HAVE YOU ASKED YOURSELF: "WHY?"

Mass Yes-OnThree

HAVE YOU ASKED YOURSELF: "WHY?""

? If casinos are so great for communities, why did Governor Patrick, House Speaker DeLeo, Senate President Murray and Gaming Commission Chairman Crosby all say they would oppose any casino that wanted to locate in their hometowns -- but they have no objection to putting one in yours?

? If casinos are so great for business, why do so many businesses close wherever casinos open?

? If casinos are so great for employment, why do Las Vegas, Atlantic City and Detroit have three of the highest unemployment rates in the country? And why do so many people lose their current jobs once casinos open?

? If casinos are so great for taxpayers, why have taxpayers had to fork over hundreds of millions of dollars to bail out casinos in Delaware, Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island and elsewhere?

Is whatever you believe might be gained from casinos,
worth everything that you will lose?

On November 4th, Vote YES to Repeal the Casino Law
Vote YES on #3
Vote YES to STOP the Casino Mess

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3 Ways You Can:
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2) Volunteer: http://www.repealthecasinodeal.org/how-to-help
3) Donate: http://www.repealthecasinodeal.org/donate

We Can't Win Without YOU!

Find the FULL list of reasons to Vote YES on 3 here:
http://massvoteyeson3.blogspot.com/

http://massvoteyeson3.blogspot.com/…/have-you-asked-yoursel…

Mass. Vote YES on 3: Have you Asked Yourself: "Why?"

MASSVOTEYESON3.BLOGSPOT.COM|BY JOHN EPSTEIN

The Failure of Atlantic City: "....It doesn’t trickle down. “

 

The last old home on a block, center left, is seen near the Revel hotel and casino in Atlantic City, N.J.

Mel Evans/AP

 

Impending casino closures foreground Atlantic City’s great divide

08/31/14 09:22 AM—Updated 08/31/14 03:12 PM

 

By Ned Resnikoff

 

When her hometown first legalized casino gambling in 1976, Atlantic City native Turiyah Abdur-Raheem had her doubts.

“I wasn’t here then, I was still away at college, but I was concerned about my family and friends who still lived here,” said Raheem. “I think my biggest concern was whether or not people in the community were going to really benefit; or was it going to still be a situation where these casinos and other casino-related businesses were going to thrive, and the community was going to suffer.”

That was nearly four decades ago. For three of those decades, Raheem lived elsewhere. When she returned to her hometown in 2008, what she found was “heartbreaking,” she says.

“It benefits one side of the city and not the other. It doesn’t trickle down. “

Atlantic City councilman-at-large Moisse Delgado

“I was hearing more and more stories about hopelessness, about people not being able to be hired,” said Raheem, the author of a recent book about growing up in “the other Atlantic City.” “Last hired, first fired. Whereas we always had jobs as teenagers, the teenagers here were not being hired. Other teenagers were able to come in and get work, and our teenagers were not.”
For Abdur-Raheem and some other residents of Atlantic City, impending casino closures are just another bump in the community’s long, fraught relationship with legalized gaming. They see an industry that has grown fat in their backyard, while sharing little of the profit. In 2010, Atlantic City casinos took in $3.6 billion; meanwhile, the city’s median household income between 2008 and 2012 was just under $30,000.

Yet the gaming industry nationwide is on the ascent, even as three major Atlantic City casinos threaten to close within the next few weeks. Roughly two decades ago, casinos could only be found in six states; as of last year, 22 states have commercial casinos, according to an American Gaming Association (AGA) survey [PDF]. That same survey found that casinos raked in $37.34 billion nationwide in 2012. Only in 2007, the year before the financial collapse, did the industry collect more in revenue.

Close video

 

Melissa Harris-Perry, 8/31/14, 10:49 AM ET

The changing face of Atlantic City

MSNBC contributor Dorian Warren, Carmen Rita Wong from NYU Poly Tech, MSNBC.com’s Ned Resnikoff and Michael Pollock from the Spectrum Gaming Group join to discuss the changing face of Atlantic City and the closing of some of its major casinos.

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The question facing Atlantic City, and a growing number of other communities around the United States, is where all that revenue goes. While industry spokespeople argue that commercial casinos do wonders for a local economy, not all Atlantic City residents agree.

“It benefits one side of the city and not the other. It doesn’t trickle down,” said Atlantic City councilman-at-large Moisse Delgado. “Tourism dollars are good for the industry. It’s not as much for the municipality and its residents.”

A significant chunk of the city’s revenue does come from casinos. According to Atlantic City’s 2013 audit report [PDF], local government collects about 65% of its taxes from the gaming industry. While in earlier times that might have allowed the city to share in the industry’s prosperity, today it means the municipality has no safety net when casino revenues decline. Earlier this month, Atlantic City Revenue and Finance director Michael Stinson told Reuters that impending casino closures could wipe out as much as half of the city’s tax base.

Adding to the city’s financial woes, its unemployment rate is markedly higher than the national average, and wages tend to be lower. Delgado alleges that’s because “front of the house” casino jobs – relatively high-paying jobs that require a greater degree of customer interface, such as tending bar or manning the blackjack tables – usually go to people who don’t live within city limits.

“People who have those jobs don’t live on this island,” he said. “They live in farther towns. They live 60 minutes away, two hours away. They don’t call it home, they don’t see it as home, they don’t invest in home.”

People who live in the city – most of whom are either African American or Latino – do the back of the house jobs, such as cleaning rooms and doing line cook work, said Delgado. But Joe Kelly, president of the Greater Atlantic City Chamber of Commerce, argued casinos “have done a wonderful job in creating employment opportunities.”

“I don’t think that’s consistent with what I’ve seen,” he said of Delgado’s concerns. “I’ve seen a number of professionals come through the local market that have gone on to take leadership roles in the casinos that were local citizens.”

