Letters to the Editor

Legalize wagers on professional and amateur sports in Massachusetts

A better and easier way to raise one billion dollars for our cities and towns

By Christy Mihos

As fiscal conservative Is we recognize that we're fighting a two front war, these days. On one hand, we have an extremely tough economic situation; being made only worse by the mounting debt created by the polices of Barack Obama. Closer to home, we have Barack Obama's former campaign chairman, Governor Patrick, slamming working class citizens of Massachusetts with tax increases which will surpass the one billion dollar mark.

We need to stop them before they tax again.

There's a better and easier way to raise one billion dollars for the cities and towns of Massachusetts, which continue to suffer from Deval Patrick's local aid cuts.

By legalizing wagers on professional and amateur sports in Massachusetts we can bring up to $1 billion to our communities. All we need is some leadership, which is why I've called on Governor Deval Patrick to promptly join New Jersey and Maryland in their federal law suits to offer legalized sports betting.

We should all keep in mind that there has just been a major federal court ruling clearing the way for sports wagering in Delaware, beginning next month. We need to do the same thing here, in the Commonwealth.

Illegal betting is estimated to be a $400 billion underground economy in the U.S. Accordingly, we've estimated a new, annual revenue stream for Massachusetts of up to $1 billion dollars. As governor of Massachusetts, I will introduce legislation to legalize wagers on professional and amateur sports and then control betting at the Lottery for the benefit of the taxpayers in Massachusetts.

We know that there is up to $1 billion sitting out there for our cities and towns. Why Deval Patrick prefers taxing Massachusetts residents into the stone age when there are viable alternatives like this is just another mystery of the Chicago, political disposition.

I need your help to do this. Please activate the link below to list your friends so that we can invite them to join our campaign to change the political culture on Beacon Hill.

We need to stop them before they tax again.

Yours,

Christy Mihos
Yarmouth

Mr. Mihos in a candidate for the Republican nomination for Governor in 2010.