The arguments on each side of the scale regarding the benefits and detriments of the relocation of the Eagle Mountain casino - now located on the Tule Indian Reservation - to a new parcel along Highway 190 near Success Lake must be viewed objectively without the fanfare and glitter that accompanies casinos. The cost of a full-size Las Vegas style casino with hotel, restaurant with bars (alcohol) and entertainment is in the area of $200 million using the recent Coarsegold Casino as a basis for estimation. The apparent purpose of tribal leaders to expand along Success Lake rather than to expand on reservation land is to compete with the Lemoore Casino and the recently opened casino in Coarsegold. The problems of such an expansion can be categorically defined.

The land is not Indian reservation land, but trust property with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. By making advanced plans the Tule Indian tribe hopes to acquire approval from the governor and Secretary of the Interior to allow them off-reservation gambling. Indian tribes claim immunity from taxes and regulations on their reservations due to their status as a sovereign nation and this would equally apply to the new casino.

The new casino will spoil the pristine nature and environment of Lake Success and the Springville valley, and will change the reputation of the region into a gambling haven similar to that of Lemoore or Coarsegold. The new casino will increase traffic on Highways 190, 65 and 99, and especially with bars and entertainment accidents and congestion will increase. Tulare County will have to accept the additional burden of highway expansion and policing the roads and handling accidents, with no tax income from the casino.

Permitting off-reservation gambling is not advancement for the Tule Indian tribe, but further exploitation of the tribal land status as a "sovereign nation" by investors and gambling promoters. The status of the Indian reservation as a sovereign nation curbs taxation of the hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue received every year. This in itself is ample reason for investors to support Indian reservation gambling and especially off-reservation, where the attraction to the general public is greater.

As opposed to popular opinion, a casino actually depletes the local economy. The excess income that local residents would donate to churches, charities, foundations or other beneficial causes, or would otherwise invest locally, would now be routed to the casino, and then in turn such gambling revenues would be funneled to investors. The only businesses that financially gain are those who will do business directly with the casino, and the owners of these businesses are the people who promote casino expansion.

The side effects of accessible gambling has been documented by studies, such as by Maura Casey of New London, CT. She lists financial losses and increased debt as a result of gambling, and which for many leads to bankruptcy; the attempted suicide rate among addicted gamblers is 20 percent, and alcoholism is rampant. Pathological gamblers are 1 percent of the residents within 50 miles of a casino, while problem gamblers are 3 percent. The most striking conclusion of Casey's study is that 42 cents was spent dealing with the problems that evolved from a gambling casino for every $1 that the state received. Employees of casinos easily succumb to temptation and embezzle funds, the vice breeding more corruption. The atmosphere of a casino likewise causes the morality of adults, both young and old, to decline.

Politicians - beginning with Gov. Gray Davis - regularly accept contributions from Indian casinos for their re-election campaigns, and Indian casinos likewise donate occasionally to local charities, although the amounts are only a pittance of their actual income. We need to realize that no political contribution is made by anyone without expecting something in return, and in this situation it is the expansion off the reservation.

The baffling enigma in this debate is the legacy to be left by Tulare County Supervisor Jim Maples. After 34 years of teaching at Porterville College, 10 years as a county supervisor, a member of the First Baptist Church of Porterville, the legacy he will leave behind at the conclusion of such public service is that of a promoter of Indian gambling.

The income from the existing casino could be better spent by the Tule Tribe on education and invested into the local economy rather than casino expansion, and spent on improving Reservation Road to decrease accidents. More jobs would thus be created and the money would return into the local economy.

The Eagle Mountain Casino must be contained in the manner legislation presently states, within the Tule Indian Reservation, and elected officials have the responsibility to enforce this. To relocate the casino is an illogical choice and will be a detriment to the environment, morality and economy of the local region. Residents of Porterville, Success Lake and Springville must voice their objection by writing to the supervisors of Tulare County, the governor-elect of California, the Secretary of the Interior, and to other state and federal officials.

Daniel H. Shubin is a mechanical and environmental engineer who lives in Springville