Adelson last to claim moral high ground

The Washington Times carried a strongly worded attack on anti-online gambling crusader and land casino magnate Sheldon Adelson over the weekend, suggesting that his opposition is more anti-competition than morally based.

The man firing the op-ed broadside is top legal eagle, author and lecturer Bruce Fein (67), a Harvard Law School graduate and widely experienced legal expert with considerable previous involvement in government and corporate law whose impressive c.v. can be viewed here: http://www.brucefeinlaw.com/attorney/

He is not a supporter of gambling in any form, but appears motivated by what he perceives to be the hypocrisy of the land casino owner.

Flagging Adelson’s vast wealth accrued from gambling, Fein claims that the casino mogul’s craving for greater wealth is what really drives him to oppose internet gambling, writing:

“Mr. Adelson’s casino riches could be diminished if the current legal restraints on Internet gambling are relaxed or eliminated. In the manner of a deathbed conversion, Mr. Adelson is preaching against competition for casinos in the guise of a belated passion for moral virtue but in reality to preserve his opulence.

“The nation would profit if both were discouraged or stigmatized. Gambling does not gain in its depravity by its movement from the casino floor to an Internet cafe.

“Does Mr. Adelson think we were born yesterday? He is refraining from Internet gambling not because of moral scruples — assuming he has any — but because he believes it’s a losing business proposition.

“He taxes our credulity even more by arguing that his opposition to Internet gambling pivots on his weeping concern for the young, the indigent, and alcohol and drug addicts. He suggests he is traumatized by the prospect that they will squander money online that they cannot afford to lose.

“In contrast, Mr. Adelson insinuates, his land-based casinos vet patrons for their financial ability to withstand gambling losses. Only a dunce would believe that.”

Continuing his stinging attack, Fein observes that Adelson is an improbable candidate to empathise with the poor, claiming that he delights in ostentation and the influence his money can generate.

“When Mr. Adelson descends from his bejeweled moral pedestal, his ulterior motives become apparent,” Fein concludes. “He maintains that online gambling is “suicidal” for the U.S. casino industry in the long run and will destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs.

“The casino mogul should stick to making money.

“There is no role for him in a morality play.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/nov/22/bruce-fein-sheldon-adelson-devil/?page=1