Gaming commission sets public input meeting on slots

While the post was delayed, it highlights the failure of the Massachusetts Gambling Commission to conduct meetings at times that are convenient for residents.

NoPlainvilleRacino

In Wicked Local Wrentham: Gaming commission sets public input meeting on slots

Gaming commission sets public input meeting on slots
Wicked Local Wrentham

Posted Oct 16, 2013

WRENTHAM —

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is hosting a local public input meeting "to facilitate public discussion" of the recently submitted slots-parlor applications, including one from Penn National for a license to operat a parlor at Plainridge Racecourse in Plainville.

The meeting will be held in Wrentham on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 4 p.m., at the Fiske Library, 110 Randall Road, Wrentham. It is one of three public meetings planned; the other two meeetings will be held in Leominser and Easton.

The purpose of these meetings, according tot he commission, is to provide community members, in both host communities and potential surrounding communities, an opportunity to provide feedback to the commission in the early stages of the commission's application evaluation process.

To speak at the meeting, or to submit written comments, community members are asked to email the commission at mgccomments@state.ma.us with the town name in the subject line. All comments received via email will be distributed to the commissioners for their review.

http://www.wickedlocal.com/norfolk/news/x825421838/Gaming-commission-sets-public-input-meeting-on-slots



 

Singapore tightens rules for LVS and Genting casinos

Singapore tightens rules for LVS and Genting casinos August 19, 2013 6:03 PM
by Ray Poirier

Fearing a major scandal, Singapore officials have announced plans to tighten rules for public servants visiting the city’s two casinos operated by Las Vegas Sands Corp. and Malaysia’s Genting.

So far there have been only a few so-called “corruption charges” against public officials but the new rules will require civil servants to publicly declare the number of casino visits. Singapore’s residents must pay an entry fee to the casinos, thus making it easier to check visitations. Entering the casino on a daily basis costs $79 while an annual pass is $1,800.

The action comes on the heels of the firing of the city’s head of the anti-corruption agency. He was replaced after an assistant director was charges with misappropriation of funds.

Ray Poirier is the longtime executive editor at GamingToday.


http://gamingtoday.com/articles/article/42814-Singapore_tightens_rules_for_LVS_and_Genting_casinos

A Hero Speaks Out!

Evidence across the nation reveal that the promises of the Fools' Gold of Casino Gambling never fulfills its promises.

Here's a great hero for speaking the TRUTH!

Somerville mayor leading effort to repeal casino law

Posted by Jarret Bencks August 8, 2013

 

Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone is hoping the rest of the state will see casino development the way he does now that it is moving closer to reality.

Joining a coalition that includes a state senator, the president of the Massachusetts Family Institute, and the administrator of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, Curatone was one of the first 10 people to sign a petition calling for a ballot question asking voters to repeal the state's casino law.

"This is really the only opportunity the greater Commonwealth will have to engage, to comment on, what we believe is bad policy and a flawed piece of legislation," Curtatone said in a phone interview Thursday.

Curtatone has been vocal in his opposition to casinos as a source of revenue for the state, and particularly a proposal in Everett, located just across the Mystic River from Somerville. But Curtatone said the push for a ballot question is about more than protecting Somerville, calling casinos "economic development by desperation."

"This is bigger than the impacts on the City of Somerville, we're talking about a dramatic shift in the culture of the Commonwealth," he said. "The negative impacts are very dramatic. There will be a lot of sad stories. We're relying on fool's gold."

The proposed development in Everett, located at the former Monsanto factory site off of Route 99, has been met with criticism from officials in neighboring Medford and residents in Charlestown, along with Curtatone. Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria Jr. plans to address those criticisms in a press conference Friday.

The Massachusetts casino law calls for referendum approval of a development by the host community. It also calls for developers to negotiate mitigation with neighboring communities, but does not require regional approval.

Curtatone said it was "unfathomable" that area communities do not have more say in proposed casino developments.

Everett's proposed casino site is only a couple hundred yards across the Mystic River from Somerville's Assembly Row, a massive, mixed-use development that has received over $130 million in public funding and over $1 billion in private money, and is currently under construction.

"We are going to risk that investment, and yet, only the voters of Everett get to vote on the proposal?" he said. "That, to me, is absurd."

The petition for a ballot question was filed Wednesday, and will take thousands more signatures to end up on the ballot.

The referendum would give Massachusetts voters a chance to change their minds on casinos, Curtatone said.

"I refuse to give into the fact that we should just accept this," he said. "It's never too late to step back and say is this not the right thing for the Commonwealth."

http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/somerville/2013/08/somerville_mayor_in_front_of_effort_to_repeal_casino_law.html

 

The Secret Addiction

Documentary about the potential dangers of gambling on young people - but will it be realised in time?


