Richard McGowan - Böcker

The great majority of Americans—more than 80%—say they approve of gambling, even if they themselves don't gamble. Still, deep divisions persist in our attitudes toward the gambling industry. Is it profoundly destructive, preying on human weakness and stripping its victims of their sustenance and dignity? Or is it a vehicle of the American dream—an engine of personal enrichment, enormous public revenue, and economic development? The industry's explosive growth has sharpened the debate, radically altering the gambling landscape and dramatically raising the stakes involved. Author Richard A. McGowan, a respected authority on the public-policy aspects of gambling and other sin industries, reveals the new dynamics of gambling and frames the age-old ethical and practical questions it poses.Whether benefit or bane, gambling today permeates American culture in unprecedented ways. Its newest venues—Native American tribal casinos and the Internet—are drawing in new gamblers in vast numbers and generating spectacular profits. Social, legal, and political controversies inevitably have followed.How should public policymakers approach expanded gambling? As regulator of the gambling industry, government has always been the gatekeeper. Its role and responsibilities remain central to the gambling debate, even while it stands to reap huge windfalls from the very industry it is regulating. Meanwhile, Internet gambling, more or less regulated at home, has found willing government sponsors abroad—removing an ever-larger segment of the industry from U.S. government jurisdiction and recasting the gambling debate.Using this book, citizens can:Learn the ethical and rhetorical framework of the gambling debate. The terms of the arguments advanced by advocates and opponents help explain why the gambling industry has been tolerated or encouraged by public policymakers.Weigh the risks and rewards of government-sanctioned gambling through three actual case studies, from Missouri, Massachusetts, and the Chinese island of Macao—which in 2006 surpassed Las Vegas as the gambling capital of the world. Each situation highlights particular problems and opportunities, and each is presented with discussion questions.Take an informed position: Should sports gambling be legalized? Should U.S. restrictions on Internet gambling be loosened? Should government get out of the gambling business altogether?Find out more about the many facets of the gambling debate by using the study resources provided.Timeline anchoring the discussion in time and placeBibliography of print and Internet resources guiding further exploration of the subjectCharts and tables analyzing complex data, including survey results

This book offers an expert examination of the ideology and motives behind the privatization or the nationalization of an industry, based on real case studies.Is it always more effective and less expensive to use taxpayer dollars to engage private companies rather than have the government run enterprises itself? Do consumers always benefit from the privatization of services? What happens when privatization stops being an abstract, theoretical debate and is actually put to the test in the real world? Privatize This? Assessing the Opportunities and Costs of Privatization is the place to find out.Privatize This? provides a clear, easy-to-apply model for evaluating the pros and cons of the privatization process and then puts the model to work in examining nine real-world case studies—ranging from Spain's privatization of its cigarette industry to Pennsylvania's "state store system" for selling liquor. Throughout, the book focuses on the central issues of privatization—profit versus public good, protection from fraud and waste—while also showing how the recent economic upheaval has changed public opinion and public policy on privatization.

Lotteries and state-sponsored gambling is big business. This is the first study that evaluates the business strategies of state lotteries on two fronts. First, it examines which of the lottery strategies produces the most consistent source of revenue for the state. Second, it analyzes possible overall gambling strategies that states will need to utilize as they seek to expand gambling revenue. This is must reading for those operating lotteries, state legislators, vendors to state lottery commissions, taxpayers, and scholars in public policy and government.The whole question of state-sponsored gambling is explored, integrating both the business and policy strategies of operating a state lottery. Initially, gambling and lotteries were introduced into the public policy process in times of social unrest, brought on by the outbreak of war. Since regular sources of governmental revenue were diverted to the war effort, proceeds from gambling activites were used to finance the building of roads, canals, and schools. An Ethics of Tolerance also had to evolve in order to engender the public's acceptance of lotteries and gambling. Today, states are using gambling revenues to support education, public transportation, and aid to local towns and cities. Hence, gambling revenues must be maintained or increased. States now must decide whether they should introduce other gambling initiatives, possibly cannibalizing their existing activities in the process. The basic question, of whether it is actually possible for a state to establish an overall gambling strategy, is explored by an analysis of the gambling policies of Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. The future of gambling in the United States, as states move beyond lotteries to sanctioning casino gambling by private entrepreneurs, concludes this most relevant and provocative book.

The American cigarette industry is again facing enormous pressure from various groups whose goal is a smoke free society. What differentiates this present wave from the previous two waves of regulation faced by the cigarette industry is the severity with which these measures are applied by the state and local government who are enacting anti-smoking laws and regulations and increased excise taxes. Cigarette taxes are a lucrative revenue for the states, which they must ultimately trade-off with their stated goals of deterring smoking. Frequently, in spite of the needs of public health, states find themselves competing with one another for these excise tax revenues and cigarette sales, making them the primary point of challenge for the cigarette industry.

Changing social values, skepticism of corporate behavior, and regulation are forcing firms to recognize the impact of these issues on potential success. Political and social action can impact dramatically on individual firms and industry-wide competitiveness by changing the rules by which competition occurs. In addition, policies that restrict trade in the international arena, regulatory interventions that impose additional costs, and public interest group activities that challenge the legitimacy of the firm and industry product and service offerings also alter the rules of competition. Firms and industries that learn to play by the new rules of engagement can significantly improve their competitive positioning within the economy. There has been almost nothing written on the topic of industry political strategy. As competition moves increasingly to a global scene, the businesses will have to deal with more complex social and political interactions.Business academicians and business managers have become more interested in the impact of social and political issues on success. Until this work, there has been a lack of models of how to deal with the general issue. In addition, formulations of strategies and tactics have been lacking before this work along with the means of their implementation.

This is the third book in what the author calls his sin trilogy: the gambling, tobacco, and alcohol industries. Similar to the gambling and tobacco industries, the alcohol industry is one in which the business and public policy processes are intimately linked. Furthermore, it is a highly regulated industry whose very existence depends upon the will of government at all levels and branches. What all the industries share is that they are viewed as a painless source of revenue for government. The alcohol industry is composed of three segments, namely beer, distilled spirits, and wine, each with a distinct product and market. Since the end of Prohibition, public policy makers have developed a certain tolerance for alcohol products, but they continue to grapple with the question of how to deal with the alcohol problem. While the author updates the current structure and strategies of competition among these industries, his primary rationale for doing so is to analyze how these industries react to increased public scrutiny of their business activities. The other unique feature of this book is its emphasis on how public policy measures affect the sale of beer, distilled spirits, and wine at the state level.