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A Bad Gamble
for a Better New Orleans
As badly as I hate to say it,
in the back of my mind, I think I have been trying to “steer
clear” of worrying about Katrina any more, thinking it was
time to get on with life and consider other things. I confess
my sin; to put the remaining needs of Katrina victims out of mind
is certainly the wrong thing to do. We need to continue to monitor
the situation of our dear neighbors south of us, and try to help
where we can. Many thousands remain homeless and without jobs.
Lower Mississippi will struggle for years until it completely
rebuilds to something similar to its pre-hurricane prosperity.
However, if many of the people of the gulf coast area outside
of New Orleans have the means and desire to go back and start
over on their original ground, at least they can go back to solid
land above sea level. On the other hand, for the people of the
city once known as the “Big Easy”, it is a different
story. The costs of rebuilding such a city are enormous to the
point of staggering, and it defies imagination to consider how
such a project could be undertaken, whether it is on its original
site or elsewhere. New Orleans’ mayor, however, has an idea,
but if the idea works, it would sell the soul of his city to the
potential of moral destruction, perhaps more devastating than
the disaster it has already seen.
In a news conference on October
7, Mayor Ray Nagins proposed that New Orleans institute gambling
in the city on the same order as Las Vegas for the purpose of
rebuilding the city. According to the Associated Press, the mayor
felt that such gambling would provide “an incredible opportunity
to accelerate growth” and added that he knew of “no
other way” to get the city’s economy jump-started. “Now
is the time for us to think out of the box,” the mayor continued.
“Now is the time for some bold leadership, some decisive
leadership.”
It is high time that government
leaders face a big question: what is the priority for America,
its people or money? Of course New Orleans has had limited gambling
for some time with one large hotel and several off shore casinos,
which was certainly bad enough, but at least it was not Las Vegas.
It has been well known for years that in every place where gambling
is widely available, sooner or later, there are grave and terrible
consequences that fall upon the citizens of that location. There
is always a heavy increase in organized crime, corruption, extortion,
prostitution, and substance abuse in such areas. Men and women
who frequent gambling houses will fall prey to gambling addiction,
destroying their own homes and families. New Orleans has had enough
wretched problems with wickedness and immorality. Does the mayor
of the city care that he exposes his precious people to such massive
onslaught of evil influence, simply for the money?
Some would rise up to insist that
such sentiments are hypocritical. After all, we have the lottery
here in Tennessee. I warn you: don’t get me started. Personally,
I fought against the lottery tooth and toenail, as did most of
the churches here in Decatur County. It is outrageous that any
Christian would dare to believe that gambling is not a sin. Jesus
Christ even told the Devil himself that it is written in the scriptures,
“Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” (Matthew
4:7 NIV). Anybody who believes he is not putting God to the test
every time he puts a quarter into a slot machine, or marks up
a lottery ticket, needs to send his theology out to the cleaners.
What a drastic insult it is to God Almighty, to “test”
Him in order to see if He will let you win a bet. People who spend
much time in pursuit of quick money through gambling sooner or
later will typically demonstrate the judgment they bring upon
themselves.
Certainly we all pray that the
citizens of New Orleans will have their needs met, perhaps through
the rebuilding of new homes in the proximity of their homeland,
or wherever else might be better, depending on the needs of each
family. However, it is a sad and sorry statement when any leader
of his people takes a stand for money when it sells out the safety,
morality, and well-being of schools, communities, young people
and citizens overall. Let us pray that the mayor of New Orleans
will realize the wretched mistake he has made and withdraw his
own venture to gamble over the city of New Orleans.
James Sanders
Pastor,
sandersjc@yahoo.com
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