RCMP accused of ‘willful blindness’

If these are the problems British Columbia is failing to appropriately address, how is Beacon Hill remotely competent to deal with predatory gambling?

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Big Dig anyone?

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It's time to insist on an impartial cost benefit analysis.

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RCMP accused of ‘willful blindness’ over gaming problems

October 23, 2009

Sean Holman
Public Eye

The former commander of British Columbia's now-defunct integrated illegal gaming enforcement team is questioning the provincial government's commitment to "meaningful" illegal gaming investigations.

In an exclusive interview, Fred Pinnock also described the RCMP’s senior management in British Columbia as demonstrating “willful blindness” when it comes to the connection between illegal gaming and organized crime.

And he said his provincially-funded RCMP team should have been expanded, not shutdown.

Pinnock, who retired as a staff sergeant in September 2008 after 29 years with the force, acknowledged airing his concerns will make him "unpopular with some of my former colleagues."

But he felt compelled to do so in part because he believes his team should have been keeping tabs on what happens inside legal gaming facilities rather than just cracking down on illegal gaming outside those facilities

"For the police not to have well-resourced law enforcement units dedicated to casino environments is very short-sighted in my opinion," he said.

Pinnock, now a managing partner with Lions Gate Investigations Group Inc., said the Ontario Provincial Police have three casino intelligence units that monitor, anticipate and prevent organized crime from becoming involved in that province's gaming facilities.

But he said there's nothing comparable in British Columbia, even though "other than correctional institutions, casinos have the highest density of organized crime figures anywhere.

Here, gaming facility employees and British Columbia Lotteries Corp. security report suspected criminal activities to local police and The Ministry of Housing and Social Development's gaming policy enforcement branch.

Local police are responsible for investigating those reports. Depending on the type of activity being investigated, they're assisted by the enforcement branch.

Pinnock acknowledged those at BC Lotteries and the enforcement branch are "very competent people.”

But he questioned whether their "resources and mandate are sufficient to effectively target the criminal activity going on within these environments," noting they don't appear to have had much impact.

The reason: Pinnock said there hasn't been any big busts at casinos even though "it obvious that highly-pedigreed gangsters frequent these venues on a continuing basis.”

“There's a ton of criminal activity being conducted in these places every day, including money laundering, loansharking and other enterprise crimes," he said.

The RCMP is "playing ostrich" about the problems inside legal gaming facilities, he concluded.

In response, the RCMP noted the enforcement team’s mandate was “determined by the ministry of housing and social development” and that “tackling organized crime remains a strategic priority” for the force.

But Pinnock said senior management is only giving "token attention" to the illegal gaming problems outside legal gaming facilities.

"I don't think the RCMP is sufficiently aware of the very significant role that un-enforced gambling has in social decay," he explained, adding that most illegal gamblers are "addicted gamblers, with all the associated life impacts."

Instead, the force has focused on criminal activities that "keep them positioned to ensure the renewal" of their provincial policing contract in 2012, such as gang violence.

"It's hard to take issue with the RCMP's enforcement priorities, given all of the carnage on the streets of British Columbia," said Pinnock. "But a failure to aggressively target the criminal element involved in the gambling business will have far reaching consequences down the road. Police agencies must find the resources to address this issue."

As for illegal gaming, Pinnock said, during his two-and-a-half years as the enforcement team’s commander, he had the impression government was more concerned about "the appearance of doing something" rather than "meaningful results."

"It seemed the way to remain in favour with government was simply to maintain a statistical, check-the-box-type, radar gun-level of enforcement and not meaningful targeting that would disrupt significant criminal activity," he explained.

But seven months after Pinnock’s retirement, the team - which received its funding via a BC Lotteries sponsorship agreement - was quietly shutdown, its April 1, 2009 closure marked by nothing more than a footnote in the Crown corporation’s financial statements.

The government has said it was more efficient for its enforcement branch inspectors to work directly with local police on illegal gaming issues.

And, on Wednesday, Solicitor General Kash Heed took issue with Pinnock’s contention the government didn’t seem interested in “meaningful“ illegal gaming investigations.

