Atlantic City is the Poster Child....

for all that's wrong with Predatory Gambling, with increased crime, local business destruction, increased poverty, community destruction.......

In the shadow of Revel ----

New Jersey legalizes online gambling

By Nathan Ingrahamon February 26, 2013

 

 

Governor Chris Christie just signed a bill that will make online gambling legal in New Jersey, making his state the largest this far to allow the practice. The New Jersey state Senate and Assembly both approved a new version of the bill, which Christie submitted with changes after vetoing an earlier version, and Christie has now signed it into law. "This was a critical decision, and one that I did not make lightly," Governor Christie said in a statement according to The Wall Street Journal.

"But with the proper regulatory framework and safeguards that I insisted on including in the bill, I am confident that we are offering a responsible yet exciting option that will make Atlantic City more competitive while also bringing financial benefits to New Jersey as a whole."

While the bill only allows Atlantic City casino companies to take online bets, the WSJ believes that those casinos will partner with overseas companies that provide services for online gambling, potentially opening up a bigger market. Furthermore, the bill will allow betters from other states to gamble online, so long as regulators determine that the activity isn't prohibited by any federal or state laws. It sounds similar to recent news out of Nevada, which allows for interstate online poker play.

"This was a critical decision, and one that I did not make lightly."

The bill will allow gamers to bet money online for any game currently offered in Atlantic City's casinos. According to the AP, the goal of the program is to eventually draw online gamers into the casinos; gamblers will accrue comps like free hotel rooms and meals through playing online that will obviously have to be redeemed at an actual casino. The law will expire after 10 years, which will allow the state to review and decide whether the program was working. For now, Christie believes that the employment and economic benefits outweigh the concerns surrounding gambling addiction and potential corruption. It'll probably be six to twelve months before the system is up and running, but once it is, we imagine other states will be watching closely to see if they can implement online gambling themselves.

Governor Christie's full statement is below:

I am pleased to say that today I signed New Jersey’s Internet Gaming Bill, opening the way for new opportunity to bolster our efforts to continue the revival of Atlantic City, its casinos and entertainment offerings. This was a critical decision, and one that I did not make lightly. But with the proper regulatory framework and safeguards that I insisted on including in the bill, I am confident that we are offering a responsible yet exciting option that will make Atlantic City more competitive while also bringing financial benefits to New Jersey as a whole. I want to thank the sponsors for working quickly to include my recommendations to improve the bill.
 

http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/26/4033534/governor-christie-signs-bill-legalizing-online-gambling-in-new-jersey


Gov. Christie signs internet gambling into law

View the Slideshow >>

(Gallery by Janelle Griffith/The Star-Ledger)

By Ryan Hutchins/The Star-LedgerThe Star-Ledger
on February 26, 2013 at 6:54 PM, updated February 27, 2013

Wait and see how overzealous these projections are!

The state Treasury said today it expected the new law — combined with the recovery from Hurricane Sandy and additional advertising — to sharply increase casino revenue from $235 million in the current fiscal year to nearly $436 million in fiscal 2014.



Last month, securities analysts with Wells Fargo were even more optimistic, saying that online wagering could generate from $650 million to $850 million in the "near term."

 http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/02/gov_christie_signs_internet_ga.html



http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/02/gov_christie_signs_internet_ga.html

Simulated Gambling Addiction

Mass. lottery to hold huge simulated poker tournament at TD Garden

By Martin Finucane, Globe Staff

The Massachusetts State Lottery says it will hold a huge simulated poker tournament in the TD Garden in April that will end up with people getting more than $15 million in prizes.

In the $10,000,000 Hold’Em Poker Tournament, slated for the evening of April 6, 560 “players,’” along with their guests, will go to the Garden.

The elaborate and unusual event, which officials said has not been tried by any other state, will be the grand finale of one of the Lottery’s instant ticket games.

Two cards will be preassigned to each player, officials said. Three more cards, which all the players will share, will be drawn in each of three rounds. Whoever has the best hand advances to the next round. Sixty-four people will win in the first elimination round, 12 of them will advance in the second, and four of them in the third.

Lottery officials said there will be no skill involved. Spokeswoman Beth Bresnahan said the Lottery has designed the drawing so there will be a set number of winners, though the Lottery does not know who will win what.

Still, for dramatic effect, in the second and third rounds, participants will sit at poker tables, as if they were playing.

The 560 have already won a $2,000 prize; the 64 who advance in the first round will receive $10,000; the 12 who advance in the second round win $50,000. In the final round, three people will win $1 million and one will win $10 million.

So how did people get picked to be part of the lucky 560?

The 560 are among those who played the Lottery’s long-running $10,000,000 Hold’Em Poker scratch ticket game. Instead of cash prizes, they won World Poker Tour merchandise packs and claimed them. That qualified them for a drawing to become a participant in the tournament. One in 123 of those who claimed the packs were selected, Bresnahan said.

The game ran for nearly 7 ½ years before reaching the sales target that triggered the end of the game – and the simulated tournament. Sales of the tickets exceeded $800 million, and the Lottery raised more than $97.8 million for Massachusetts cities and towns from the game, officials said.

Some of those who qualified for the tournament have died because the game has taken so long to conclude, but any winnings will be paid to their estates, said Bresnahan.

In addition to the big prizes, those who don’t make it to the final round will also be eligible for consolation prizes, she said. People will also get allowances for travel and for food during the event.
Bresnahan said the Lottery launched the game in 2005 when a poker craze was sweeping the nation.

