One of the very first things you see when you visit Casino-friend.com — a Web site started by supporters of the proposed Middleborough casino — is an insinuation that casino opponents are in league with the Ku Klux Klan. The site touts an “editorial” calling on an anti-casino group, Casinofacts.org, “to repudiate bigotry, prejudce and hate and any connection with a national group called by a major Indian magazine ‘The Ku Klux Klan of Indian country.'”
Guilt by association, a demand to repudiate something that has nothing to do with the honest efforts of folks who don’t want to see their town destroyed — oh, yes. It’s obvious that the pro-casino forces will stop at nothing. Money doesn’t talk, it screams.
I grew up in Middleborough. I moved away many years ago, and thus cannot claim to be a stakeholder in this debate. But there’s really no question about what the impact will be if this monstrosity ever gets built:
- The rural character of the town will be destroyed forever.
- The highways and roads will be choked with traffic.
- Crime and police activity will increase significantly, as the Globe reported on Sunday.
I hope the casino gets voted down at the special outdoor town meeting that’s been called for this weekend. But if it passes, I hope Gov. Deval Patrick slams on the brakes. A casino would severely harm the quality of life in Middleborough for generations to come. A chaotic public gathering, held just a few days after the agreement between town officials and the Wampanoags was made public, is no way to resolve this. I also question whether even a majority should have the right to do this to fellow townspeople.
The best way to resolve this is to kill it now.