For industry leaders and experts, the watchword in Atlantic City is “diversification.” The local Chamber of Commerce is trying to resuscitate business in Atlantic City by expanding tourism and hospitality services beyond just gambling. If that effort is successful, the city will come to more closely resemble Las Vegas, where gambling now accounts for just about 36% of revenue in the main tourism center known as the Las Vegas Strip. Dining, musical entertainment and retail have come to occupy a larger chunk of that city’s income. Industry analysts believe that developing those industries in Atlantic City would help to distinguish it from the myriad other Mid-Atlantic towns that now host casinos.

“It’s a tourism destination,” said Sara Rayme, senior vice president of public affairs for the AGA.

“As more markets have come online, clearly it’s up to the policy makers in tandem with the operators to make sure their business models are evolving and changing with what’s going on around them.”

“As an Atlantic City native, I can see it’s definitely been a boon.”

David Schwartz, the director of the University of Nevada

Rayme also believes that casinos have been good to Atlantic City overall, saying “gaming has been incredibly successful in Atlantic City for the past 30 years.” The AGA estimates that Atlantic City casinos have “directly supported 1.4 million jobs” and “generated $9.3 billion in tax revenue,” according to a fact sheet [PDF] shared by Rayme.
David Schwartz, the director of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’ Center for Gaming Research, said “the city was completely moribund” before legalized gambling.

“As an Atlantic City native, I can see it’s definitely been a boon,” he said. “Created a lot of jobs, brought in a lot of development.”

The Federal Reserve of Philadelphia has expressed a little more ambivalence regarding the industry’s effects. In a recent survey [PDF] of the available literature regarding gambling’s economic impact, the Philadelphia Fed found that casino revenue can do some good for state tax revenues and generate jobs; however, the same report offered a grim prognosis for Atlantic City’s gambling industry.

Another report focusing on Atlantic City in particular [PDF] noted that the local gaming industry “has typically provided jobs for more than 10,000 city residents,” but added that “many of the problems that gambling was supposed to alleviate remain severe.”

The paradox of Atlantic City, they write, is that it is “a place where plentiful jobs are juxtaposed with high levels of poverty and unemployment.” The way forward is not yet clear.




http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/atlantic-city-casinos-boon-for-city-not-residents



 

Creating low wage jobs......

If the same amount of time, energy and $$$ had been invested in sustainable JOB CREATION instead of LOW WAGE CASINO JOBS, just think where we'd be!

Let's stop investing in First Class travel for the Gambling Commission and REPEAL THE CASINO DEAL!
 

John Dudley‎ Repeal The Casino Deal

Most of these poor folks had already been out of work for over a year, and this was four years ago. What have they been doing since then? And in the meantime, the lawyers have been getting paid, the MA Gaming Commissioners and their new staff have been getting paid, and politicans and lobbyists have been getting paid.

Casinos a bad bet for state's family-friendly reputation

Bill Lupfer: Casinos a bad bet for state's family-friendly reputation

By Bill Lupfer

7:21 p.m. EDT, March 25, 2014

Florida is envied around the world. Don't just take my word for it. Recent headlines have quantified our state's stellar reputation.

In 2013, Florida's population surged to 19.5 million, set to overtake New York as the nation's third most-populous state. And last year a record 94.7 million tourists visited Florida, a jump of 3.5 percent from 2012. They came here to experience what some natives take for granted.

No one takes for granted that 1.1 million Floridians worked in direct travel-related jobs in 2012. Our tourism industry understands we set the standard for the world in high-quality attractions that our family-friendly Florida brand means something to visitors, a priceless asset which can't be quantified.

 

Florida has a reputation. So do Las Vegas and Nevada. Other states might be willing or eager for casinos. Florida is not, and does not have to be. We know that even one new casino in South Florida would not be compatible with our brand. So, as lobbyists for "destination casinos" knock on doors in Tallahassee, ask them about Las Vegas.

Last year, visitors to Las Vegas were down to 39.6 million. In 2013, Nevada led the nation in unemployment for eight out of 12 months. Jobs in Las Vegas casinos were down last year, and casino employment in the rest of Nevada was down 43 percent from 2000. Even business at the state's bordellos is down.

Why would any state envy Las Vegas or Nevada?

Our family-friendly reputation is not confined to any particular region of the state. Our association is a cross-section of tourist attractions throughout Florida. Amusement parks, theme parks, state parks, historic sites, tour operators, outdoor recreation operators, museums, aquariums, gardens, agri-tourism sites, and much more are among our members.

Half of our members are privately-held companies – many of them we affectionately call "mom and pop" attractions. Another 30 percent are non-profit community-supported cultural, historic and heritage attractions. Big or small, mom or pop, casinos will prey upon them.

Casinos destroy jobs by giving away things that are the bread and butter for many longstanding Florida businesses — things like "comp" meals and hotel stays.

Atlantic City's situation can never be hammered home enough: A year after casinos made their debut, 40 percent of restaurants closed, and a third of retailers were shuttered. Jobs disappeared.

To put Florida's record-breaking year for tourism in perspective, Gov. Rick Scott said, "Every 85 visitors to Florida equals one job in our state – and it is clear that more visitors to the Sunshine State means more jobs for Florida families."

As the Legislature's Spectrum Gaming Group's report said, casinos would have only a minimal economic impact on Florida, that less than 5 percent of the patrons to casinos would be tourists.

Three times Florida voters have rejected gambling-expansion proposals, but out-of-state casinos refuse to take "no" for an answer. Today in Tallahassee, casinos are back, with legislation that would pave the way for Las Vegas-style casinos and expanded gambling in our state, risking Floridians' lifestyle and livelihood.

Instead of making things easier for out-of-state casinos, legislators should tighten Florida laws and regulations to stop the spread of gambling.

Florida is used to pitches and promises. And from the history of the casino industry here and in other states, we know casinos under-deliver on promises and over-deliver on social and economic costs.

Family-friendly Florida tourism is the economic engine driving Florida's robust economy. Our tourism doesn't promise results – it delivers results every day. No brag, just fact.

Bill Lupfer is president and CEO of Florida Attractions Association.




http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/opinion/fl-oped-gambling-association-of-attractions-20140325,0,1026567.story

 

Casinos Not Paying Off for Indians

Casinos Not Paying Off for Indians

The plaque outside the Apache Gold Casino declares the $40 million hotel, golf and gambling resort has“helped enable the San Carlos Apache Tribe to give a better quality of life to its tribal members.”

