Abstract

Maryland's Jolly Jackpot

This article focuses on the gambling industry in Maryland and surrounding areas. The only gambling offered by casinos in Maryland is the slot machine. Occasionally, one may read of a player breaking the bank at Monte Carlo or earning a pile at the gaming tables in Las Vegas, but no one has ever read of a slot machine going broke. As a matter of fact, the operators, in a convincing display of cynicism, say that playing the slots is really not gambling at all, since the machine simply can't be beaten. The biggest problem facing the gambling counties as they begin their clean-up campaign is to find a way to compensate for the loss of slot machine revenues. In Charles County, the revenues account for nearly one-fourth of the county's budget.