Eureka Downs in Kansas was a failed business – twice over. The first time, in 1990, it filed bankruptcy. In 1994, it reopened – but only because of a state subsidy. 16 years later, and even with that subsidy, it failed again and was shuttered. And now, armed with even more taxpayer money, it has resurfaced yet again.
Last fall, the state authorized the installation of “Historical Horse Racing Machines” – aka slot machines – in nearby Park City, with a 3% tax on those machines going to prop up the latest iteration of Eureka Downs. This tax, mind you, could/should be going back to state coffers for things like education. That’s what makes it a subsidy.
I was recently interviewed by NPR Wichita for the animal-rights perspective on Eureka’s reopening: here. While I am certainly grateful for the opportunity, as is typically the case with these stories, the exploiters were afforded the last word. Here is a young “influencer”/racehorse owner: “I think that if you spent time behind the scenes, you would realize that we treat our horses better than we treat ourselves. They get the best care possible. If anything’s wrong, we obviously won’t send them to the track.” Right.
(Eureka is only running a handful of days this year. The plan is to moderately increase going forward. We’ll see.)
