The NYRA continues to lose money and is almost broke. Corruption has been uncovered. But NYRA is not the cause of the red ink. The problem in New York started over 30 years ago. It's called OTB. Rudy Guiliani once called OTB "the only bookmaker in the country that loses money." In New York state, off-track betting competes with the racetracks. This, of course, is ludicrous, and is the main reason why NYRA and OTB have both struggled to show a profit. If the NYRA contract is not renewed, and the tracks are sold to private interests, it will not solve the problem. The new owners will lose money. The easy and sensible fix is to simply let NYRA buy OTB. That's the way it should have been set up right from the start. Or, if the state really believes that NYRA is corrupt and incompetent, sell OTB and NYRA together as a package. The politicians are at fault, as usual. They messed up the sale of Roosevelt Raceway, they messed up the off-track betting system, and now they are mired in red-tape and unable to make a decision that is so obvious. The racetracks and OTB cannot continue to exist separately. It's that simple. The slots are on the way. That's potentially a huge plus. Let's see if they get it right this time. Don't bet on it!

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