“It really was fitting for the time. And we were capitalizing on the popularity of poker tournaments and hold’em tournaments,” she said.

“I think it will be a pretty spectacular event,” she said.

- See more at: http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2013/02/27/mass-lottery-hold-huge-simulated-poker-tournament-garden/ADWA6Yoz5mlTVvqgwYCA1N/story.html#sthash.ZwpDUaXp.dpuf

Patrick 'close' to new casino compact

Assorted perspectives......wonder if anyone will review the Tribe's application.

Patrick 'close' to new casino compact

This and a lot more local political news today.

- See more at: http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2013/02/27/17354-patrick-close-new-casino-compact#sthash.rNO2MifY.dpuf

Patrick 'close' to new casino compact with tribe

By BOB SALSBERG, Associated Press | February 26, 2013

BOSTON (AP) — Gov. Deval Patrick said Tuesday he was nearing a revised casino agreement with the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe but planned to run the major elements of the deal by federal officials before submitting it for final approval.

The governor is hoping to avoid a repeat of the events of last year, when a compact he signed with the tribe was approved by the Legislature, only to be rejected later by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The compact was nixed in part because the bureau felt the state was demanding too large a share of the tribe's future gambling revenues.

Patrick said during an impromptu meeting with reporters that he believed his administration was close to finalizing a renegotiated compact with the tribe, which has proposed a $500 million resort casino in Taunton, though he did not provide specifics of what the agreement might include.

"We're in negotiations, we've got the model," Patrick said.

"We're trying to work through with the tribe and we have hope, I think it's either by the end of this week or early next week, to be able to go down to the Bureau of Indian Affairs and show them the framework so that we get some preliminary feedback from them and we don't go through the process that we did the last time, thinking we had a deal that was going to satisfy them," the governor said.

Cedric Cromwell, tribal chairman of the Mashpee, also predicted in a statement on Tuesday that a new compact — fair to both the tribe and the state — would arrive in the "very near future."

The 2011 law that legalized casino gambling in Massachusetts allows for up to three resort-style casinos in separate geographical areas of the state, but gave preference to a federally-recognized Native American tribe in the southeastern region, provided the tribe met several requirements including a signed compact with the state.

The Mashpee's efforts have reached a critical juncture, with some lawmakers and officials in southeastern Massachusetts growing impatient with the tribe's progress and expressing concern that the region will fall behind other parts of the state in casino development.

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission could decide as early as next month whether to open up the bidding for the regional casino license to commercial developers. Such a move could deal a significant setback, if not a fatal blow, to the tribe's hopes of exclusivity in the region.

The Mashpee, which has no land of its own, also faces the formidable task of winning federal land-in-trust approval for the 146-acre site of the proposed Taunton casino. To that end, it received a favorable preliminary advisory opinion earlier this month from the federal Office of Indian Gaming that said the land appeared to qualify as an "initial reservation," which could allow the tribe to conduct gambling at the site in the future.

"We have made unprecedented progress toward opening our destination resort casino in Taunton, including notice from the federal government that our lands qualify for gaming under federal law," Cromwell said.

Another potential legal hurdle for the tribe is a 2009 U.S. Supreme Court decision, in a Rhode Island case, that limits the government's ability to hold land in trust for tribes that were recognized after 1934. The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe won federal recognition in 2007.

The compact agreed to by the tribe last year called for it to return 21.5 percent of future gambling revenues to Massachusetts, the highest figure ever negotiated between a state and Native American tribe.

In rejecting the agreement, the bureau said the revenue allocation was too generous to the state and would undermine the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which says gambling should primarily benefit tribes.

 

http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2013/02/27/17354-patrick-close-new-casino-compact

 

Governor, Mashpee Wampanoags working to get casino deal back on track

By Andy Metzger

State House News Service

Posted Feb 26, 2013

 

BOSTON —

With regulators on the cusp of opening up the southeast region of the state to commercial casino developers, Gov. Deval Patrick said his administration and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe have a “framework” of a compact they plan to show federal officials in the hopes of avoiding another rejection.

“We’re in negotiations,” Patrick told reporters on Tuesday. “We’ve got a model we’re trying to work through with the tribe, and we have a hope – I think it’s either by the end of this week or early next week – to be able to go down to the BIA and show them the framework so that we can get some preliminary feedback from them and we don’t go through the process we did the last time of thinking we had a deal that was going to satisfy them. It’s hard.”

After Patrick and the Legislature approved a gaming compact with the Mashpee that would have sent 21.5 percent of tribal gaming revenues to the state, the Bureau of Indian Affairs rejected the deal, saying the state had no right to offer hunting and fishing rights and other concessions on its end of the deal.

“We're looking at national policy, what the Bureau of Indian Affairs has approved. We're looking at where we're at with gaming in the Commonwealth. We're looking at the meaningful concessions that we can support to get to a revenue-share level that can be supported at a national level at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and obviously supported at the Legislature-level at the Commonwealth, and also at my tribal council level,” Mashpee Chairman Cedric Cromwell told the News Service in January.

The Mashpee are hoping to build a resort casino in a Taunton office park. In December, the Gaming Commission tabled discussion of whether to start the licensure process for other, commercial developers in the southeast region, giving the tribe until March 15 to show progress has been made in securing the necessary land-in-trust agreement from the federal government and on the compact. The commission plans to revisit the discussion at its Thursday, March 21 meeting, the first after the deadline.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs is reviewing the Mashpee’s land-in-trust application and learned earlier in February that the Department of the Interior deemed the application “qualified to be processed under the initial reservation exception.”
The federal government’s rejection of the first gaming compact along with the uncertainty over whether and when the bureau might approve a land-in-trust application motivated some to push for the commission to set a hard deadline for the tribe to have its paperwork in order or open up the southeast to commercial ventures.