But seven years after the casino opened — and four years after the debut of a glittering new complex — many Apache families still crowd in small apartments or mobile homes.
 

The reservation’s unemployment rate has climbed from 42 percent in 1991 to 58 percent in 1997, the latest year available. The number of tribal members receiving welfare has jumped 20 percent. And the tribal government still grants home sites without water and sewer connections.

“We get no help from the casino, no money, nothing,” said Pauline Randall, 75, a lifelong resident of San Carlos.

$8 Billion and Little Change

Similar complaints echo across the 1.8 million acre reservation in east Arizona, but they could just as easily be heard on many other Indian reservations across the country that have built casinos in the past decade.

Despite an explosion of Indian gambling revenues — from $100 million in 1988 to $8.26 billion a decade later — an Associated Press computer analysis of federal unemployment, poverty and public assistance records indicates the majority of American Indians have benefited little.
 

Two-thirds of the American Indian population belong to tribes locked in poverty that still don’t have Las Vegas-style casinos.

And among the 130 tribes with casinos, a few near major population centers have thrived while most others make just enough to cover the bills, the AP analysis found.

Despite new gambling jobs, unemployment on reservations with established casinos held steady around 54 percent between 1991 and 1997 as many of the casino jobs were filled with non-Indians, according to data the tribes reported to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

“Everybody thinks that tribes are getting rich from gaming and very few of them are,” said Louise Benson, chairman of the Hualapai Tribe in northwestern Arizona, one of two tribes with casinos that failed during the 1990s.

Of the 500,000 Indians whose tribes operate casinos, only about 80,000 belong to tribes with gambling operations that generate more than $100 million a year.

The Ring of Success

Some of the 23 tribes with the most successful casinos — like the Shakopee Mdewakanton Dakota Tribe in Minnesota — pay each member hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.

In Scott County, which includes the Shakopee reservation south of Minneapolis, the poverty rate declined from 4.1 percent in 1989 to 3.5 percent six years later. The reservation’s unemployment rate also plummeted from 70 percent in 1991 to just 4 percent in 1997.

Such success stories belong mostly to tribes with casinos near major population centers.

The tiny Mashantucket Pequot tribe of Connecticut reported more than $300 million in revenue in the first five months this year from its Foxwoods Casino, located between New York and Boston.

And the Seminole Tribe’s Hollywood Gaming Center on Miami’s Gold Coast generates more than $100 million a year with pull-tab slot machines. The unemployment rate on that reservation, however, still was 45 percent in 1997, and the average poverty rate in the two counties it touches rose from 10.4 percent in 1989 to 12.1 percent in 1995.

Poverty Rate Rises

 

For many of the 130 tribes with Las Vegas-style casinos, like the San Carlos Apaches, gambling revenues pay for casino operations and debt service, with little left to upgrade the quality of life.

In counties that contain reservations with casinos, the poverty rate declined only slightly between 1989 and 1995, from 17.7 percent to 15.5 percent, the AP analysis founds. Counties with reservations with no gambling saw their poverty rate remain steady at slightly more than 18 percent.

Nationally, the poverty rate hovered at near 13 percent during the period.

In California, the Tachi Yokut Tribe in the San Joaquin Valley brags on its Web site that its Palace Gaming Center has provided employment for tribal members, helped raise education levels and upgraded housing.

But the poverty rate in Kings County, which includes the tribe’s small reservation, climbed from 18.2 percent in 1989 to 22.3 percent in 1995. The reservation’s unemployment rate dropped slightly to 49.2 percent in 1997.

Jonathan Taylor, a research fellow at the Harvard University Project on American Indian Economic Development, said many investments gaming tribes have made in social and economic infrastructure don’t translate into immediate improvements in quality-of-life indicators like poverty.

“You see investments arising out of gaming taking hold slowly in greater educational success, greater family integrity, greater personal health, greater crime prevention,” he said.

Signs of Hope

There are some optimistic signs that tribes hope to build on when the casino construction loans are repaid.

The analysis indicates casino gambling has slowed, though not reversed, the growth of tribal members on public assistance. Participation in the Agriculture Department’s Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations increased 8.2 percent from 1990 to 1997 among tribes with casinos, compared with 57.3 percent among tribes without them.

And economic development has been spurred in communities near tribal casinos, according to an analysis of county business patterns.

The Oneida Indian Nation in central New York has become the largest employer in Oneida and Madison counties, thanks to a casino that’s generating more than $100 million in annual revenues. A championship golf course and convention center are under construction.

Unemployment Stays High

But the new jobs have not reduced unemployment for Indians. Tribes with established casinos saw their unemployment rate rise four-tenths of a point to 54.4 percent between 1991 and 1997, the AP analysis found.

Jacob Coin, former executive director of the National Indian Gaming Association, said that’s because 75 percent of jobs in tribal casinos are held by non-Indians.

At the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation along the California-Arizona-Nevada border, the unemployment rate climbed from 27.2 percent in 1991 to 74.2 percent in 1997.

Tribal administrator Gary Goforth acknowledged few of the 675 jobs at the tribe’s two financially troubled casinos are filled by tribal members. “Not everybody wants to be a dealer, or a housekeeper or even a manager in the restaurant,” he said.

San Carlos Apache Tribal Chairman Raymond Stanley said about 80 percent of the 360 casino resort employees are tribal members. He said the casino also provides a $65,000 monthly dividend to the tribe that has paid for seven new police cars and small clinic.

 

But Stanley said it’s not enough to meet the needs of the 10,500 tribal members, 6,000 to 7,000 of whom remain on public assistance. Because the tribe’s unemployment rate remains above 50 percent, it is exempt from the 1996 welfare reform law that limits recipients to five years.

 

“We really don’t have a lot to show for it at the moment,” he said. “The real benefit right now is employment.

 

 

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=95944&page=2

 

 

Atlantic City: The Poster Child for Predatory Gambling - You are NO DIFFERENT!

