Reform and Abramoff

Just a quick thought on the aftermath of the Abramoff scandal. The scandal has, of course, the squeaky clean types bellowing for Reform. And they have the moral high ground currently, and all the sound bytes. But almost no one points out that our current woes are caused by the last round of Reform. When it comes to politics, we ought to quit Reform and start doing right. What was the warning that straight thinking people offered about legalizing gambling? It was that organized crime, graft, and corruption follow gambling like night follows day. Now that it has happened, we all smack our foreheads, turn to the naifs who got us into this mess, and cry out with a plaintive voice. “Deliver us!” In response, they will rearrange the furniture, bustle and backfill, make strident noises, and create a time-bomb mess requiring another round of Reform ten years from now.