With regulators on the cusp of opening up the southeast region of the state to commercial casino developers, Gov. Deval Patrick said his administration and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe have a “framework” of a compact they plan to show federal officials in the hopes of avoiding another rejection.

“We’re in negotiations,” Patrick told reporters on Tuesday. “We’ve got a model we’re trying to work through with the tribe, and we have a hope – I think it’s either by the end of this week or early next week – to be able to go down to the BIA and show them the framework so that we can get some preliminary feedback from them and we don’t go through the process we did the last time of thinking we had a deal that was going to satisfy them. It’s hard.”

After Patrick and the Legislature approved a gaming compact with the Mashpee that would have sent 21.5 percent of tribal gaming revenues to the state, the Bureau of Indian Affairs rejected the deal, saying the state had no right to offer hunting and fishing rights and other concessions on its end of the deal.

“We're looking at national policy, what the Bureau of Indian Affairs has approved. We're looking at where we're at with gaming in the Commonwealth. We're looking at the meaningful concessions that we can support to get to a revenue-share level that can be supported at a national level at the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and obviously supported at the Legislature-level at the Commonwealth, and also at my tribal council level,” Mashpee Chairman Cedric Cromwell told the News Service in January.

The Mashpee are hoping to build a resort casino in a Taunton office park. In December, the Gaming Commission tabled discussion of whether to start the licensure process for other, commercial developers in the southeast region, giving the tribe until March 15 to show progress has been made in securing the necessary land-in-trust agreement from the federal government and on the compact. The commission plans to revisit the discussion at its Thursday, March 21 meeting, the first after the deadline.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs is reviewing the Mashpee’s land-in-trust application and learned earlier in February that the Department of the Interior deemed the application “qualified to be processed under the initial reservation exception.”

The federal government’s rejection of the first gaming compact along with the uncertainty over whether and when the bureau might approve a land-in-trust application motivated some to push for the commission to set a hard deadline for the tribe to have its paperwork in order or open up the southeast to commercial ventures.

The Mashpee have potential rivals in the region. The Aquinnah Wampanoag sought a license under the 2011 gaming law’s provision for American Indian tribes, but voters in Freetown and Lakeville rejected the idea for a casino in their towns.

KG Urban Enterprises, which hopes to build a casino along the New Bedford waterfront, has sued the state and named both tribes as “intervener” defendants in an attempt to block a portion of the gaming law that dealt with tribes. KG complained it “contains numerous explicit, race-based set-asides that give federally recognized Indian tribes a categorical advantage over all other applicants in seeking a commercial gaming license in Southeastern Massachusetts.”

When the Department of the Interior rejected the original compact, Patrick said it was “deeply disappointing on a number of levels,” saying the state had negotiated carefully and in good faith, and said it was “extraordinarily fair to both sides.”

The Mashpee have potential rivals in the region. The Aquinnah Wampanoag sought a license under the 2011 gaming law’s provision for American Indian tribes, but voters in Freetown and Lakeville rejected the idea for a casino in their towns.

KG Urban Enterprises, which hopes to build a casino along the New Bedford waterfront, has sued the state and named both tribes as “intervener” defendants in an attempt to block a portion of the gaming law that dealt with tribes. KG complained it “contains numerous explicit, race-based set-asides that give federally recognized Indian tribes a categorical advantage over all other applicants in seeking a commercial gaming license in Southeastern Massachusetts.”

When the Department of the Interior rejected the original compact, Patrick said it was “deeply disappointing on a number of levels,” saying the state had negotiated carefully and in good faith, and said it was “extraordinarily fair to both sides.”


Read more: Governor, Mashpee Wampanoags working to get casino deal back on track - Easton, MA - Easton Journal http://www.wickedlocal.com/easton/news/x1433788889/Governor-Mashpee-Wampanoags-working-to-get-casino-deal-back-on-track#ixzz2MDSaEJld - See more at: http://www.wickedlocal.com/easton/topstories/x1433788889/Governor-Mashpee-Wampanoags-working-to-get-casino-deal-back-on-track?zc_p=1#axzz2MDRBv65c

Gov. Patrick Finalizing Compact With Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe

By Jim Phillips2 days ago

ragingwire,flickr

Gov. Deval Patrick says he is close to finalizing a new casino compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe but plans to run it by federal officials before submitting it for final approval.

The governor is trying to avoid a repeat of last year’s event, when an agreement he signed with the tribe was approved by the Legislature, only to be rejected later by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Patrick told reporters on Tuesday he hoped to complete negotiations with the Mashpee by the end of this week or early next week. His administration would then seek “preliminary feedback” from the bureau on the major elements of the compact.

The tribe has proposed a $500 million resort casino in Taunton. The state’s 2011 casino law gives preference to a federally-recognized Indian tribe in the southeastern region. {Associated Press)

http://wbsm.com/patrick-finalizing-compact-with-mashpee-wampanoag-tribe/

Some Fear New Internet Gambling Law Will Be Detrimental for Addicts

Posted on February 27, 2013

By Senior Correspondent Desirée Taylor
NJ Today

New Jersey’s new internet gambling law received widespread support in the legislature. And while supporters tout the revenue it will bring the state and Atlantic City’s struggling casinos, there’s a concern how online gambling will impact people are who battling gambling addiction.

