extend anywhere from this slots scheme here in Pennsylvania to the shoddy contracting practices in Iraq to the current drink tax controversy in Pittsburgh to “earmarks” (i.e., “representative re-election funds) at all levels. Yes, I’m not exactly wild about parasitic hedge funds, either. There are a small few that operate responsibly, but on the whole, most make their living (and ruin the livelihoods of others) by leeching off decent companies. I wouldn’t exactly draw a direct parallel between hedge funds and gambling, but I see the connection you’re trying to draw. When Joe Average heads for the slots (as my grandparents did), they’re going to try their luck. Now, they always had the sense not to go in over their heads. I worry about those who don’t know when to stop. They keep feeding the machine, not realizing (or unwilling to cope with) the fact they’re participating in a largely rigged game. When the odds are so stacked against you by a variety of factors, 9 times out of 10 you have no chance. You essentially are handing your money over to the operators (and, as the theory above goes, to the state). Hedge funds are similar (as the stock market on the whole is) only in the sense of risk, but here it’s very wealthy people getting together to manipulate the market. Hedge fund managers are actually more like casino operators than gamblers. Once they’ve essentially purchased the market, they act as puppeteers while average investors try to navigate through the moves. Raw deals all around.