The Lions Club says the only way you can have the annual races up there is to spice things up with a little wagering. The locals agree, which is why there's a sudden flood of hate mail directed at the newsroom that exposed this sham.

Now, I have nothing against gambling and have been known to lay down a buck or two from time to time in nearby Mesquite. But, I must add that gambling in Mesquite is 100 percent legal. Gambling in Beaver -- or Cedar City, St. George, Salt Lake City, Ogden, Provo or even little ol' Paragonah -- is not.

Supposedly, the state law banning gambling is to protect us from ourselves. Same with the ridiculous alcohol laws we live with.

That's why you see so many Utah license plates in Wendover and Mesquite, or, for that matter, in Idaho and Arizona whenever the Powerball jackpot reaches dizzying heights.

It's time for Utah to dispose of its blue laws and join the 20th Century. The 21st would, it seems, be too much to ask for.

There are Super Bowl office pools. There's gambling at the track when the ponies run up and down the state, I'll bet (oops, did I say that?) You can't have a raffle, but you can have a drawing. You can get drunk as long as you're downing 3.2 beer. You can have multiple wives as long as they're all women.

And, before you punch the comment button below, no, I won't go back where I came from. Too many gangs, too many earthquakes and I really like all the red rock surrounding me, OK?

State officials need to realize that gambling is a personal choice, that there is a lot of money that could come into the coffers to help support our schools and that the prevailing attitude is not, I'll bet (darn, there I go again!) a flat-out condemnation of those who like to risk a little money on a chance to win something.

It's hypocritical when the powers that set the laws turn a blind eye to those who break it, saying "Oh, well...it's for a good cause." There are a lot of other laws that should be broken for a good cause, but I'll bet (take me away, officer) doing so would land you in the clink. I know it would.

So, let's either enforce the law or change it. If the good folks of Beaver, Washington Iron and the rest of the counties in the state want to lay a little money down, let them do so. The players will be happy, the state will stuff its pockets and we'll all live happily ever after.