Current Event 1 (3rd Quarter)

• Three months after 59 percent of Maryland voters approved the slots, the machines still have not lived up to the expectations of the people in the revenue they were supposed to generate. Basically everything has fallen apart as the slots are only expected to make only $40 million of the $90 million that was originally factored into Gov. Martin O’Malley’s fiscal budget of 2010. The slots are not even being placed in the right places as 4,750 of the 6,550 machines are being placed near the family-friendly Arundel Mall. There also lies another problem: there are only 6,550 machines available to place around all of Maryland. When the people approved the slots, they were not betting on the school budget being left dry while the money all went to the slots, and now that the slots are not working out, Maryland has been left in a little financial crisis of its own.

• The fact that the people of Maryland have been betting on the slots singlehandedly getting their economy out of the financial crisis is very disturbing. Due to the fact that all of the trust is left in the hands of one factor, the chance of failure increases quite a bit and failure could lead to the collapse of the entire economy. The people of Maryland now need to pull together and get a new plan for their economy ready so that the economy can return on an upward path to revenue gain. The slots have already failed so they should just leave that in place, if possible, and also get a backup plan ready just in case the economy goes into a crisis. Next time, the residents of Maryland need to think again and try to learn from their mistake and remember not to make the same mistake again.