“That's that individual's opinion," he said. "And he's entitled to his own opinion but not his own set of facts.“

“I've given you the facts with respect to how we're dealing with illegal gangs and organized crime in British Columbia that are involved in this activity," he continued, noting the government’s gaming policy enforcement branch "still has investigators that work closely with the RCMP to deal with significant issues around illegal gaming in this province,"

But, six months following the shutdown of his team, Mr. Pinnock said, “I’m not sure how motivated the provincial government was to have high-profile enforcement of illegal gaming in the province.”

As for why, Pinnock didn’t have an answer.

Although he added, "It was a very awkward marriage between the police and a government which benefited from gambling revenues."

As of Thursday, the RCMP hadn't responded to requests for comment.

The government did not respond by deadline.

Sean Holman is editor of the online provincial political news journal Public Eye (publiceyeonline.com).

RI Twin River to end greyhound racing

Financially struggling RI gambling parlor reaches
agreement to end greyhound racing at track

RI slot parlor has deal to end greyhound racing

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A financially troubled slot parlor seeking bankruptcy protection will pay $5 million as it attempts to end the last greyhound races in Rhode Island because the sport is costing the track money, attorneys said Friday.


UTGR Inc., the owner of the Twin River gambling hall, has agreed to pay the Rhode Island Greyhound Owners Association $2 million to end racing at the track if the restructuring plan is approved by a federal judge, according to court documents. The dog owners would receive an additional $3 million if Twin River successfully emerges from bankruptcy.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Arthur Votolato was expected to consider the plan at a Nov. 17 court hearing.

Twin River filed for bankruptcy protection in June as its owners struggled to repay a half-billion dollars in debt taken to buy and renovate the facility. State officials have closely monitored the case since Twin River’s slot machines are the third-largest source of state income. They are expected to generate about $239 million this year, or 8 percent of all income raised by the state.

“If the settlement agreement is approved, it completes a key step towards enhanced financial viability of the facility, helping to preserve key revenue for the state of Rhode Island,” Twin River spokeswoman Patti Doyle said in a written statement.

Twin River, which began as a horse track in the 1940s, is the last venue in the state to offer greyhound racing. Dog owners wanted to keep the races but eventually agreed to the settlement, said their spokeswoman, Jennifer Bramley.

“In light of the bankruptcy, we believe this settlement to be a fair and appropriate agreement,” she said.

Gov. Don Carcieri, a Republican, helped negotiate a bankruptcy plan that would allow Twin River to restructure and continue operating. As part of the deal, Carcieri asked state lawmakers to repeal a law forcing Twin River to offer 125 days of greyhound racing. Wagering on the races has plummeted from $150 million in 1990 to $13 million.

Instead of ending the games, Democrats in the General Assembly passed a law expanding the racing season to 200 days. Carcieri vetoed the legislation, but Democratic legislative leaders have said they would seek to overturn his veto.

Sen. Frank Ciccone III, the bill sponsor, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

If lawmakers refuse to end greyhound racing, Twin River officials have said they may find new dog owners willing to race for less money.

If the public really wanted it.......

If the public really wanted it, the predatory gambling trade would not need to spend $32 million to remind them

A pro-casino group in Ohio reports it has spent nearly $32 million promoting a fall ballot issue that would authorize casinos in the state's four largest cities (and there is still twelve more days to go in the campaign.)

A state campaign finance filing shows the Ohio Jobs & Growth Committee spent $31.7 million. Nearly all the cash came from arms of its two main backers, Penn National Gaming Inc. and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert.

The ballot issue asks voters to approve casino construction in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo, agree to a 33-percent tax on the facilities for state and local programs and create a state committee to oversee a type of gambling that is thus far illegal in the state. Spending by its rival, the anti-casino TruthPAC, was not yet posted Thursday afternoon.

This is the fourth time the predatory gambling trade has paid for a campaign in Ohio. They were defeated in their first three tries and now they are spending $32 million to tell Ohio citizens to vote for something that supposedly they want.

It is another example of “the spend enough money until you win” strategy in action. It is also why the movement to stop predatory gambling will continue to grow across America.