“The new law legalizes online betting on any casino game,” said Executive Director of the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey Donald Weinbaum. “You couldn’t have better access than online. People can gamble at work, at home, in the middle of the night … so it will become a more broad based problem.”

WATCH VIDEO:

Watch Some Fear New Internet Gambling Law Will Hurt Addicts on PBS. See more from NJToday.

The easy access the internet brings also brings concerns internet gambling will encourage more people to gamble and for some this could turn into a gambling problem. Gov. Chris Christie shares this concern. That’s why he conditionally vetoed the bill and called for increased funding for programs that help people fight gambling addiction. The legislation, which the governor signed into law, also requires casinos to fund an annual study that will examine the potential impacts of online gambling.

Director of Clinical Services for the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey Jeff Beck, applauds the governor’s call for increased funding for programs and for the study. And he believes it will be easier to get the data for these studies via the internet. “We can for the first time monitor someone’s play,” said Beck. “When we look at online betting we have a record of everything done … so hopefully we can locate a problem and intervene.”

Through its nine providers, the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey offers treatment to hundreds of people who are at-risk or are problem gamblers. Officials believe the increased funding called for in the new law will help the Council better prevent and treat the estimated 350,000 residents who are considered pathological, problem or at-risk gamblers in the state.

Anyone in need of help is urged to call this 24 hour hotline — 1-800-GAMBLER.

http://www.njtvonline.org/njtoday/video/some-fear-new-internet-gambling-law-will-be-detrimental-for-addicts/

Drug Dealer At Parx

Bill Kearney

Imagine that drug dealers in casinos.

Bucks County Courier Times - February 28, 2013 - Man jailed on drug charges

BENSALEM — A Newtown man who claimed he didn't make much money was jailed Wednesday on charges he sold Oxycodone to police for $1,000.
...
Court documents show Eric J. Moffatt, 41, of Swamp Road, allegedly sold 50 30-mg pills to undercover police Wednesday in the parking lot of Parx Casino at 5:45 p.m.

Police went there with $1,000 in pre-recorded money. When police arrested Moffatt, they found a backpack with used needles, heroin bags, spoon and tin cans, all consistent with drug use, police said.

He was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Police learned Moffatt, a self-employed general contractor, had two outstanding warrants, one each in Bucks County and Philadelphia. He told District Judge Daniel Baranoski he is on parole for an unrelated matter.

Baranoski sent Moffatt to Bucks County prison in lieu of 10 percent of $75,000 bail.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/my_town/bensalem/man-jailed-on-drug-charges/article_cb393083-4aab-50c7-81fc-65d8d7b61ac3.htmlSee More

Anonymous Cowards!

ANONYMOUS COWARDS sent the 2 page mailing below without signing their names.
 
They claim "WE DESERVE ALL THE FACTS" and surely those "FACTS" include identifying the origin. One can only speculate that this is the action of a sleazy competitor.







Add:

a Predatory Industry that only profits by creating ADDICTS,

an isolated and out-of-touch Governor,

corrupt politicians accepting undisclosed 'charitable contributions,'

backroom deals,

a pig-headed and arrogant Mayor, convinced of his invincibility,

no INDEPENDENT COST ANALYSIS,

a 'developer' $20 BILLION in debt [Caesars] whose entire cash flow goes to debt payments,

union members too willing to follow like sheep,

And what do you get?

Massachusetts Taxpayers get SCAMMED again!



Senator Petrucelli: Your nose is growing!

The Scam of Suffolk Downs

$500 MILLION? Senator Anthony Petrucelli Porks Us With the BILL!

Corrupt Politicians

The SUFFOLK DOWNS SCAM!


PLEASE!

Let's not pretend this is the only location in which this is occurring.

The Taunton/Genting Follies will cost you.....?

Take a gander:

South Coast Rail

SRPEDD South Coast Rail

SRPEDD MEPA COMMENTS:

Page 3, #5:

...the proponent does not commit to long term improvements at the Rte 24/Rte 140 interchange but relies on Federal and State taxpayers to fully fund this project.

[SRPEDD has done a great job pointing out current road failures requiring correction at taxpayers' expense. This location will cost YOU BILLIONS for a Malaysian investor, Genting.]

“Our focus is on the governor’s $1.8 billion investment in South Coast Rail,” Flanagan said. “This investment would ensure the South Coast Rail would be completed in eight years.”

Read more: http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x1922391586/Patrick-wants-South-Coast-Rail-completed-by-2021-for-1-8-billion#ixzz2M7Cu558Z

The Palmer Citizens' Casino Study Committee determined that the annual cost to host the Mohegan Sun monster would be $18 MILLION to $39 MILLION [conservatively], not including the estimated $50 MILLION to bring water from the Quabbin.

Town Fathers refused to make the report 'public.'


Yup! You've been SCAMMED if you believe this makes sense!

Next time? Sign your name!

Where Do The Children Play

Bill Kearney

Massachusetts 'Gaming' Future

Open this link and listen to Cat Stevens song - Where Do The Children Play (live)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2rDp6FnbP0

... Check out the Lyrics in the beginning of the song.

Well I think it's fine, building jumbo planes.
Or taking a ride on a cosmic train.
Switch on summer from a slot machine.
Yes, get what you want to if you want, 'cause you can get anything.

Philadelphia Inquirer - February 27, 2013- Christie signs bill legalizing online gambling

Atlantic City's gambling houses can now begin offering betting on Internet versions of the slot machines and table games found on their traditional casino floors. The New Jersey Assembly and Senate overwhelmingly approved Internet-gaming legislation Tuesday, and Gov. Christie signed it into law.

