MPs today embark on the first stage of what may turn out to be a marathon discussion on legalised gambling when they debate the Green Paper on Gaming.

This take note motion will be followed by a White Paper and legislation, with Premier Dr. Ewart Brown keen to have legislative approval for a casino in place by the time he leaves office on October 31.

Gambling is a controversial subject which cuts across party lines and political philosophies.

Proponents of casino gambling argue that it will help Bermuda's struggling tourism industry, and add the moral dimension that governments do not have the right to dictate to people how they spend their money.

Opponents argue that casino gambling is not a panacea for tourism, which will still confront numerous structural problems, and add that there may be a case to be made for Bermuda to turn its lack of gambling into an asset. The moral argument is that gambling leads to addiction, with terrible consequences not only for the gambler but for his or her family as well. A further argument is that gambling, and the false promise of easy winnings, attracts the people who can least afford it.

There is no doubt that Bermuda's gaming laws need to be reviewed. The plethora of rules and regulations for everything from Crown and Anchor to horse racing to bingo are confusing and inconsistent.

In that context the task force appointed to look into gambling and their report, which was based in part by a consultant's report, should have been welcome.

But the studies were flawed because they were asked to look at the issue purely from the perspective of whether casino gambling would benefit tourism and what the social costs might be as a result. Not surprisingly, the Las Vegas based consultant's firm came down heavily in favour of casino gambling and stated that the social costs would be low.

The task force expanded this viewpoint and it was this that then led to the Green Paper. That was far too narrow a perspective.

A Green Paper, by definition, should outline all of the options available and should honestly set down all of the advantages and disadvantages so that the public and their elected representatives are able to make informed decisions on the question before them.

This has not been the case with this Green Paper. Instead, it is narrowly focused on gambling as it relates to tourism and fails to address the broader issues surrounding gambling.

That's a shame. MPs today will debate this issue on the basis of inadequate information and as a result will be forced to fall back on instinct and personal experience which is inevitably subjective. What they should do is speak against the proposal for casino gambling on the basis that they have inadequate information.

Stop the killing

It is incongruous that so much attention is being focused on gambling when a much bigger crisis confronts Bermuda society.

Wednesday night's murder has pushed Bermuda one step closer to anarchy and the Island is fast becoming a place where law and order, and the whole concept of justice, is becoming meaningless. If this is not stopped now, it never will be.

This newspaper urges any members of the community with information about Wednesday's murder and the previous killings to provide the information to the Police or to Crime Stoppers.

There should be no question of misplaced loyalties. People are dying and only when those responsible for the deaths are brought to justice will there be any hope of them stopping.