The Texas Legislature is driving me nuts with its never-ending proposals to bring casino gambling to Texas.

The 181-member legislative body is at it again for the 27th consecutive session, according to the Texas Tribune.

http://www.texastribune.org/2013/04/09/agenda-texas-another-run-casino-gambling/

State Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, said this the other day: “According to a study released this month, Texans spend nearly $3 billion annually at gaming facilities in Oklahoma, Louisiana and New Mexico, helping to pay for their roads, their schools and their hospitals, and it’s time that do something about that.”

What’s the “something” Carona has in mind? It’s to save suckers a trip across our state’s borders for them to waste their money.

I’m running out of ways to object to the notion of casino gambling. The state says it can use the revenue developed by casinos. But as Texas learned with its lottery, the revenue isn’t always reliable. The state should plan its biennial budget based on what it hopes to get from people willing to squander their savings on the chance of hitting the jackpot. Texans were enamored of the lottery when it came into being in 1991; then they realized their chances of winning were as remote as being kidnapped by Martians. The revenue stream has ebbed and flowed during the past two-plus decades.

The same can be said of gambling – which proponents of the activity euphemistically refer to as “gaming.” No. It’s a gamble and people who can least afford to take that risk almost always lose.

I wish the Legislature would stop playing footsy with gambling interests. There can be better ways to generate income for state government than relying on the temptations that prey on many Texans’ desire to seek instant wealth.