The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
It’s way past time to allow legalized betting
`When Russell Wilson lined up at the 1-yard line in the closing seconds of Super Bowl XLIX, the sports world and six continents of gamblers figured he’d hand off to Marshawn Lynch. The Seahawks would win, 31-28. The Seahawks would be NFL champions.
But, no, Wilson, in one of the most stupefying and stupid plays in sports history, forced a pass. Malcolm Butler picked it off and the Patriots, a one-point favorite in the closing Vegas line, miraculously covered, 2824.
That’s why people bet. They bet for the orgasm. They risk empty pockets.
That’s not going to change.
The Falcons had a 28-3 lead on the Patriots — good grief, there are enough T-shirts to remind us — late in the third quarter of Super Bowl LI. The Patriots, a three-point favorite, staged the greatest Super Bowl comeback ever to force overtime. Maybe New England wins by a field goal in OT, right? Maybe it’s still a push for panicked Falcons bettors. No, James White scores a touchdown.
Patriots cover, 34-28. That’s why people bet. They bet for the orgasm and a stupid T-shirts that say, “28-3.” They risk empty pockets and a broken heart.
Law or no law, humans love sports and love to gamble. Together they are irresistible. That’s not going to change. If you look closely enough through a microscope at human DNA, you will see little neon signs that blink, “Give me the Pats, minus-3” and “When’s the next bus to the casino?”
By striking down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 on Monday, the Supreme Court freed all 50 states to regulate sports wagering. No longer will
betting on games be limited primarily to Nevada, it could be in your Connecticut backyard, or at least your local casino, soon.
The Court’s 6-3 ruling in favor of New Jersey’s challenge was monumental. The sports landscape quaked. The earth opened. Whether that’s nine pots of gold down there or the nine circles of Dante’s hell, well, that’s for someone more divine than me to determine.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy immediately announced intentions to call the General Assembly into special section to consider legalization. Although the state senate recently failed to
pass a bill to authorize and regulate sports betting, much of that centered on the debate on who will operate the wagering.
New Jersey is ready to jump. A few others, too. Connecticut is considered among the next half-dozen, a matter of when than if. More than 30 states figure to legalize sports betting in five years. If Congress puts together regulatory framework, states will control sports betting the way it does with the lottery and casinos. Eventually, it has been estimated it will bring up to $80 million annually to Connecticut’s state coffers.
So, yeah, Monday was a lousy day for da gangsters, on shore and offshore.
If you turn over the hard shell of the American work ethic you will find our underbelly. Alcohol, drugs, guns, tobacco, sex and rock ‘n roll, they’re all there. Addictions and guilty pleasures can change lives. Sometimes addictions and guilty pleasures ruin families. There is no denying gambling has ruined lives and families.
I believe in riding the responsibility bandwagon. Moderation. Moderation. Moderation. For decades, I have been an advocate of the legalization of marijuana, firmly convinced gin, tequila and four packs of unfiltered smokes are far worse.
I was slower to warm to nationwide sports wagering. Modern society settled the argument for me. The truth is the prohibition boat on gambling has long since sailed. You can dock at Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun or your local convenience store for scratch tickets any time you like. Connecticut already is a state of chance.
Opiates? We must put all our muscle into controlling their use. AK-47? Ban them. Somewhere in the gray area between opiates and a sip of beer is the sports bet. Where you draw the line is your moral prerogative. We should all agree to be careful with any wager. But, c’mon, 44 states with lotteries? Thirty with casinos? Legalized gambling already is this American society’s great experiment.
Legal sports betting hit a record $5 billion last year in Nevada. Illegal gambling in the U.S. with bookies and off-shore accounts? It’s a harder number to pin down. Might be $100 billion. Might be $250 billion. Some have even offered $400 billion.
The point is it’s an eyepopping bounty. It’s past time to stop funding heroin-pushing, human-trafficking mobsters and collect tax revenue to help beleaguered states. Isn’t it better to build a road than to traffic 15-year-old slaves? It’s time to start giving the professional leagues their cut, too. They are the product. The NBA and Adam Silver has been at the forefront. MLB, too. The NFL has lived the hypocrisy of moving the Raiders to Vegas and getting in bed with fantasy sports sites like DraftKings and FanDuel all while opposing sports betting. On Monday, the NFL finally came around some.
There is no doubt sports leagues need to protect themselves against gamefixing. Yet people in law enforcement have long insisted it’s easier to monitor and react to sudden gambling movement with legalized gambling than with illegal gambling. That is the best answer to those who fear more sports betting means more college athletes vulnerable to point-shaving. It should have an opposite effect.
Look, Monday blew the doors off sports in America. The NCAA would be stupid not to join pro sports, too. The evidence is gamblers watch more games and more games start to finish than nongamblers. This can boost ratings and boost advertising. If England can be used as a template, Brent Musburger and his VSiN is only a start. Any number of gambling-related entities that will sprout. I’ll predict even traditional media like ours grow more active in coverage.
The tribes in Connecticut want exclusive rights to state sports wagering. There is much to argue and settle at home on who gets what. What is for sure is 21st century law means 21st century gambling technology. With mobile apps can be late-sequence or individual play wagering. Could you imagine putting down a bet before Kemba Walker’s ankle breaker or Jalen Adams’ shot from beyond midcourt? That would give you a national flag blue orgasm.
The NCAA can’t imagine it. Not yet anyway. While West Virginia already has proposed a cut from each sports wager for WVU and Marshall, the NCAA does not allow its national tournaments to be held in states with sports gambling. The men’s basketball opening rounds in Hartford, women’s hockey Frozen Four at Quinnipiac and lacrosse quarterfinals at Rentschler Field in 2019 ostensibly could be in jeopardy. At this point, it would be ludicrous to enforce. Stick to that rule and in a decade all the NCAA tournaments will have to be held in Utah.