建设赌场是一个双赢举措

　　自从立法者提议设立新赌场后，牛津赌场就成为了争论的焦点。本周末，立法者已经通过法律允许新赌场的建设，甚至已经允许赌场扩大建设规模。

　　一名来自牛津赌场的官方人员在上周日下午休闲地漫步于该赌场的游戏大厅，赌场的繁荣迹象让他感到惊喜，他相信，新赌场绝对有可能振兴牛津的经济，而这里的赌场一角就是一个小小的迹象。预计新赌场将为当地财政提高数以亿计的税收。有人对此表示争议，高额税收是否可以弥补赌场可能产生的各种负面影响。但支持建设赌场的立法者挫败了这样的说法，并指出，近年来美国东北开设了几十个赌场，但犯罪案件并没有明显增加，特别是宾夕法尼亚州或马里兰州，在过去几年时间里，博彩行业以极快的速度在扩大，目前宾夕法尼亚州已成为了东海岸最大的博彩资本攒聚地，去年年底该州整体博彩收入甚至超过了新泽西。

　　牛津的博彩行业发展形势还是比较缓慢的，但从过去的一年时间里可以看出，牛津赌场不仅有望增加本州的财政收入，甚至有利于吸引其他地区的企业投资者，帮助振兴当地经济。

　　巴里·戈德堡说：“这是一个双赢的举措，许多人们喜欢在周五晚上到赌场娱乐一把，我们在密歇根州设立的几个赌场为当地社区吸引了大量赌客，这些赌客不仅在赌场花钱，而且在餐馆，商店和其他业务也消费开支。我希望同样的事情也会在牛津赌场重演。”

　　译文：

　　The Oxford Casino has been a source of controversy since the idea of a new casino was conceived by lawmakers. This weekend, the legislators that passed the law allowing the new casino were rejoicing over the attendance from the first week of the new gaming facility.

　　Officials from Oxford Casino were busy roaming the gaming floor Sunday afternoon, excited about the possibilities that the new casino can bring to Oxford. The officials believe this week was just a small indication of how large the turnout can be in an area that has been starving for casino gambling.

　　The town expects to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue from the new casino. Opponents had debated whether the tax revenue would be enough of a substitute for the additional crime the casino could bring, but pro-gaming lawmakers foiled that argument by pointing to the dozens of casinos that have opened in the Northeast in recent years. Crime has not increased by a substantial margin in either Pennsylvania or Maryland, two states that have expanded gambling at a rapid rate over the past few years. Pennsylvania has become the gaming capital of the East Coast, surpassing New Jersey in terms of overall gaming revenue late last year.

　　Oxford was slower in bringing casinos to their state, but has made up for lost time over the past year. The Oxford Casino is not only expected to increase revenue for the state, it is also being counted on to help the local economy by bringing customers into other local businesses in the surrounding neighborhoods.

　　"This is a win-win for everyone involved," said Barry Goldberg, who was in town Friday visiting friends in Oxford. "We have a few casinos in Michigan and they have really helped the community. Casinos attract a large amount of people, that is a fact, and those people not only spend money at the casino, but also at restaurants, shops, and other businesses around the casino. I expect that same thing will happen here."