It seemed odd from the get-go.
Barry Switzer, one of the most successful coaches in Oklahoma football history and one of only a few to win both a national championship and Super Bowl, became the pitchman for a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow for the addition of two casinos in Arkansas and the potential expansion of existing properties.
He talks about being born in Crossett and playing football in Fayetteville (he doesn't say at the University of Arkansas), but he doesn't say that for the past 52 years he has been a resident of Oklahoma, where most of the Issue 4 campaign money is coming from and presumably will go. He doesn't mention he's done commercials for Indian-owned casinos in Oklahoma.
The Oklahoma-based Quapaw Tribe has donated $3.6 million to the amendment campaign, and the Oklahoma-based Cherokee Tribe has donated $2.2 million. Hard to imagine they want casinos in Arkansas that would compete with the ones they own in Oklahoma.
What does this have to do with sports, and why is a sports columnist wading in?
Oaklawn Park, a thoroughbred-racing track, has a casino, and so does Southland Park, the dog-racing track in West Memphis.
This amendment would lower the taxes of two profitable casinos, which makes no sense for a state as poor as Arkansas.
It possibly would allow Southland to stop having dog racing, a sport that is dying faster than your grass is right now. Florida is trying to make dog races illegal. Supporters say it is cruel to make dogs that were bred to run actually run.
Under current law, Southland must have a set number of dog races per year, but a recent visit saw a full casino and about 10 people watching a race.
Since it is a dying industry, you can't blame Southland for wanting new legislation.
Delaware North, which owns Southland, has contributed $3 million to the Issue 4 campaign.
Oaklawn has stayed out of the fray.
Yours truly went to an expert, our editorial writer David Barham, who studies every word of every amendment and who has advised voters to vote against Issue 4 because it likely will send Arkansas dollars to Oklahoma.
It makes sense that it will create some jobs, but many of them -- especially the better paying ones -- will go to people from Oklahoma.
This sportswriter is not telling anyone how to vote, but this ballot issue is not about Arkansas for Arkansas.
In an unrelated Oaklawn item, one of its treasures, Larry Snyder, died this week after a battle with cancer. He was 76.
Larry was a Hall of Fame jockey whose nickname was "Sneak" for his ability to sneak down the rail or between horses for a win.
He won 6,388 races, and the native of Ohio made Arkansas his permanent home for many decades. He and his wife of 57 years, Jeannette, frequently were seen aboard Larry's Harley-Davidson. For many summers, they would join former jockey John Lively and his wife to travel the country on their motorcycles after the Oaklawn meet.
After retiring from racing, Larry became a racing steward for Oaklawn. Not once during all his years was his judgment questioned.
Larry is in the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, New Orleans' Fairgrounds Hall of Fame and Hot Springs Walk of Fame.
Larry always had a smile on his face and a kind word. He will be missed by many, none more than the folks whose lives he touched daily.
Visitation is Friday from 6-8 p.m. at Gross Funeral Home, 120 Wrights St., in Hot Springs. The funeral service is set for Saturday at 10 a.m in the Hot Springs Convention Center.
Sports on 11/01/2018