Supporters of putting up to five slot machines in most bars in Minnesota say their plan would generate much more money than Gov. Pawlenty's proposed casino. The House Gaming Division started hearings on all the gambling bills Wednesday. They include the governor's new casino plan, the plan to put slot machines at Canterbury Park, and the slots in bars idea. MPR's Michael Khoo says it's a good bet something will come out of the committee:

The committee isn't expected to take action on the gambling initiatives until Friday evening, but opponents say the deck seems stacked in favor of new casinos.

The committee's five Republican members all voted for the racino plan when it passed the House floor in 2003. The four DFLers opposed it.

That, says John McCarthy, suggests the committee was structured to ensure an easy start out of the gates this time around. McCarthy represents the Minnesota Indian Gaming Association, which opposes news casino sites. MIGA argues that new gambling venues will eat into the business of existing Indian casinos,and McCarthy says the governor's endorsement of one initiative has fed the appetite for other gambling plans.

Maybe all that money from slot machines could help Minenapolis fight crime. MPR's Art Hughes had the story of Minneapolis lawmakers calling for help after the shooting deaths of two people in a north Minneapolis restaurant two weeks ago:

[Rep. Keith] Ellison says the city needs sustainable solutions rather than some short-term ideas tried previously, such as deploying state troopers to trouble spots. Restoring past levels of Local Government Aid would mean an additional $34 million for Minneapolis. Statewide, the number would reach nearly $300 million.

Sen. [Linda] Higgins appealed to other parts of the state to help shore up "the violent consequences" of the aid cuts in the last budget session.

"We in north Minneapolis are very resourceful and very resilient, but we're under attack right now," Higgins says. "And we need everyone's help in the state."

A spokesman for Gov. Pawlenty says the city should raise property taxes if it wants more money to fight crime. Does it strike anyone that the administration's response to the two killings in Minneapolis is a little different from the response to the killing of Dru Sjodin?

In other news Northwest Airlines is cutting jobs and the striking teachers' union is suing the Crosby-Ironton school board. Something tells me we've got more problems than slot machines can solve.