How many times is 'no' enough for casino crowd?

How many times is 'no' enough for casino crowd?

Mainers have turned down casinos four times since 2005, but dollar signs still beckon backers.

What is it about casinos that, no matter how many times Maine voters say "no" to proposals to put them here, there or just about anywhere, the hope of building one somewhere keeps popping up?

Oh, that's right, it's the money.

Which is not the reason this paper has, with one exception, opposed them. "Profit" is not a bad word, as long as the methods by which is it earned are aboveboard and positive.

Casinos may be aboveboard – nobody really hides the fact that they sell artificially generated excitement about winning a jackpot right along with odds that decisively favor the house – but it's hard to call that sort of enterprise "positive."

So, to get them going in Maine, all sorts of promises have been made about diverting some of gambling's profits to keeping the harness racing industry afloat, or providing money for education, or medicines for impoverished seniors, or some such goal.

They are also sold by pointing to the service-industry jobs that are "created" by them. However, that only papers over the two central facts of casino gambling:

First, for every person who leaves a casino with more money than he entered with, dozens leave with less.

And tons of dollars flow not to Maine workers or causes, but to the out-of-state "gaming industry" companies hired for their "expertise" in extracting cash from customers' wallets.

Indeed, reading accounts of how slot machines are scientifically designed to exploit patrons' psychological weaknesses to keep them pushing in money, despite their ever-increasing losses, is a fascinating, though horrifying, educational experience.

It's true that this paper did support a casino proposal, when Passamaquoddy Indians wanted one in Washington County, on the grounds that as long as state and local voters had backed one casino (in Bangor), an impoverished minority group deserved consideration for its facility own due to the discrimination it has historically faced.

Voters, however, rejected that proposal, as they have all the others brought to them since 2003, when the "casinos-at-permanent-racetracks" referendum was passed while a larger Indian-run casino in York County was defeated. Studies have shown that smaller casinos don't import money from far away, but instead reap dollars from local patrons who otherwise would have spent their money at local businesses. And when gambling turns into an addiction, the social cost in crimes, bankruptcies and family breakups becomes enormous.

Now, a group of entrepreneurs has announced its plans to put another casino referendum on the ballot next November to build one in Oxford County. And they have made the usual promises to fund all sorts of worthwhile causes with their proceeds.

But where will those proceeds come from? Mainers who enter with full wallets and leave with empty ones.

Mississippi Casino Revenue Slips In September

Mississippi Casino Revenue Slips In September

September was a month that many states looked to with the hope that casino revenue may finally turn around. Mississippi, however, became the latest state to announce that revenue declined in September from the same period a year before.

Last year at this time, the recession was in full swing and the economy in the US was crashing. It was the middle months of what has been one of the worst economic meltdowns in US history. The casino industry was ravaged by the economy and had revenue declines in nearly every state.

That would have made it easier for casinos across the country to improve their revenue this year, but so far it has not happened. In Mississippi, casino revenue was down 2.8% compared to September of 2009. The total revenue was $186.6 million, compared to $192.2 million the year before.

"The casino industry is slowly recovering and figures are starting to look better than they were in the early part of the year," said Gaming Analyst Steve Schwartz, "But it still is going to take some time to fully recover. Casinos may not see revenue increases again until early next year."

While Mississippi casino revenue was down in September, it was hardly as bad as it has been in other areas of the country where casino gambling is prevalent. Atlantic City has experienced double digit revenue decline for many months in a row.

One area of the world where casino gambling is still thriving is Macau. The new gambling capital of the world has posted some gaudy numbers in the past few months, and their third quarter revenue figures far exceeded expectations.

Sucker's Bet

Opinion: When it comes to gaming, don’t bet on the politicians
Posted in Opinion on Thursday, October 22nd, 2009 at 7:14 pm by Alan Kerr

REMEMBER WHEN GOV. RENDELL and gambling proponents launched their lobbying effort to legalize slot machines in Pennsylvania? The state’s horse racing industry was limping along like a plow horse down the back stretch, they claimed, and only the addition of “limited” games of chance, i.e., slot machines, at the tracks could save them from extinction.