Published on Jun 15, 2012 by charley3012

We have lost our moral compass

We have lost our moral compass as a nation when Government partners with a Predatory Industry and this is the cost:

Even worse, gambling addictions can even lead to suicides.

In Gulfport, Mississippi, suicides skyrocketed 213 percent in the first two years the casino there opened. In Biloxi, they jumped a staggering 1,000 percent in the first four years.



Gambling addictions, suicides come with opening of casinos

Posted: 05/20/2012
By Michael Baldwin


CLEVELAND - No doubt plenty of business has been generated by the recent opening of Horseshoe Casino Cleveland. But it does come with a price for those who have a gambling addiction.

Inside the halls of Recovery Resources is where you'll find Jen Clegg. She's on the front lines of gambling addiction in northeast Ohio.

"By the time the person comes into treatment here, they are kind of recognizing that they have a problem with gambling. They may not identify it with an addiction, but they definitely recognize that there's a problem."

NewsChannel5 tried to talk with a gambling addict, but they all declined an interview.

Clegg said the addicts all come there for hope, something they see as a luxury. Gambling addicts stare their addiction in the face every time they walk into a grocery store, convenient store or gas station.

"There's no cut off to gambling like alcohol and drugs. Alcohol and drugs you kind of naturally stop because your body shuts down," explained Dr. Heather Chapman, who works at the VA Medical Center.

She recently spoke at a seminar in Cleveland designed to help social workers mentor those who have dealt with other addictions like substance abuse, only to be welcomed into the world of gambling addiction.

"We can see, we can smell alcohol on a person's breathe. We do drug screens and tell that somebody is using substances. But there aren't screening tools for gamblers. I can give somebody a urine test and spades and diamonds and clubs aren't going to come out," said Clegg.

Even worse, gambling addictions can even lead to suicides.

In Gulfport, Mississippi, suicides skyrocketed 213 percent in the first two years the casino there opened. In Biloxi, they jumped a staggering 1,000 percent in the first four years.

"We are assessing if there is an issue with suicides and if there are underlying issues, such as depression or anxiety," explained Clegg. "And then determining how to help link the people with the services that they need."

Often times, people who have other substance abuse problems will transfer their addiction to things like gambling, Clegg said.

While Clegg doesn't expect the phone to ring off the hook right away, she does think in time the average number of six calls daily will go "way up."


Read more: http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/local_news/cleveland_metro/gambling-addictions-suicides-come-with-opening-of-casinos#ixzz1vVHR2YrZ

Broadside: Mass. State Rep. Dan Winslow

Broadside: Mass. State Rep. Dan Winslow
http://www.necn.com/05/09/12/Broadside-Mass-State-Rep-Dan-Winslow/landing_politics.html?blockID=705186&feedID=4212
May 9, 2012


NECN) - Republicans in the Massachusetts House of Representatives aren't backing down in a dispute over the newly-named director of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission - in fact, they've gone so far as to hire a private detective to investigate.

Mass. State Rep. Dan Winslow, a Republican representing Norfolk, says a former state police detective will look at the initial charges against Stanley McGee, and will report on the findings to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and Mass. Gov. Deval Patrick.

McGee was accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old boy in a steam room at a resort in Florida in 2007. Prosecutors dropped the charges after they determined there was no evidence to corroborate with the allegation.

Winslow said at an earlier press conference that it is unacceptable for the commission to not conduct its own investigation.

The files of the charges in Florida were sealed, but Winslow says that he would like for them to be at least unsealed for the commission.

"I think that when you sign up for public service, you give up a few of your privacy considerations, and that's for the benefit of transparency," said Winslow.

Watch the attached video for more.

May 3rd Gambling Commission Love Fest video

The May 3, 2012 Gambling Commission Love Fest is posted here:

http://www.mass.gov/gaming/meetings/meeting-archive/may-3-2012-public-educational-forum.html

It is currently listed as 'offline.' Please check back. It's worth watching for its propaganda value.

A Big Bet Gone Bad

A Big Bet Gone Bad

Large-scale gambling used for tax revenue is bad economics and worse public policy. A casino is an economic “win” for a region only if most gamblers come from elsewhere. If most come from nearby — as is now common, with casinos in so many places — then as one gambling scholar said, “You simply cannot grow an economy by taking money out of it.” You drain local wallets while shifting the tax burden to the lower-income folks who are hurt most by their losses. Then add the sad stories I’ve heard from public officials in casino areas across the country. Bankruptcies, embezzlement, broken families — we’re seeing it now, here in Pennsylvania.

MIKE VARGO,Pittsburgh, posted on nytimes.com