Endless television and radio commercials, full-page newspaper ads, front page articles, editorials, signs — it's neighbor against neighbor and business against business, as voters decide whether to allow slots at Arundel Mills Mall.

But really, the rest of the state is sick and tired of the whining from Anne Arundel residents who are upset that their own irresponsibility has brought such rancor to this election.

In its editorial Tuesday, The Sun endorsed Question A, urging voters to "follow the lead of their elected officials and approve the measure," saying that "it would generate would help fund public education in Maryland and potentially forestall or prevent a tax increase that might be needed to close a potential $1.1 billion budget shortfall in Fiscal 2012."

A boost in the economy, funding education and preventing tax increases were exactly the reason that former Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. pushed for slots for several years, yet The Sun saw fit to continually argue against his proposals, saying it was the worst thing that could happen to Maryland.

But it was House Speaker Michael E. Busch, the perennial Anne Arundel delegate, who single-handedly thwarted Mr. Ehrlich's proposals, even though a majority of Maryland voters were in favor of them for the reasons mentioned. He wouldn't allow bills out of committee, and the responsible legislation never came to pass.

What we got instead was an amendment to the Maryland Constitution that provides for a limited number of slots parlors in specific locations, a law that was predicted to provide the same sort of outcome that we now have in Anne Arundel County.

In addition, because of the actions of one man — Speaker Mike Busch — Maryland has lost hundreds of millions of tax revenue dollars, untold jobs and construction projects, and has seen millions if not billions of dollars leave our state. Meanwhile, schools are begging for money and we are facing a huge deficit.

The Sun was an accomplice, extolling the virtues of Mr. Busch for fighting the evil gambling lobby, but it now has done an about face and shows how the state can benefit from slots. But the most guilty conspirators are the Anne Arundel voters themselves, who continually re-elect Mr. Busch, and will likely do so in the election next week.

Isn't it ironic that when they pull the levers in the voting booth, many will vote against the slots location, while at the same time re-electing the man who put them in this situation?

They get what they deserve.

Tony Ondrusek, Cockeysville