"Table games mean jobs."

That's the message on buttons being worn by employees of the Mountaineer Race Track and Gaming Resort, which is located north of Weirton, W.Va.

The message that isn't on the buttons is that the push for table games is to give the West Virginia gambling industry an edge over Pennsylvania's new slot machine casinos.

West Virginia casino operators obviously fear a downturn in business — and gambling revenue — once the Keystone State's slots casinos are fully up and running.

If West Virginia does in fact add table games such as blackjack to its gambling menu, a valid assumption is that Pennsylvania officials won't be far behind in also approving the addition of such games.

The message will be delivered to Pennsylvania residents that if they want the most property-tax-reduction benefits possible from this state's gambling operations, table games will have to be added to compete with the Mountaineer State.

The push in West Virginia doesn't come as a surprise. Even before slots gambling was approved for Pennsylvania, officials here privately — and sometimes not so privately — acknowledged that expansion of gambling in West Virginia was likely in response to Pennsylvania's entry into the slots-gambling world.

The only question might be whether those Pennsylvania officials anticipated that West Virginia's table games push would be initiated so soon — before all of Pennsylvania's new casinos were open for business.

They probably did.

In Pennsylvania, as well as what is evolving in West Virginia, the attitude will be: What could be more desirable than a state wanting to create more jobs? What could be more desirable than politicians wanting to reduce the property tax burden of their constituents — especially considering Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell's tax- and fee-increase proposals tied to his 2007-08 budget?

In reality, it's an attitude that has troubling implications for many of the people enticed by casino gambling.

It's safe to conclude that if West Virginia adds table games to places such as the Mountaineer Resort and Wheeling Island, the predominantly behind-the-scenes talk about table games in Pennsylvania will burst into the open. And, one would have to be naive to believe that a majority of Pennsylvania's state lawmakers would not support this state joining the table games ranks.

The message will be that to compete with West Virginia, Pennsylvania must offer the fullest range of table games possible. The message also will be that "table games mean jobs."

What won't be said is that table games also will provide more ways for people to lose money, and that's not good for those who visit casinos.

Nevertheless, don't be surprised to see table games in Pennsylvania within two or three years — if, in fact, it takes that long.