| It grows more and more painfully clear that legislators go to Albany not to run a government, but to manage New York's most critical industry: horse-racing and associated wagering.
At a time when the state's finances look dire, the legislature seems far more obsessed with bailout proposals for New York City's Off-Track Betting, just as they did with NYRA and a wide variety of similar high-profile racing issues.
I think back to Joe Bruno's horse-breeding deals, to the complete disaster around racinos at Aqueduct, and decades of similar nonsense.
I like watching horse races - a company I worked for used to take its annual picnic at Belmont. I do not, however, think our legislature should be spending its time dreaming about the track.
Instead of withholding legislator salaries until the budget is done, here's a different proposal. If the budget isn't complete by May 1st, all horse-racing tracks and their associated businesses (including OTB) will stay closed for the year.
Sorry, Triple Crown, sorry Saratoga, and sorry everyone else this might affect. New York State's addiction to the track needs to end. |