New Jersey joins Nevada and Delaware as the only states in the country in which some form of online wagering is legal.

Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/homepage/20130227_Christie_signs_bill_legalizing_online_gambling.htmlSee More

More Foxwoods Layoffs, Massive Debt

Foxwoods Informs Workers of Impending Layoffs

February 27th, 2013

MASHANTUCKET, Conn. (AP) — Foxwoods Resort Casino has told employees it will cut jobs, though Chief Executive Scott Butera says the number will be modest.

The Day of New London reports that Butera would not say how many jobs are at stake.
The newspaper quotes Butera in a memo to employees saying Foxwoods must adjust to declining business. The newspaper says that in the memo it obtained, Butera cited the weak economy and its impact on casinos, which rely on consumer spending.

Butera told employees that the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe, which owns Foxwoods, is close to completing a $2.2 billion debt restructuring plan.

Foxwoods reported a 12 percent drop in slot-machine revenue for January, the fifth straight month of double-digit declines. Foxwoods and its neighbor, Mohegan Sun, also face increasing competition in the Northeast.

http://www.wggb.com/2013/02/27/foxwoods-informs-workers-of-impending-layoffs/

Candidate cries foul over tribal election tally

Candidate cries foul over tribal election tally

By George Brennan

gbrennan@capecodonline.com

February 28, 2013

 

MASHPEE — Richard Oakley, who secured 23 votes in a three-way race for chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Council, is challenging the election results in tribal court, Woods Hole attorney Jonathan Polloni said.

 

In his complaint, Polloni said, Oakley alleges election fraud and bases his complaint on the number of family members alone who he believes voted for him in Sunday's election. Oakley received 3 percent of the total vote.

Cedric Cromwell was re-elected overwhelmingly with 63 percent of the vote and a third candidate, David Pocknett, received 34 percent of the vote.

 

"I just feel I got more than 23 votes," Oakley said Wednesday. "I'm not saying I have enough votes to win, but something just isn't right."

 

Cromwell had no comment on Oakley's complaint.

 

The tribal court has acknowledged receipt of the complaint but has not yet scheduled a hearing, Polloni said.

 

Oakley also has asked the tribe's Election Commission for a recount, Polloni said.

 

The commission confirmed Wednesday night it had received Oakley's request. According to tribe spokeswoman Brooke Scannell, the commission "will conduct the recount within the prescribed time in accordance with tribal law."

 

The recount must be completed by March 10.

 

Paul Mills, who is part of a group that sued in federal court over the 2009 election, said Oakley's vote total doesn't match what people are saying.

 

"The 23 votes is totally out of proportion," Mills said. "That number does not jibe with anything that we know."

 

Mills and others had sought to have observers present at the vote count but were rebuffed. "It's just too suspicious," he said.

 

Pocknett said he doesn't question the outcome of the vote but said it would have been tougher to raise issues if one of Cromwell's relatives, Kimberly Frye, was not on the election commission.

 

"His sister-in-law should have recused herself," he said. "It would have looked better and quelled people's concerns."

 

Two of Cromwell's confidants — Vice Chairman Aaron Tobey and Treasurer Mark Harding — were defeated in the election. Pocknett acknowledged that the defeat of Tobey and Harding makes it difficult to believe there was any tampering.

 

Pocknett is upset about a plan to keep Tobey and Harding involved in tribal business during a transition period. The tribal council was expected to consider Wednesday night whether Tobey, who has been actively involved in negotiations on a compact with Gov. Deval Patrick, could continue in that role.

 

"If they wanted a transition period, that should have been taken care of before the election," Pocknett said. Cromwell should be able to carry on negotiations, he said. "You have to respect what the people said at the polls."

- See more at: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130228/NEWS/302280323/-1/NEWSLETTER100#sthash.xEA5eWkc.dpuf

Vegas Mirage or Hallucination?

Governments shouldn’t bet on casinos

by James Cowan on Wednesday, February 27, 2013

 

The downtrodden look at a casino and see a way out of destitution. It doesn’t matter if the down-on-their-luck sap is an unemployed mechanic or an underpaid waitress or, say, an entire state or municipal government. As politicians confront untenable levels of deficit and debt, many—in New York, in Miami, in Detroit, in Boston—consider slots and card tables a viable financial strategy.

Ontario has lately joined the club: Las Vegas’s big boys are now vying to build a casino in downtown Toronto. MGM dangles the prospect of a $4-billion resort, home to a new Cirque Du Soleil show. Las Vegas Sands Corp. doesn’t offer clowns but will spend $2-billion to revitalize a dowdy convention centre. Caesars wants to build twin hotel towers and has a penchant for mentioning its famous friends (Elton! Shania! Celine!) who might come to visit. All of this razzle-dazzle is meant to fuel visions of Las Vegas North, a tourism destination sucking in cash from around the world to boost the economy and cover the municipal deficit.

But there is a flaw in this Vegas mirage: casinos are fickle businesses. Economic growth spurred by casinos is either short-term or non-existent, according to a study commissioned by the Canadian Gaming Association. Further, nobody outside Las Vegas builds casinos to attract tourists these days; they do it to stop local gamblers from leaving.

There are two places that have built a sustainable tourism market on gambling: Las Vegas and Macau. Elsewhere, casinos cater almost exclusively to locals within driving distance. Even once glitzy Atlantic City has seen its gaming revenues fall by 36% since 2006, when casinos opened in nearby Pennsylvania. As states like Ohio and Massachusetts introduce casinos, it spurs their neighbours to do the same.