Atlantic City's Last 'Low-Roller' Casino Busts

By Victoria Bekiempis

Filed: 1/16/14 at 12:03 PM

The town is struggling to hold on even as it faces an end to its gaming monopoly. Mel Evans/Associated Press

 

 

A few miles outside Atlantic City, signs along the highway greet gamblers by talking about the people who will scrub their toilets, serve them cocktails and, more often than not, deal them losing hands.

 

“Thank you to our employees! For your dedication and service,” says one billboard for the Atlantic Club Casino Hotel. “Just the best employees in AC” the next line says. “You’re the heart and soul of this place.”

 

Five days before Christmas, the Atlantic Club told more than 1,600 employees they would soon be jobless. The Atlantic Club – the last casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey catering to the “low-rollers” – announced it would close at midnight on January 13, after 33 years in business. Many learned about their impending unemployment in the newspaper or on TV. The club gave union workers $1,500 in severance, plus pay for unused vacation days. The local union gave card-holders $20 grocery store gift cards and help filing for unemployment.

 

The shutdown of Atlantic Club will only exacerbate Atlantic City’s 15.1 percent unemployment rate, said to be the worst in the state, and has spurred whispers of more closings. Atlantic City gaming revenue has spiraled downward since 2006 – from $5.2 billion then to a $2.9 billion in 2013 – because of increased competition from neighboring states. Atlantic City, which now has just 11 casinos, down from 13 at its peak, is also running out of time to maintain its gaming monopoly in New Jersey. In 2010, Governor Chris Christie gave Atlantic City until 2014 to reverse its decline before he’d consider allowing gaming elsewhere in the state. Christie’s initiatives to revive the boardwalk by making it a family-friendly destination have mostly been a bust.

 

At Wonder Bar, a restaurant off the boardwalk that bills itself as the dining destination for locals, employees gathered Sunday night to bid each other a final goodbye. Many told Newsweek they weren’t in a position to hit the ground running with regard to the job search because, what jobs? A casino in Maryland hosted a a few job fairs the week before the closing, but only a few dozen people got work. Besides, who has the money to move?

 

Worse, they said, is that one of the things that helped keep the casino afloat – its close-knit, comfortable, unchanging atmosphere attracted loyal regulars – makes its closing all the more dire for the community. Atlantic Club felt so familial, employees said, because so many families worked there, meaning entire households are out of work.

 

One married couple, who like most didn’t want their names used for fear of jeopardizing their chances of getting new jobs, told Newsweek they didn’t have a plan, or even a plan about how to come up with a plan for finding work.

 

The man, 60, who’d worked at the casino for 20 years, took small sips of beer as he explained that they would file for unemployment the next day and apply for food stamps. They had two adult sons, also out of work, to support, along with three granddaughters and a daughter-in-law. “We have to provide for our kids,” his wife, 57, said. “I don’t know how I’m going to do it.”

 

Their extended family isn’t in much of a position to help them, either. The man’s 65-year-old sister recently lost her grocery store job; though rehired elsewhere, she now makes 30 percent less. Another sister’s husband, who made ball bearings, lost his job when the company moved to the South. His twin brother’s wife, a teacher’s assistant, lost her job, too. Another sister (he’s from a big Irish family, he explained) lost the same job twice. His youngest sister’s husband, who made plastic parts for doors, lost his job when it was shipped to another country.

 

“My father always told me, ‘Life isn’t fair,” the man said, taking another swig.

Several blocks away, back on the boardwalk, things seemed almost normal at the Atlantic Club, which would be bolting the doors in a few hours. Sure, the club’s restaurants had run out of food that afternoon and customers, scurrying to use their comp dollars, drank the Dizzy Dolphin bar dry, but the casino floor buzzed and blinked busily, as if midnight would never come. 

 

One woman at a baccarat table – who was down about $15,000 at 11:30 – wanted to keep playing despite the time. She shouted and mumbled something about wanting her money back, or at least the opportunity to win it back. A pit boss standing behind the dealer joked: “I don’t have any money! I’m unemployed!” and a few moments later, a security guard escorted the woman off the floor.

 

With her exit, the feverish frenzy typical for a casino – even an ailing one– seemed to deflate. Just before midnight, those present counted down from five, with some singing “Auld Lang Syne.” The staff charged with seeing the shutdown through then collected and counted all the chips one last time.

 

Dealers, faces twisted and glistening with tears, hugged each other tightly. Some staff skipped into what seemed to be an area set aside for high-rollers, asking a cop to snap one last photo of them together, their broad smiles belying the mood in the room.

 

As stragglers and observers were corralled out the door and onto the sidewalk, some dawdled in the hotel’s main hall, while others plucked plants from their pots before leaving stepping out into the frigid night.

 

The mirrors and columns and brass in the lobby spoke to the Atlantic Club’s bygone opulence – when Frank Sinatra was on the marquee, not the struggling commuter casino trying to lure slots jockeys with free parking.

 

 

http://www.newsweek.com/atlantic-citys-last-low-roller-casino-busts-226283

 

 

Weds, 7 PM, Longmeadow: An argument against having a casino in Springfield

Michelle Steger

Check out this argument against a casino in Springfield... http://longmeadowbuzz.blogspot.com/2013/10/an-argument-against-having-casino-in.html And don't forget our meeting Wednesday at 7PM at St. Andrew's Church in Longmeadow, MA

Monday, October 21, 2013

An argument against having a casino in Springfield

The following was submitted to the LongmeadowBuzz blog by Michelle Steger, a resident of Longmeadow, MA.

________________________________________________

 

“Do you live within a few miles of the proposed casino site in Springfield, and could any roads in your town be used as a cut through to access the casino?”
“Yes on both counts,” I replied to the woman working for the North Stonington, CT Select Board Office. “Then your town will never be the same if the casino comes to Springfield. It’s been so painful for us here,” she said.

My conversations with this woman and other town leaders who live in communities surrounding Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut have haunted me.

