Although Texas only has one operating casino in a land mass equal or greater than Australia, there is limited legalized betting in every town with venues open on every corner in super markets, convenience stores, quick stops, gas stations, and some public buildings. It's called a lottery where there are multiple games and gimmicks to attract customers to purchase scratch off tickets or just play a variety of pick'em numbers in various levels of denominations from $1 up to multiple figures. Games like pick three, six and now the power ball of lotteries are the mainstay of the gambling gambit. But, casino gambling never seems to get much attention from the legislature -- publicly. However, the Lone Star State is surrounded by neighboring states casinos (Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana and Colorado). It's at these venues, the success or failure is based on attracting Texans across the border to patronize these establishments. On any given day, a cursory review of the license plates in these casino parking facilities reveal the majority of patrons are from Texas. How could that much tax revenue leave the state every day, and no one in the legislature seems concerned? If you check required filings of contributions to elected officials, you can see that the main contributors are from people who are connected to out-of-state casinos, who stand to lose the most if land-based gambling is every approved, and casinos located in or near large cities like Houston -- fourth largest city in the U.S., Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio and every region of this vast state. Not naming names, but several of the newer casinos in Louisiana that have huge investments in infrastructure are big supporters of any attempt to defeat legalized gambling in Texas. The multiple Native American tribes in Oklahoma, who welcome droves of Texans across the border and are dependent on them coming, are huge supporters and have pet legislative members on their annual gift lists. Yet, the Lottery In Texas and New Mexico -- whose state legislatures have approved this form of gambling for the sole purpose of funding "educating the future children of their states" with revenue generated. However, in both cases, only a small percentage ever reaches the public schools as large corporations running the lotteries take a huge cut with operating and management charges before any revenue is distributed. That's it in a nutshell. Having followed this process for many years, I don't think I will be around when the money stops flooding across Texas borders preventing Texans from having their own casinos. Since the state only has one legal casino operated by the Kickapoo Tribe, there are very few legal listings in the chip guide. So, I have attached a compilation of Texas and New Mexico Lottery memorabilia for the token collectors among us who cherish such items. The tokens are called "scratchers" and are used to check scratch off tickets. They are point-of-purchase free items provided by each state's lottery commissions. Hope this diatribe meets the muster of this august body of casino memorabilia collectors.