It’s taken me three weeks to clear the cobwebs from the knockout punch that last month’s presidential selection gave me. I am totally mystified by the outcome. Until that fateful Tuesday I had profound faith in the American people and the American dream. I was under the misperception that the two were intrinsically intertwined, but I was wrong. My faith in the American people is all but gone and my faith in the American dream is deeply shaken.
When I talk about the American dream, I mean a beautifully simple concept where freedom includes the opportunity to prosper and succeed, and take part in an upward social mobility achieved through hard work and risk, regardless of social class or circumstances of birth. That’s the America I love. It’s an ideal that generations of proud Americans have sacrificed untold blood and treasure to protect so that we the people could enjoy the reward. Now, because of the developed culture of envy, we may all soon be diminished. It won’t just be a decline for the wealthy, for it’s their existence itself that has created the largest and most robust economy in the world. Their decline will ultimately mean a decline for us all.
I have to hand it to Barack Obama though. It was an amazing feat for an anti-American, anti-capitalist Marxist to manage his way into the most powerful office in the world. He took quick action after coming to power by taking full advantage of his liberal congress and transferring untold wealth from the hands of producers and into the hands of takers. No matter what you think about our commander in chief, it was a gutsy move. His efforts in wealth transfer have helped create a dependent class, the likes of which have never been witnessed before in America. The dependent class majority is now the trump card of the socialist progressive movement. It appears we are now past the tipping point where there may forevermore be more voting-takers than voting-makers.
There is, however, a flaw—a well-documented flaw—with progressive socialism. You see, there’s only so much money that can be squeezed out of the wealthy. The money has to come from somewhere to fund the liberal version of Utopia. Inflation, increasing the money supply via the printing press, can and will do long-term damage to the U.S. economy. And so this past November, while American households throughout the country took time to enjoy a Thanksgiving Day feast, little did most know that their main course was Golden Egg Laying Goose. Sure, Europe has been eating Golden Egg Laying Geese since the 1940s. They are still surviving, right? European countries aren’t anywhere near the leading economy of the world like we are. The world depends on what happens here. The world does not depend on what happens in Spain or Greece or Italy.
Rush Limbaugh made an insightful comment the day after the election that has resonated with me since. He said, “In a nation of children, Santa Claus always wins.” And he’s right, of course. He also added, “It’s just very politically difficult to beat Santa Claus. It is practically impossible to beat Santa Claus. People are not going to vote against Santa Claus, especially if the alternative is being your own Santa Claus.” Well so much for the American dream!
Yes, yes, yes … this is a gaming industry trade publication, but the big elephant in our living room is the economy and the politicians who control it. I can’t just don the rose-colored glasses, sip on Kool-Aid and ignore the warning signs and facts staring us in the face. Of course there are those who tell me that a win for Obama is a win for gaming. That’s an incredibly short-sighted vision. All the new jurisdictions in America, including i-gaming, can’t possibly expand gaming in a responsible way if the American public doesn’t have a growing and stable economy under them.
So what do we do? Rally, struggle, recruit, prepare for the midterms and pray like crazy for 2016.
Peter Mead,
Publisher
Casino Enterprise Management