I am not from around here. I was born and raised in Dallas, Texas, but growing up, I always wanted to live in New England. When I first visited Longmeadow, where my husband, Ted, grew up, I knew I had found my home. We have been here for 5 years now, have a 1-year-old son, and could not be happier. However, when we first heard that a casino might be placed 2.5 miles from our house, we wondered what impact that might have on the community we love so much.

My husband and I are not experts, but we have been humbly asking questions and seeking answers for the last year, and the more we have learned about casinos and the way they operate, the more concerned we are about what a casino in the South End of Springfield would mean for Springfield, Longmeadow and other surrounding communities. This concern has led us to join with other concerned citizens to form a group, No Casino Springfield (www.nocasinospringfield.com) that will be hosting a Call to Action on Wednesday October 23rd at 7PM at St. Andrew’s Church in Longmeadow.

Before we get too deep into the argument against having a casino in the area, we should probably set the stage to make clear where we are in the process. Under the Massachusetts gaming law, a commission was formed called the Mass Gaming Commission (MGC), and it is made up of 5 people who are tasked with deciding which applicants will get a casino license in each of the 3 regions of the state. In Western Mass, there are 2 contenders.

Springfield, which signed a host community agreement with MGM, held their referendum in July, and it passed 57-42. Now that sounds like a big margin until you consider that Everett, MA passed their referendum 83-17. And when you consider that MGM spent $12 million to try to win the vote, the fact that they could not even get to 60% tells us that there is not overwhelming support for a casino in Springfield, which is something that the MGC has said that they would like to see.

The town of Palmer has signed a host community agreement with Mohegan Sun, and they will hold their referendum on November 5th.

In the language of the MA Gaming Commission (MGC), the cities of Springfield and Palmer are host communities because the casinos will be located in those towns, and Longmeadow and other communities will be considered surrounding communities to Springfield. In order to be a surrounding community, the chairman of the MGC has said that community would have to experience a "substantial negative impact” as a result of the casino. The host community gets a direct vote, but the surrounding communities have also been asked by the MGC to give input. They have said that the enthusiasm, or lack of enthusiasm, shown by the host community and surrounding communities will be taken into consideration when the MGC debates where to put the casino.

We have been encouraging people in the region to provide enthusiastic opposition to a casino in Springfield, and the citizens of Longmeadow have two ways to provide that input.

1. Go to www.massgaming.com/contact and share your thoughts.
2. Come to the Town Meeting on November 5th at the high school and vote to approve a resolution opposing a casino in Springfield.

So, I may not be from around here, but I want to do everything I can to keep my adopted home casino-free. Below is a summary of some of the reasons and evidence for why I oppose a casino in Springfield, and why I hope you will join us in our efforts.

Traffic / OUI

• Our roads are already congested and having a casino nearby would only stand to make things worse.
• By state law, the casino will be allowed to serve FREE alcohol from 8AM to 2AM daily. The town of Ledyard, CT which hosts Foxwoods casino has the highest rate of OUI accidents in the state of Connecticut. Do we want more drunk and impaired drivers on our roads endangering our families and ourselves?

Economic Impact

• Casinos can operate their entertainment, shops and restaurants at a loss in order to get as many people as possible to the casino, but this undercutting of prices will hurt local businesses and restaurants in Springfield, Longmeadow, East Longmeadow and other communities.
• The only way for a casino to have a positive impact on a region is for most of the patrons to come from outside the region. For a city like Springfield, there is very little likelihood that many people will come from more than a short drive away. Therefore, people who live locally who would normally be spending money at other local businesses will instead go to the casino to spend their money. This will enrich the casino operator at the expense of our local economy.
• Casinos reduce residential property values in surrounding areas, thus reducing town receipts, which may require tax increases to make up for the lost revenue. This would be especially painful for a bedroom community like Longmeadow that is dependent on strong residential property values to support town operations. A National Association of Realtors study calls casinos effect on home values "unambiguously negative." A 2009 study from the state of Connecticut found that property values along main arteries decreased by 10%. One selectman we talked to in North Stonington, CT said that property values in his town have decreased 25% within a 1/4 mile of routes traveled to reach Foxwoods casino.

Social Costs

• Approximately 1.5-2% of people nationally have a gambling problem. But, living within 50 miles of a casino doubles the number of addicted gamblers, and having a casino within 10 miles doubles the number again. So, if a casino is located in Springfield, between 6-8% of people living within 10 miles of the casino will have a gambling problem. There are currently 481,000 people living within 10 miles of the proposed MGM casino site, so that means somewhere between 18,000-28,000 additional people (not to mention the suffering of countless family members) in our communities will be plagued with a gambling problem if a casino were to come to Springfield.

Jobs

• A 2005 Harvard study of jobs and casinos shows that, on average, the unemployment rate is unchanged after the introduction of a casino, which is partially due to the closing of businesses in the area that lose income because of the casino itself.
• The number of people who will be harmed by the casino far outnumber the people who will be employed because of the casino.

Mitigation

• The town on North Stonington, CT (population 5400, adjacent to Foxwoods) receives $880,000/year in mitigation funds, but one town selectman we spoke to says it is not nearly enough to cover the costs they incur because of the casino.
• There are many hidden costs to a town (including impacts on school budgets, housing, tax base, quality of life, and character of the town) that cannot be accounted for by mitigation costs.

Long Term Prospects

• The casino proponents have never pointed to a template of a successful casino city that Springfield is trying to emulate. If casinos are so great for a city, why can’t they point to a city and region that has benefited from a casino in the long-term? Casinos may provide a brief economic boost, but the casino licenses that will be awarded in Massachusetts are for 75 years, so it is important to look at long-term impacts, and no city, excluding Las Vegas, has benefitted from casinos in the long run.
• I want the best for Springfield and Longmeadow both today and for many years to come. Any potential short-term benefit would soon dissipate and be more than made up for by the costs that grow as the casino sucks more from our local economy and damages our local families.

For more information, or if you’d like to get involved, feel free to contact us at nocasinospringfield@gmail.com.

Michelle Steger

http://longmeadowbuzz.blogspot.com/2013/10/an-argument-against-having-casino-in.html
 

Simplistic and Misleading Assessment of Atlantic City's Failures

Many jobs in Atlantic City went unfilled because of the staggering CRIME and rampant racism.

