New casino brings negative concerns

Dear Editor:
I don’t know what you think about casinos, but I, find them disturbing. I’ve read articles stating fluff about our local casino, like all the jobs it will create; all the money it will bring in; a mere $90,000 per day.
Honestly? Where is that amount of money to come from on a projected daily basis? Who around here has that kind of money to spend? Is it you? I find gas and groceries consuming a good portion of my money. Are we bringing in the rich? Who really is going to fund this place? Or to my dismay, is it going to be those who stand in line with us at the convenience stores, not really appearing to have extra money to spend on scratch cards, hoping this to be their lucky day?
I want us to dust off an old word that doesn’t seem to appear much in our present day. It is the word wisdom. Have you heard that word lately? Maybe we ought to dig out the meaning of that ancient word. My dictionary is so old with the outer pages gone that I can’t even tell you which dictionary I’m using. LOL. Wisdom 1. the quality or state of being wise. Let’s look at wise. 1. having the power of discerning and judging properly as to what is true or right; possessing discernment, judgment, or discretion.
Now I am taking you to the Bible -- James 3:17. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.  
That’s an earfull! Let’s compare wisdom to gambling. Is it first pure? Second, peaceable? You know God gives us basic principles to follow so we may be blessed. Is gambling peaceable? Is your loss peaceable?
What does your family think? Are your actions full of mercy or are you spending money allotted for clothing on their back and food for their tummies?  Is your family experiencing peace and love from your actions? What if you win a huge sum? Is that peaceable knowing that families lost even more than the sum you won, because the casino industry is certainly not giving a cut from their earnings? Is that pure? Does that leave a good feeling in your gut? I think not.
There is a difference between honest business when an item or service is sold where both sides are blessed, compared to what happens at a casino.  How can we lower ourselves to deprived standards and expect our community, our state to be blessed and prosper when families and local businesses are on the losing side? Yes, there is less money for local businesses.
Folks, we need to look at the whole picture before we embrace casinos. Have you been noticing the billboards around GI encouraging people to be tested due to increased STD’s in Central Nebraska? Yes, I’m still using the term disease. Honestly, what kind of people are we going to attract to this area? Those with moral standards; respect for women, girls, and young boys? I think not.
Why is the casino industry required to give a portion of its income to help those addicted to gambling? We haven’t even begun to scratch the surface on the negative of casinos.  
Caroline Epp, Giltner