One day, classrooms of Goan students will remember Cecil "Tilak" Pinto
as the father of the saying: "Gambling is my birthright, and I shall
have it." At that stage, or even now in fact, it would be most unfair
on our part to grudge Cecil his place in the sun, for having come up
with this brilliant argument again a Nanny State.
But my point is something else.
Why is Cecil bringing in this class bias here? I may be a low earner,
but that doesn't mean I'm lazy, even inefficient, not contributing to
the State, or not even unfit to undertake an occasional gamble. It
could just be because I'm a true, susegad Goan. That money is not my
god, or for a hundred-and-one other legitimate excuses.
In any case, some of the hi-earning gamblers patronising these
floating vessels are known to be anyway doing so with someone else's
money. Have we forgot the pre-election news reports? Besides, don't we
know that some of our crorepati politicians don't even file their tax
returns?
So please keep this monetary-bar out when deciding whom to bar on
boats. Why not just keep it as business as usual, and let whomever
wants to gamble, gamble? Or, stop it for all...
After all, didn't our legislators of the time show some degree of
verbal abilities, when they added 6 (or was it 16) words, to make the
Goa Public Gambling Act into a law to permit gambling, when it was in
fact a law intended for exactly the opposite purpose! On this issue at
least, Ole Xac is best placed to give us some advice. Not on swimming,
I mean... FN
On 29 March 2012 11:51, Cecil Pinto <cecilpi...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I find the idea of keeping casinos off-limits to Goans abhorrent. I am a
> Goan and if I decide to legally gamble at a casino in Goa I will not be
> allowed, but a non-Goan will be allowed. Huh?
>
> I don't need the Government to mollycoddle me. If they considered me
> qualified (age and domicile) enough to vote them into power, which is also
> a sort of a gamble, then I should be allowed to indulge in all the
> legitimate activities available in the state.
>
> I am willing to accept a monetary restriction. For example only people who
> can prove an earning of XXXXXX amount annually will be given permits to
> gamble, so that it weeds out poorer people who might wipe out their life
> savings. I can also understand limits on how much money one is allowed to
> gamble which can be proportionate to one's proven legal income.
>
> But other that why should a Goan not be allowed to gamble in a casino in
> Goa? Are we going to be discriminated against in our own land?
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