Gambling revenues were misspent, crime and corruption blossomed, local businesses GONE, political hacks guiding the process, just as in Massachusetts.
 
Atlantic City is the Poster Child for all that is wrong with Predatory Gambling!

 



Published on Dec 23, 2012

Politicians say that casinos create economic development. Here is the Revel Casino in Atlantic City, NJ. (Most media photos are from the interior of the casino looking out onto the beach and ocean.)

At the Edumacational Forum conducted by the Massachusetts Gambling Commission, Michael Pollack blamed Connecticut's failure to plan for the 'Hot Bunking.' How would Connecticut anticipate that the Tribal Casinos would recruit non-English-Speaking workers from overseas to fill the low wage jobs?

This is an important lessons for communities as they anticipate 'mitigation.'  


Lawmakers urged to adapt as casino industry evolves
Posted: Sunday, June 9, 2013 12:00 am
By SARAH WATSON, Staff Writer
The Press of Atlantic City Media Group

Stay innovative. Have realistic expectations. Retain flexibility, and know that bringing casino gambling to a community will not solve major social problems.

These are among the messages New Jersey and Atlantic City experts had for legislators around the country who are grappling with developing a thriving gambling industry in their states and towns.

Speaking at the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States conference at The Water Club Saturday, Sen. Jim Whelan, D-Atlantic, Department of Gaming Enforcement Director David Rebuck and Spectrum Gaming Group Managing Director Michael Pollack discussed the history of Atlantic City’s evolution into a gambling resort along with the lessons learned from mistakes and successes.

“If you have casino gaming already, you today need to be prepared to adapt and adjust,” Rebuck said. “Your models may be solid now, but in the future, you will fail if you don’t change and adapt.”

Among the attendees at this weekend’s conference held at The Water Club were state lawmakers from Florida, Delaware, Kentucky and Utah. Florida House of Representatives member Jim Waldman, in introducing the panel discussing Atlantic City’s history, told the room that the session was crucial for those legislators trying to bring or increase the gambling industry in their states.

Pollack said effective regulation, strong public planning and making sure expectations of all parties remained realistic were critical for a successful gambling industry.

“There will be winners and there will be losers (among all businesses),” Pollack said. “One of the things we learned in Atlantic City is many local businesses survived and many didn’t. Those that did recognized they had to have good food, parking, access. Those that didn’t, didn’t succeed.”

Whelan warned those in the room that introducing gambling to their city or state was not a perfect solution to economic or social problems. “We have the same social ills that other urban communities have and society generally has. If you think casinos are going to be a cure-all, they are not,” Whelan said. “”They do not cure hardcore unemployment. Hardcore unemployment is a social problem.”
[This ignores the numerous policies of deliberate racism that exacerbated the problems, like bussing whites from the suburbs.]

Whelan also warned that businesses would need to adapt and diversify if they wanted the casino industry in a particular town or state to succeed. Atlantic City, he said, did not grow and change, even before gambling was legalized in the 1970s.

Rebuck, who was appointed head of the DGE by Gov. Chris Christie, also stressed that gambling industries would need to evolve and adapt as social trends changed. He warned those from out of state that high taxes on the casino industry would affect how those businesses would be able to invest in new attractions or update existing buildings, which is key to bringing in visitors, he said.

“You’re riding the gravy train now, just like New Jersey did when they were the only game in town,” he said. “But you will be in trouble in the future.”

http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/press/atlantic_city/lawmakers-urged-to-adapt-as-casino-industry-evolves/article_cef87c8c-d0b1-11e2-b20e-0019bb2963f4.html

Ignoring the Consequences

This is what Massachusetts has invited ---

Atlantic City is the Poster Child for the failures of Predatory Gambling.
Although revenues are declining, discretionary income is being sucked from surrounding communities in staggering amounts.

Posted May 19, 2013 - 12:39am

Battered Atlantic City seeks to reinvent itself as destination resort

Atlantic City Gaming
Annual Revenues
2012 : $3.051 billion, -8 percent

2011: $3.317 billion, -7 percent

2010: $3.565 billion, -9.6 percent

2009: $3.943 billion, -13.24 percent

2008: $4.544 billion, -7.64 percent

2007: $4.920 billion, -5.7 percent

2006: $5.217 billion, 3.97 percent

2005: $5.018 billion, 4.4 percent

2004: $4.806 billion, 7.1 percent

2003: $4.488 billion, 2.44 percent

Source: New Jersey Division of Gaming
Enforcement


http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/battered-atlantic-city-seeks-reinvent-itself-destination-resort

Gambling addiction: The dark truth

Gambling addiction: The dark truth

Written byMARK MCKAY

Minister of Education at Burton Addiction CentreParlimentary Candidate for Labour - Ruth Smeeth, Noreen Oliver - BAC, Vernon Coaker, Kendra Gray, Sirley Wares

“When I ask for help, I’m always asked what my problem is, is it alcohol or drugs?” says Gary Jenkins.

“But it’s neither, it’s a gambling addiction.”

Gary, a 42-year-old, from Stapenhill, says he has approached the Burton Addiction Centre, and, as a last resort, his doctor, in the hope of riding himself of the disease known as addiction.

Gary, who is unemployed and estranged from his wife and four children, said he has gambled for ten years but decided to seek help after deciding ‘enough was enough’.

He said: “Nobody is left – they all left me and that’s down to my habit. Obviously it’s a lonely life.

“I want to get help but gambling is an addiction which Burton doesn’t cater for.

“It’s like it’s something people just don’t deal with and it’s a surprise when you tell them.

“But I know I’m not the only one who has to deal with it.”

He’s right. Latest figures show the number of people in danger of becoming ‘problem gamblers’ stands at one million, while the number of ‘hardcore addicts’ has doubled to 500,000 in six years.

There has been an exponential growth in the online gambling industry in recent years.

Factor in seemingly non-stop adverts offering customers to ‘bet in-play’ and offering the ‘latest live odds’, the number of people who risk falling into addiction’s seductive but destructive grip will only rise.

