Gambling is increasingly being viewed as the answer to all the Bay State’s problems.
Cities and towns are addicted to the revenue raised by the Massachusetts Lottery, and now casino gambling is being viewed as a means of funding everything from biotech research to an extension of commuter rail to the South Coast.
So why not use our penchant for games of chance to finance the planned merger of North Shore Technical High School, the Essex Aggie, and Peabody Vocational High School?
Everyone likes the idea of a new, high-tech school on the Aggie campus in Danvers. But how do you raise the more than $140 million needed to build it? See story here.
Here’s an idea:
For years area vocational schools have offered carpentry services, car repair, hair-styling, even meals, which they can provide at low cost using student labor. So why not a student-run casino?
The leafy Aggie campus, located on rolling hills along Route 62, with easy access of Routes 1, 114 and I-95, offers a perfect resort setting. But given the number of people who are content to spend hours in convenience stores watching the Keno screen or sit in their car scratching instant game tickets, our guess is there would be no shortage of customers regardless of the amenities.
And an Aggie Casino could offer students real-life experience learning useful skills like dealing blackjack, repairing slot machines, spotting card cheats, and handling high rollers.
Given the rush to embrace casinos, our guess is they’ll have no problem finding jobs in the new Massachusetts.