In the last U.S. election, Rhode Island voters approved the state’s first gaming house—in part to stop losing gambling dollars to Massachusetts. Maryland expanded its casinos so its gamblers won’t wander to West Virginia. But the supply of gamblers isn’t growing, so added competition divides the market into tinier bits. This oversupply is evident on the operators’ balance sheets: Caesars last quarter reported a $20.2-million drop in its Atlantic City revenue alone, and a total operations loss of $221 million.

Moody’s Investor Services warns this “keeping-up-with-the-Joneses” mindset currently running rampant in the northeastern United States will force operators to reach farther afield to maintain attendance levels. Which, of course, is bad news for a Toronto casino. So, too, is Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s call to build three new gambling resorts in upstate New York. Surrounded by a saturated market, a Toronto facility will be reliant on separating local gamblers from their cash. Proponents claim international “high rollers” could be wooed by Toronto’s charms. But let’s say you’re a Hong Kong businessman with a fondness for blackjack. It’s January. Where do you go on vacation—frigid Toronto or balmy Vegas?

Casino proponents know this. An Ernst & Young study suggests as much as 76% of casino revenue would come from local residents. Any private operator would be expected to pay the province a significant cut of the gaming revenue; similar projects in other parts of the province pay out a “win tax” of 20%. Rob Ford, the city’s tax-averse mayor, has not objected to this idea, even though it amounts to a government surcharge on fun. Instead, he seems keen to collect a multimillion-dollar hosting fee and the creation of thousands of jobs.

Ford would be negligent not to explore bringing new jobs to his city. But he might also contemplate New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s flirtations with the gambling business. Christie backed the construction of Revel, a $2.6-billion luxury casino in Atlantic City. Open last April, the facility lost $46 million in its first six months of operations. It’s further proof of how fickle and unpredictable casino patrons can be. It’s tempting to say the citizens will pay if a Toronto casino fails. But with its reliance on the domestic market, the citizens will pay regardless.

James Cowan is deputy editor of Canadian Business where this article first appeared. More Cowan columns here.

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/02/27/why-governments-shouldnt-bet-on-casinos/

Man Punches Sands Slot Machine

Man Punches Sands Slot Machine, Police Say

Brooklyn man charged with criminal mischief after he allegedly caused $1,625 in damage to slot machine screen, court papers say.

• ByTom Coombe

• February 27, 2013

A New York City man was jailed early Wednesday after police said he smashed the screen on a slot machine at the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem.

Juan Delgado, 56, of Brooklyn, is charged with criminal mischief, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness.

According to court records, police were called to the casino around 1:11 a.m. Wednesday after security reported that a man had punched the screen on one of the slot machines, causing "significant damage."

Security had detained Delgado, who smelled of alcohol and admitted to a state trooper he had punched the machine, police said. Damage was estimated at $1,625.

Delgado's bail was considerably higher, set at $10,000 by on-call District Judge Richard Yetter in Wilson. Delgado was unable to pay, and was sent to Northmapton County Prison.

http://bethlehem.patch.com/articles/nyc-man-punched-sands-slot-machine-police-say

Ask Questions: HCAC: Meeting: 7 PM, East Boston High School

Officials from the Mayor's Host Community Advisory Committee -- which is researching and negotiating with Caesars and Suffolk Downs regarding the proposed casino in East Boston -- will be at tonight's Eagle Hill Civic Association meeting. 7 p.m., East Boston High School, 86 White Street.

Please attend and hear what the committee has been working on and the results of the studies they've been conducting on casino impacts, and ask your questions.

As a reminder, a few weeks ago a few NEC organizers met with members of the Mayor's Host Community Advisory Committee to hear about their process and explain what we've been up to. Here were a few of our biggest takeaways from that meeting:

1. The Committee has hired consultants to study the traffic, economic, and environmental impacts of the Suffolk Downs proposal on East Boston. While this is a step in the right direction, we are concerned that the Committee's definition of "economic impact" may be too narrow. For example, the Committee was reluctant to discuss issues like increased rates of gambling addiction, substance use, or higher illness rates due to increased pollution as part of an economic impact study. This is shortsighted, since families, employers, and medical providers like hospitals and neighborhood health centers will bear the economic costs of treating these conditions.
2. The Committee is still seeking community input on what they should be investigating, and they are tracking the questions and suggestions they receive. This affirms that it's important to call, email, and speak up at community meetings when the Committee is in the room. VOLUME COUNTS! http://www.cityofboston.gov/gaming/
3. The timeline for a vote is still unclear, but it is very likely the vote will be scheduled this summer or fall--potentially as early as June or July.

See you tonight!

No Eastie Casino organizers

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: HCAC <HCAC@cityofboston.gov>
Date: Tue, Feb 19, 2013 at 4:29 PM
Subject: Upcoming: Presentations on the Expanding Gaming Process!
To:

Next week City Officials will be attending two neighborhood meetings in East Boston to help clarify the process for expanded gaming in Massachusetts.

The meetings are as follows:

· Monday February 25th at 7 pm: The Orient Heights Neighborhood Council Meeting - 58 Ashley Street;

· Wednesday February 27th at 7 pm: The Eagle Hill Civic Association Meeting - East Boston High School, 86 White Street

We welcome your feedback! Please contact us with any questions, concerns, or comments you may have. You may also schedule a one on one or group meeting with local officials or members of the Advisory Committee.

You can reach us via email, on Facebook or on Twitter !

