Lester Munson, ’67, Speaks on the Dangers of Sports Betting
Column: To bet or not to bet? A Chicago sportswriter talks of the dangers of gambling
At lunchtime earlier this week, Lester Munson could be found at Wrigley Field, not on the field but nearby, standing in front of a massive facility on the stadium’s southeast corner that has become an active part of the ballpark and, to hear Munson tell it, a dangerous place.
It is called the DraftKings Sportsbook, and it was a very strange place to find this journalist and attorney because he is among the most passionate anti-gambling voices in this increasingly wagering country.
“I have been a lifelong fan of the Cubs, and instead of the team entering into a business deal with DraftKings I’d rather the team would spend its money on a pitcher or a power hitter,” said Munson, explaining how the Cubs and most other teams in the NBA, NHL, NCAA and other sports leagues have entered into financial partnerships with sports betting operations.
He will tell you that he has never been a gambler, but that he understands addiction and has seen its victims. He is from a time when people might make a bet with their local bartender, the guy running the newsstand, at the track. It may have been illegal but it took place in society’s shadows. “Who gets hurt?” was the attitude.
Then came horse racing, Vegas, Atlantic City, lotteries … I’ve tasted them all.
That all changed in May 2018, when the Supreme Court declared that the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, which had essentially limited sports gambling to one state, Nevada, for the preceding 25 years, was unconstitutional. That left states free to chart their own courses for sports gambling. Most took advantage, with 38 states and Washington, D.C., offering sports betting, with other states awaiting legislation that would allow for sports gambling and casinos.
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