(Un) Lucky 7

More and more problems that the casino vessel Lucky seven faces, the more and more pleased I am!  I believe this mentality of deriving pleasure from other’s misfortune, is called Schadenfreude. Tongue twisting and difficult to spell. But I am that - as far as the lucky seven is concerned. Someone has simplified the word to ‘eviljoy’. Not proper english but gives the proper meaning.

Coming to casinos, it is not just the Lucky Seven that I hate. I hate all casinos. I mean all of those which are cluttering the Mandovi. I would be very happy to read in the newspapers one morning “All Casinos in Mandovi sink”. It would be a nightmare for salvagers but it is OK. I would go there as a volunteer to help.

Now, please don’t read me wrong. I am not against gambling or against any other vice for that matter. I am for all of them and rue the fact that I do not have any! In fact I feel a vice in an otherwise blemishless (or seemingly blemishless) person enhances the stature. Like a dash of black on the Wimbledon player’s shorts and shoes. What I am against is the off shore casinos which have marred the beautiful view of river Mandovi and are polluting it.

If what I read in the newspapers is right, the Goan society in general is against casinos in the river. The government initially agreed with the sentiment and promised to kick them out but now it says that no new licences would be given. Meaning, the half a dozen which are already in, would be there for ever. And no new licences would be issued because there is just no space to put another ship there!

In spite of that, our intelligent CM allowed the entry of one more, the Unlucky seven, into Mandovi and claimed that  he is just following the high court order. He wisely masked the fact that the high court ordered the entry on technical grounds like the government accepting the licence fee but keeping the file pending. Then he further justified his action saying that the state needs the revenue generated by these casinos. If it is the revenue that matters and not the way it is generated, I suggest that we allow off shore massage parlours also along the Mandovi and I assure our CM that they would generate even more revenue!

All this thoughts about casinos came out because when I read the news of this Lucky7, driven by a storm, landing on Miramar beach instead of anchoring in Mandovi - my first thought was that it was not a storm that pushed it there but the collective ill will of the citizens of Goa. If there is something called will power which can make the impossible possible, is it not possible that a collective will power could shove a vessel off its course? Now it seems that the vessel has developed a hole in the bottom. It is not likely to arrive in the Mandovi soon. I wish the vessel more and more trouble and request like minded citizens to add their will power to my wish!