En Español

Funcionarios municipales atenderán dos reuniones comunitarias en East Boston esta próxima semana para ayudar a aclarar el proceso de ampliación dentro del sector de juego en Massachusetts.

Las reuniones se darán acabo :

• Lunes, 25 de febrero a las 7 pm: Reunión del Concejo Comunitario de Orient Heights – 58 de la calle Ashley;

• Miércoles, 27 de febrero a las 7 pm: Reunión de la Asociación Cívica de Eagle Hill – Escuela Superior de East Boston, 86 de la calle White

¡Le agradecemos su opinión! Favor de contactarnos si tiene alguna pregunta, preocupación o comentario. También puede programar una fecha para reunirse individualmente, establecer una reunión en grupo con funcionarios locales o con miembros del Comité Asesor Comunitario.

¡Nos puede contactar vía email, a través de Facebook o Twitter!

Host Community Advisory Committee

HCAC@CityofBoston.gov

www.cityofboston.gov/gaming

www.facebook.com/BostonGamingCommittee

Twitter: @BosGamingComm

Ph. (617) 635-4500

Gambling Addicts Turn To Theft For Money

February 26, 2013

(Photo Credit: KDKA)

 

PITTSBURGH (NewsRadio 1020 KDKA) – Local residents are being drawn to the tables and slot machines at the casinos to fill their need to gamble.

Some players admit that they like to gamble, but rarely will they admit that they have a gambling addiction problem.

Admitted and reformed gambling addict, Bill Kearney, explains to Mike Pintek how addicts will go to any extreme to get money for gambling.

Kearney has first-hand experience with stealing to feed his habit.

He feels that people need to monitor their gambling spending more frequently to see what damage they are doing.

Listen to the interview here

 

Bill Kearney

You can hear Mike Pintek weekdays noon to 3 p.m. only on NewsRadio 1020 KDKA!

- See more at: http://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2013/02/26/gambling-addicts-turn-to-theft-for-money/#sthash.VInKWLdi.dpuf

"Ashamed"

Priest jailed for stealing to feed gambling addiction   

DAVID CLARKSON

Last updated  27/02/2013

 

DAVID CLARKSON

"ASHAMED": Father John William Fitzmaurice

leaves court after his guilty pleas.

 

A Catholic priest who stole $149,000 from the church to feed a poker machine addiction has been jailed for two years and three months.

 

Father John William Fitzmaurice, who worked as a priest in the Christchurch diocese for 34 years, had admitted eight charges of dishonestly using documents and obtaining money by deception.

He was sentenced by Judge John Macdonald in the Christchurch District Court after hundreds of dishonest transactions involving writing out cash cheques which were paid into his account, or withdrawals from automatic teller machines.

Defence counsel Jonathan Eaton told the judge: "He stands before you for sentencing truly ashamed and deeply remorseful for the harm he has caused."

Fitzmaurice was aware of the breach of trust towards the bishop, the church, parishioners, family, and friends.

Crown prosecutor Marcus Zintl said it had cost the church $31,000 in investigation fees to uncover Fitzmaurice's offending. Reparation of $149,000 was sought but the church was realistic in acknowledging Fitzmaurice's inability to pay.

Zintl said the offending involved 735 separate acts of dishonesty. It was highly calculated and premeditated offending.

"The offender was a man of faith, but the very faith that was placed in him by the Catholic church and the community, he has betrayed."

Eaton said a report described the offending as "a spiralling vocational and emotional meltdown over several years".

Fitzmaurice had become increasingly isolated and lonely. His visits to the poker machines had escalated into a pathological addiction. His relationship with another problem gambler led to small scale dishonest acts to fuel his behaviours.

He had faced public humiliation because of announcements in the church and in the media, said Eaton.

He had no assets at all and had only earned a modest income from the church.

"What his future holds in terms of his relationship with the church remains to be seen."

He could not continue to work in Christchurch, but an "olive branch" had been extended by the Bishop of Auckland, and he might be able to continue his work there.

Judge Macdonald said he would make no reparation order because of Fitzmaurice's inability to pay, but if he became able to pay later, the judge said he expected he would do so.

The betrayal of trust had caused a scandal for his fellow priests and members of the Catholic community. He noted there was continuing support and compassion for Fitzmaurice, voiced in references and letters or support.

 

"I understand how ashamed you must be," said the judge. It was surprising that he had not sought help earlier.

Eaton said after the sentencing that he would be applying for Fitzmaurice's release on bail pending the hearing of an appeal.

Later in the afternoon, Judge Macdonald refused to grant bail for the appeal which is likely to be heard in April.

 

 

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/8359810/Priest-jailed-for-stealing-to-feed-gambling-addiction

Sheldon Adelson Bullies Another Victim

Even if you speak the truth, be careful what you say in print about a man who earned his fortune sucking the life blood out of people.

Sheldon Adelson Sues Wall Street Journal Reporter For Libel
Tom Kludt Monday February 25, 2013

Tom Kludt PMonday February 25, 2013

Billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson has sued a Wall Street Journal reporter for libel over a December article in which the Republican financier was described as "foul-mouthed," the newspaper detailed Monday.
The article was co-written by Kate O'Keefe and Alexandra Berzon but the suit, filed Feb. 22 in Hong Kong, only names O'Keefe and says Adelson is seeking "damages, including aggravated, exemplary and special damages." O'Keefe reports for the Journal out of Hong Kong.
The article provided a breakdown of a wrongful termination suit filed against Adelson by a former executive.
From the Journal:

The article details the fight playing out in U.S. courts between Mr. Adelson, the chairman and CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corp., LVS +0.59% and Steve Jacobs, the former CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corp.'s Macau operations, who filed a wrongful termination lawsuit in 2010. The company has denied the allegations made in the wrongful-termination suit. The article ran under the headline "Fired Executive Rankles Casino Industry" in the U.S. edition of the newspaper, but also appeared in overseas editions and on WSJ.com.
The article, which ran in early December, contrasted Mr. Jacobs, "a 6-foot-5-inch-tall Ivy League graduate who colleagues say rarely curses," with Mr. Adelson, "a scrappy, foul-mouthed billionaire from working-class Dorchester, Mass."
 