Seems like forever ago since the governor and his allies made their plea, doesn’t it? Might as well be. Their glue factory scenario turned out to be a foot-in-the-door strategy to add the commonwealth to the list of states where losing your money in a slot machine is legal and eventually pave the way for table gaming as well.

The state’s charade continued with the promise that the tax proceeds from legalized gambling would allow the state to significantly cut school property taxes. There have been some tax reductions as a result of slots. But significant reductions? Hardly. In most places, a couple of hundred dollars on a tax bill of a few thousand. Meanwhile, school taxes continue their upward creep.


Now, earlier predictions of expanded gambling beyond slot machines have come to pass. As part of the recently enacted state budget - 101 days late if you’ve forgotten - games such as poker, black jack, roulette and craps have been legalized, and work is already ongoing at several venues on the new “full service” casinos intended to rival those in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.

Unlike the deceptions of the past, lawmakers didn’t try to justify expanded gambling by saying it was going to help cut taxes or do some other specific good that might soften the opposition of gambling critics. No, the new flow of gambling money will be used to plug a hole in the state budget. Pennsylvania will henceforth rely on revenue from the casinos to balance its books and very likely increase state spending. And that’s wrong, according to Democratic state Rep. John Galloway of Lower Bucks.

Galloway’s fellow lawmakers from the lower part of the county, Republican Sen. Tommy Tomlinson and Republican Rep. Gene DiGirolamo, have put forth bills to guarantee Bensalem and Bucks County get a share of gaming revenues. Tomlinson is concerned that Pennsylvania not set the tax rate on casinos too high, fearing that could scare away some casino interests.

Galloway says that’s the wrong argument. “Whatever number we come up with (as a tax rate) is not high enough for me,” said Galloway, who recognizes that the goal of legalizing gambling “to significantly cut property taxes is a failed promise.” He said table game revenue should not be headed for the state’s general fund but rather should go to making good on the property tax pledge.

That’s not going to happen. More than likely, lawmakers will use the increased revenue from casinos to expand the budget, not reduce it or give property owners a bigger break. That’s just not in the nature of politicians.

Too many promises have already been made and broken since the state got into the gambling business. Want to put money on whether future actions by the Legislature and the governor vis-a-vis gambling are in the best interests of the taxpayers?

That could be called a sucker bet.

Why Massachusetts casinos are a bad idea

Why Massachusetts casinos are a bad idea
October 22, 2:02 PM
Worcester County Nonpartisan Examiner
Brian Ashmankas


The state legislature will here testimony today on several proposals to build casinos in Massachusetts. The likely sites for the proposed casinos will be Palmer, Milford, and Auburn.

I believe that these proposals should all be voted down. Those wishing to build casinos claim that casinos will bring jobs, tourism, and economic growth. They also emphasize their potential to cover the current Massachusetts budget shortfall through the heavy taxes that are usually levied on casino's huge profits. However, these benefits are both exaggerated and overshadowed by the massive costs to all Massachusetts residents.

Practically, this is the worst time to build casinos. Atlantic City has recently reported a 19.8% loss in profits, while the Las Vegas strip has reported 57.3% drop in profits. Even Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun have experienced declining profits of late.

New casinos in Massachusetts would likely also experience these reduced profits. Less profits means less revenues for the state, which essentially debunks the primary argument for the casinos in the first place.

Meanwhile, it is important to note that the revenue that the state would earn from casinos doesn't appear magically; it has to come from somewhere. In fact, state casino revenue constitutes a tax that is more regressive than the sales tax, because 60% of casino revenues come from people making less than $25,000 per year.

Of course supporters will continue to point to the economic development, jobs, and tourist revenue that the casinos will bring to the local areas. However, these benefits are at best half-truths and at worst outright lies.

It turns out in fact that while casinos sometimes result in some initial economic growth, over time their tendency to out compete local businesses and thus bankrupt them, results in no long term net gain in economic growth, while destroying the defining characteristics of the area.