Kendra Gray, strategic director at Burton Addiction Centre, in Station Street, said backed this claim.

She said: “You are constantly seeing on television in between adverts pushing you to place a bid which makes it seem more acceptable.

“I’m sure there are people who can do it sensibly but for other it can become extremely destructive.”

Figured from the British gambling prevalence survey say 0.9 per cent of the population have a gambling problem. Class A drug takers make up three per cent and alcoholics are higher still.
Kendra added: “Looking at the figures I would say there is a need for more support but I don’t know what the local statistics are so I can’t say what form that support should be in.

“But what we do know is that addictions can completely ruin people’s lives and the lives of people around them.

“Behaviour can sneak in where they don’t want people to know they have a gambling problem. They believe they will win the money back and that will be the last time they do it.”

Gary says his life is ravaged by an addiction, and has spent up to £10,000 a month and more than £100,000 since his first flutter.

His habit has left him dependent on payday loans which he has been unable to pay off, leaving him £15,000 in debt.

“I think it’s very important that people are made aware of it and what it is like,” he says.

“People think gambling isn’t a problem because it doesn’t affect your health in the same way drugs and alcohol does,” Gary says.

“But it can break you – you don’t have money to pay for your mortgage at the end of the month the bank will come and re-posses your house or the bailiffs will come knocking on your door.”
Gary’s personal cruxes are the blackjack and roulette tables in casinos. In one visit, he lost £15,000 in 15 hands.

“There’s the thrill of winning £50,000 but you then lose it all on the same night,” he says.

“It’s a thrill, it’s exciting, and with the adrenaline pumping through you means you can never walk away from the table.

“When you get the fix of your first win you are constantly chasing it – that’s when the addiction sets in.

“You are constantly chasing that first big win – you are thinking and hoping that today will be your day.

“Sometimes you will get the win and think you’re up and making a profit until you realise about how much you’ve lost in the past.”

“You can walk into a casino with only £10 but you can make £4,000 from that. But when you try to walk away something pulls you back in and you end up giving it all back.

“The casinos are very shrewd – they know you are addicted to the place, that you will come back and give the money all back.

“There’s a saying, ‘the house always wins’.”

Again, the man is right. Latest figures from Fairer Gambling, which campaigns for tighter gambling regulations, show that £5 billion was gambled just on gambling machines in northern English cities and London boroughs with high unemployment last year. This was four times the amount spent in rural areas in southern England with low unemployment figures.

“I would like that network of support to be there and there should be more regulation because at the moment you can walk into a bookies without any identification.

“You can’t stop gambling but casinos know how you operate – there should be set limits to what you can spend so you don’t spend money you don’t have.

“But they are there to make money at the end of the day.”

The Gordon Moody Association accepts individuals who refer themselves, or who are referred by their friends, family, probation, social, or health workers, or anyone as long as the person being referred agrees.

Prior to admission the association will ask applicants to complete a questionnaire to assess the individual’s needs and the level of their gambling problem.

There is no charge to those in treatment for our services provided the individual is eligible for State Benefits.

To get help call 01384 241292 or email help@gordonmoody.org.uk

Gamblers Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who have joined to together to do something about their own gambling problem.

It aims to help other compulsive gamblers do the same.

It hopes to help other gamblers kick the habit by attending meetings, seeking help, support and advice from other compulsive gamblers.

For more information go to http://www.gamblersanonymous.org.uk

GamCare provides online, counselling or phone support, as well as information, and advice to anyone suffering through a gambling problem.

It offers a helpline to speak to a trained advisor for emotional support, information, and advice from 8am until midnight, seven days a week.

To get help call 0808 8020133 or go to http://www.gamcare.org.uk/ to talk an an advisor online.

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/News/Gambling-addiction-The-dark-truth-20130326134310.htm

 

‘Atlantic City is Dying’

Gambling promised to pave the streets of Atlantic City with gold.

Never happened!

Instead, Gambling brought crime, homelessness, community destruction, lost local businesses, poverty, higher unemployment than pre-casinos, and much else.

Gambling Cheerleaders blinded by the glitter ignore facts.

Gambling represents a betrayal of government's commitment to the Common Good.

How pathetic we have become as a nation when we fail to question.

Dianne M. Berlin

Is FLEECING in AC on its death bed??

Originally published December 21, 2012

With Gambling Expansion in Mid-Atlantic, ‘Atlantic City is Dying’

COLLEGE PARK - When Superstorm Sandy put Atlantic City under water, it dealt another blow to a city already reeling financially from the economic downturn and recent casino expansion throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.

The explosion of newly legalized casinos over the last decade in neighboring states--New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware--has eroded the monopoly that Atlantic City once held on Mid-Atlantic gambling.

Now, after the passage of Question 7, Maryland will soon be home to six full-service casinos, cutting another slice from a regional gambling pie that is not expanding.

“There is $6 billion in gaming for the whole region,” said Bob McDevitt, the president of Unite Here Local 54, the union representing Atlantic City casino workers. “The casino in Queens has had an impact, and Pennsylvania has had a devastating impact. Almost $2 billion has moved to Pennsylvania from Atlantic City in gambling revenue.”
Revenue at Atlantic City casinos peaked in 2006 at $5.2 billion, according to data from the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Around the same time, five casinos opened in Pennsylvania, which had just legalized casino gambling, and revenues in Atlantic City began to slip.

As Pennsylvania continued to open casinos (there are currently 11), Delaware horse tracks morphed into racinos, and slot machine parlors opened in New York City, Atlantic City casino revenues fell off a cliff. From 2006 to 2011, Atlantic City casino revenues fell over 36 percent.

And with the revenue has gone the jobs. From 2006 to 2011, Atlantic City lost 12,220 casino jobs, while Pennsylvania gained 11,850 casino jobs over the same period.

“The damage that’s been done has been done, Maryland won’t have that much of an impact,” McDevitt said. “The real impact has been Delaware. When they developed the three casinos in Delaware, they gave people the opportunity to not drive the extra hour and a half to Atlantic City from the D.C. and Baltimore areas.”

