Bingo Machines are Slot Machines

Anne Arundel County has been quietly bringing in slot machines while no one was looking. Oh, well, they call them bingo machines, but these are so much like slot machines you cannot really call them anything else. Everyone was so busy watching what was going on with the rest of the state and how Governor Ehrlich kept trying to bring in slot machines, that while no one was looking – slot machines came in.

The county has brought in video bingo machines that look just like the Class III slot machines that you find in Atlantic City and Las Vegas. Most people, upon seeing them, would be hard pressed to be able to tell someone what the difference is between these bingo machines and the AC slot machines are.

Not only has the county allowed these glorified slot machines to be legalized, but they also increased their purses to $300,000 – which is way over the limit that most people would consider when thinking about church bingo. The county claims that it cannot compete while using the other types of bingo machines, but really they wanted to be able to compete with West Virginia and Delaware – both of whom offer slot machines.

Comptroller Peter Franchot is now looking into the machines to see what the difference is between the slot machines and the bingo machines, and to see if the county is paying enough in taxes. Some say that this is just the beginning of legalized slot machines in the state of Maryland – for if these are allowed, slot machines will surely be next.

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