"It's understandable why the Kansas Legislature has been unable for a decade to bring its annual debate about casinos to closure. The cast of characters in the Topeka statehouse is simply incapable of compromise on the subject of gambling.

Two long days last week in a Topeka committee hearing room confirmed that fact again.

A sizable minority of lawmakers oppose gambling of any sort as sinful, economically unsound, or both. Another minority argues just as passionately that gambling options in the Midwest are pervasive, so Kansas might as well legalize it, too, and cash in.

Neither camp has ever come close to persuading the other of the wisdom of its position."

Get the Story:
Rick Alm: A messy affair as Kansas attempts to regulate gambling (The Kansas City Star 10/26)
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