Editorial: Mishewal Wappo Tribe casino a bad bet for community

Monday, January 24, 2011  

"The reality: Gambling is, at best, high-priced entertainment and, at its worst, a life-crippling addiction.

Local options for places to lay down hard-earned cash are limited in the Valley. The brilliant lights of Las Vegas are well dulled here, and we’re the better for it.

Still, our appetite to beat the odds remains evident in the ever-packed parking lot at the Napa Valley Casino.

How many more Napans would risk it all if access to gambling was greater?

Three Napa County cities have already joined Napa County to intervene in a federal lawsuit fearing the answer. The Mishewal Wappo Tribe of Alexander Valley is suing the U.S. Department of the Interior for tribal status and land rights. Many say, if granted those rights, the tribe would in short order build a casino on that land, some of which lies in Napa County.

It’s not hard to see why. Tribal casinos in California brought in about $7.4 billion in 2008.

Even in a recession, the house always wins."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Glamour of gambling is mere mirage (The Napa Valley Register 1/23)