Long odds - The good news Casino gambling is struggling again in Ohio

Backers of a constitutional amendment that would bring casino-style gambling to Ohio are struggling to reach the November ballot. On Wednesday, their petition drive fell short by 8,716 signatures. The secretary of state's office gave the committee behind the drive an additional 10 days to reach the threshold level of about 323,000 valid names necessary to qualify for the fall ballot.

The struggle to find valid signatures reflects the long and tangled history of failed efforts to con voters into believing that more gambling is an answer to the state's economic problems. Voters defeated two previous amendments. Wisely, the state legislature backed away from putting a gambling issue on the ballot. Both major candidates for governor, Democrat Ted Strickland and Republican J. Kenneth Blackwell, oppose the "Learn and Earn" initiative.

The plan to allow electronic slot machines at seven horse tracks and two specific sites in downtown Cleveland (the Cleveland sites could later convert to full-fledged casinos if Cuyahoga County voters approved in a separate vote) is mainly about making money for track owners and downtown developers, not educating college students or promoting long-term economic development.

Just 30 percent of gross slot machine revenues would go toward college scholarships. Casino jobs in food preparation and other services aren't the promising jobs the state should be encouraging. Social costs would be high as savings are drained and families disrupted, with taxpayers picking up the burden.

Greed breeds desperation, and the Learn and Earn Committee has pushed the envelope in the petition process. In Cincinnati, a local attorney charged the committee with deliberate misrepresentation by talking up college scholarships and never mentioning the real purpose of the petition, to expand legalized gambling. In Summit County, investigators want to know how the names of three deceased voters made it on petitions. All of it should trigger a healthy dose of skepticism, and help explain why gambling advocates are having such a tough time.