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entry/sheldon-adelson-sues-wall-street-journal-reporter-for
 

Smoke and Mirrors!

Hassan should reconsider casino gambling plan

February 26, 2013

 

To the Editor:

 

Dear Gov. Hassan:

 

How can you "balance" a budget when $80 million is based on thin air? To say a casino, a slots parlor, will miraculously drop all this windfall into your lap is smoke and mirrors.

 

Gambling will bring theft, bankruptcy, unemployment and an increase in welfare and divorce. People will lose jobs because gambling will become their only focus. There are precious few big winners.

 

Crime is up in Connecticut, as is divorce and welfare. Children go hungry because a parent blew another paycheck.

 

You don't know if a bill will pass, let alone how much "profit" we might see. Raise the gasoline and tobacco taxes, bump up the liquor tax, but please, keep gambling out of New Hampshire.

 

Reduce pensions and retirement pay and no more big payouts for sick leave. Have employees pay a higher percentage of health insurance, but no statewide gambling.

 

Frederick S. Gray

Portsmouth

East Boston Survey: + 50% OPPOSED!

The overwhelming majority of residents surveyed know about the casino project. Over 50% of residents are opposed to building a casino in East Boston. Only one-quarter of residents stated that they support a casino with the rest either having no opinion or not having enough information to form an opinion. Opposition to the casino is highest among registered voters.

Steve Holt

Results from an important community survey are in, and they reveal what many of us thought they would: that East Boston residents are very skeptical of a casino development. In fact, among survey respondents, only 26% support the casino outright. (and that was last summer) Frank Conte has listed the highlights from the report on his site, which also contains a link to the original report.

 

Monday, February 25, 2013

East Boston groups release community survey on waterfront development and casino proposal

Highlights of the Community Alliance Survey (Released February 25, 2013)

1. From May 2012 through August 2012, residents from across the neighborhood distributed surveys on paper and online in English and Spanish to their neighbors, at neighborhood association meetings, at community events, and via online networks. In the end, 360 surveys from East Boston residents were collected.
2. Overall, the survey found that knowledge about the waterfront projects is highest in Jeffries Point, Eagle Hill, and Orient Heights. Residents who live in Maverick Square or Central Square, as well as Latino residents, are least likely to know about any of the proposals for waterfront redevelopment.
3. Support for waterfront development is high, with most residents expecting positive changes in the neighborhood once those developments are completed. However, residents are also concerned about the potential for gentrification.
4. Over half of residents surveyed are opposed to the proposed casino. Only one-quarter of residents support the casino. Importantly, opposition to the casino is higher among registered voters than the general population. Opposition to the casino is wide across each section of East Boston, with the exception of Central Square.
5. Most of the respondents are US-born residents, are in the working-age range, and include a largely equal representation of different income groups in the neighborhood.
6. The most important difference between the population of East Boston and the residents who completed the survey is that more than half of East Boston's population is Latino but only 30% of survey respondents described themselves as Latino.
7. The overwhelming majority of respondents are currently registered to vote in East Boston.
8. Almost two-thirds of residents surveyed stated that they knew about at least one of the proposed waterfront development projects. However, knowledge of the waterfront projects varied considerably across the neighborhood. Knowledge of the projects is highest in Jeffries Point, Eagle Hill, and Orient Heights. Fewer than half of the residents living in Maverick Square and Central Square reported knowing about any waterfront development projects compared to 71% of the rest of the neighborhood.
9. The only section of East Boston in which Latino knowledge of the waterfront proposals was similar to non-Hispanic White knowledge was in Jeffries Point. In all other sections of the neighborhood, Latinos are the least likely to know about these projects. Over 70% of Latino residents in Maverick Square and Central Square reported that they did not know about any of the proposed projects.
10. Similarly, low income residents across East Boston are least likely to know about any of the waterfront development projects compared to other income groups. About half of the low income residents did not know about any of the waterfront development projects. With the exception of Jeffries Point, low and middle income residents were much less likely than high income residents to know about any of these projects.
11. Most respondents have positive expectations about what the waterfront redevelopment will bring to East Boston.
12. Many residents were very concerned that the developments will result in displacement of current residents, as well as loss of affordability. Many residents are concerned about how these developments will change the fabric of the community
13. The overwhelming majority of residents surveyed know about the casino project. Over 50% of residents are opposed to building a casino in East Boston. Only one-quarter of residents stated that they support a casino with the rest either having no opinion or not having enough information to form an opinion. Opposition to the casino is highest among registered voters.
14. Support for a casino in East Boston is highest among residents with a high school education or less.
15. Residents who completed the survey expect higher crime, more traffic, more air pollution, more noise, and less parking. Over 40% of residents expect pride in the neighborhood to decline. However, residents do expect that there will be more jobs from the casino.

Full Survey at Eastboston.com. 

http://eastbostondotcom.blogspot.com/2013/02/community-survey-released-topics.html