Tony Rodio, the president of the Tropicana Casino and Resort and head of the Casino Association of New Jersey, said the success of year-round residents in Atlantic City and the surrounding areas correlates with the casinos’ success.

“When the casino industry is not doing as well, there are not as many hours to be worked, not as many jobs to be had and our local suppliers don’t get as much service requests,” Rodio said.

As casino jobs disappeared, the unemployment rate soared. It was 12.9 percent in October, ranking Atlantic City 362nd out of the 372 metropolitan areas that the Bureau of Labor and Statistics tracks.

While tax revenue has obviously fallen as the casinos draw in less money, demand for social services has spiked. In the last five years, food stamp recipients in Atlantic County, N.J., (home to Atlantic City) have doubled, according to the New Jersey Department of Human Services.

“People asking for help are usually families that are underemployed. They might work in the casino industry, in the kitchens or housekeeping-type jobs,” said Tom Davidson, director of development at Atlantic City Rescue Mission, a local shelter and food pantry.

Davidson has seen a steady increase of people asking for help—including families in crisis who receive one of 250 emergency food baskets every month.

Over the last six years, families receiving assistance from the Community FoodBank of New Jersey nearly doubled, said Margie Barham, the food bank’s southern Jersey executive director.

The rise in families applying for charitable assistance mirrors the rise of unemployment and underemployment in the state, said Diane Riley, the food bank’s director of advocacy.

“People are not making enough. They have to pay their rent first and then perhaps supplementing their food,” Barham said. “They get on food stamps, go to food pantries, try to do whatever they can.”

Sandy has just exacerbated the underlying problems.

“No one is coming to the casinos because half our market is underwater,” McDevitt said. “Half our members haven’t worked since the storm.”

The struggles of workers deepen when the casino business and tourism slows down. The Casino Association of New Jersey calculates that casino resorts support more than 100,000 New Jersey jobs, either directly or indirectly--including construction workers, security guards and vendors. Many residents with jobs tied to the gaming industry end up working only eight months a year, Davidson said.

“A lot of people have learned to deal with it. They will patch two or three jobs together,” Davidson said. He added that these workers often need extra food or clothing to carry them through the rest of the year.

The impact of the industry’s shrinking revenue goes beyond the Atlantic City boardwalk. For nearly 30 years, the casinos invested more than $1.5 billion in housing and development projects in Atlantic City. The projects, which are administered by the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, included building renovations, the construction of parks and community gardens. The funds also supported homeownership programs and hotel expansions.

In addition to being Atlantic City’s economic engine, the gaming industry is also critical to New Jersey’s economy. Casinos spend billions with small independent vendors throughout the entire state. The industry also pumps nearly $1 billion in tax money at the state and local level--half of which provides housing, transportation and medical assistance for the state’s elderly and disabled. Last year, the tax revenues coming directly from casinos: $277.6 million.

Gov. Chris Christie knew this when he took matters into his hands in a state-led effort to revive the struggling city.

“Atlantic City is dying,” Christie pronounced in 2010; when he proposed to turn the city into a world-class resort filled with spas, fine dining, entertainment and retail that would attract people who want to vacation there.

This September, Atlantic City’s plan to use new attractions to pull in more customers and create more jobs received a blow when Hard Rock International decided not to build a hotel-casino in the city. The developers dropped their plans on the day the group was scheduled to pay $1 million to the state for the project, according to local newspapers.

N.J. state Sen. Jim Whelan, D-Atlantic, told the Press of Atlantic City that this was no surprise given the market conditions in the area and the national economy.

Rodio said that Hard Rock’s decision did not affect the future of Atlantic City.

“I think that we have enough gaming capacity, so the addition of a thirteenth casino in some respects probably would not be a good thing,” Rodio said.

Atlantic City’s 12th casino, Revel, was supposed to help revive the gambling market and create more than 5,000 jobs. The $2.4 billion casino and resort opened in April.

“It has (worked) in the past. A new attraction has helped to boost the local economy,” said David Schwartz, director of the Center for Gaming Research. He cited the Borgata Casino’s success when it opened in 2003 to explain the benefits of opening new casinos.

The state had a vested interest in Revel’s success. Revel’s construction stalled in 2006, after Morgan Stanley walked away from the project. Four years later, New Jersey agreed to reimburse Revel about $261 million in taxes over the next 20 years. The state would receive 20 percent of the profits the casino’s owners would receive.

But, so far, Revel has fallen short of the initial expectations with losses of $37 million between June and August. Meanwhile, all the other 11 casinos had a combined profit of $186 million, according to New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement.

While Schwartz said that it is too soon to predict the future of Revel, he said that Atlantic City needs to set itself apart from casinos in neighboring states.

“If they do become a destination resort, that would attract people who would not normally stay,” Schwartz said.

The effort to boost the area’s tourist appeal is underway. In 2011, Gov. Christie restructured the gaming regulatory system and created a “Tourism District” to try to slow the city’s decline.

“We are building on opportunities to attract more groups and corporate meeting business; we are continuing to add new brands like Bass Pro and Margaritaville, and developing other tourism drivers” said Kim Butler, a spokesperson for the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority.

“As we change the perception of Atlantic City from gaming-centric to a full-service getaway destination and diversify our offerings, more people will visit and everyone benefits,” she added.

But in the meantime, News Jersey is looking into expanding other gambling options, including Internet gambling and sports betting, the Associate Press reported.

Back in 2011, Christie said he would not consider expanding on-site gambling beyond Atlantic City until seeing the results of the five-year revitalization plan.

Casino operating profits--excluding Revel--were up 2 percent for the third quarter of this year, according to the Division of Gaming Enforcement.

Rodio said this might indicate that emphasizing Atlantic City’s new identity as a tourist destination could work. He said that the existing casinos need to reinvent themselves.

“We cannot be all about gaming revenues,” Rodio said. “We have to be more about all the other amenities and non-gaming revenues that we can get.”

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http://www.afro.com/sections/news/national/story.htm?storyid=77033