With local businesses closing, job growth would also at best remain stagnant, while job choice would decline. With the casino offering the only jobs in town, it become a monopsony in the labor market, driving down wages, benefits, and quality of work for those forced to work there.

The attraction of tourist revenue is perhaps the most ridiculous claim made by casino advocates. Patrons of resort casinos rarely spend any money outside of the casino as food, shelter, alcohol, and entertainment are all provided by the establishment. In addition, they often leave the casino with nothing to spend elsewhere.

While the benefits are casinos are fleeting and overblown. The costs are overwhelming. Crime skyrockets in the area surrounding a casino, often extending to include the entire county in which it is present. Burglary, assault, auto theft, robbery, larceny, and rape all experience dramatic leaps in occurrence whenever a casino opens in an area.

For all these reasons, I implore my readers to contact their state representative and state senator and call on them to oppose these measures. If a casino is built in Auburn, all nearby towns will be affected.

To those who say that the casino revenue, despite being collected unjustly and at the expense of everything we hold dear, is necessary to keep Massachusetts fiscally sound, say that they should take this recession and budget shortfall as an opportunity to weed out unnecessary spending and outright waste. After all we are all doing the same with our personal finances.

State Addicted to Gambling

Or "The Great Race to the Bottom."


You just can't let those revenues go across state lines --
.
....the state is facing competition from beyond its borders as Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky are weighing their own gambling options or expanding existing operations.
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....the state could lose up to $250 million in casino tax revenue if Michigan, Kentucky and Ohio ramp up their gambling efforts.

Addictive Slots to save racing???

...slot machines and subsidies to the state's horse-racing industry have put them in an unprofitable situation.

"a model that has destined Indiana's horse-track casinos to eventual failure."

We have heard this before --

The state may have passed the saturation point of gambling. There simply is no more easy money to take off the table.

OUR VIEW: Indiana now addicted to gambling revenue
THE STAR PRESS • October 22, 2009

Like an addict hooked on drugs, Indiana might be facing severe withdrawal symptoms in the next few months.



Indiana's drug of choice for the state is revenue generated from gambling ventures such as horse tracks, casinos and lottery tickets.

And like an addict who needs more drugs to maintain the same high, Indiana needs more revenue just to maintain current funding levels. Trouble is, the money is starting to dry up.

State leaders have two alternatives: Learn to live with less revenue, or take steps to continue expanding gambling options for Hoosiers. Neither one is attractive.

Gambling revenue from within the state is falling as Hoosiers weather the recession, and the state is facing competition from beyond its borders as Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky are weighing their own gambling options or expanding existing operations.

The Hoosier Lottery's profit from ticket sales in fiscal year 2009 dropped 17.5 percent, the biggest drop of any state in the nation.

To make matters worse, owners of Indiana's two horse-track casinos, Indiana Live Casino in Shelbyville and Hoosier Park in Anderson, told a Gambling Study Committee that paying $250 million for the rights to have slot machines and subsidies to the state's horse-racing industry have put them in an unprofitable situation. According to an article in The Indianapolis Star, Hoosier Park General Manager Jim Brown said the state's licensing fee structures has created "a model that has destined Indiana's horse-track casinos to eventual failure."

The "racino" owners want changes to licensing fees, which can affect their tax rates. Bottom line: They don't want to pay as much as in the past.

Outside Indiana, lawmakers were told the state could lose up to $250 million in casino tax revenue if Michigan, Kentucky and Ohio ramp up their gambling efforts. People who used to come to Indiana to wager can now stay closer to home, and the state loses out.

Gambling was once thought to be a recession-proof way to feed the state's coffers. Not so anymore. Economists believe revenue growth in gambling will not keep pace with the state's budgetary needs.

The state may have passed the saturation point of gambling. There simply is no more easy money to take off the table.

It's a safe bet that Indiana lawmakers in the upcoming session will deal with gambling issues, yet again.

And it's within the realm of possibility that racinos will receive some kind of financial break; existing casinos will have some latitude to move away from riverboats and more inland; and that proposals might be floated to allow bars to install video gaming devices and make legal what is often done in secret. We'll have to wait and see what happens.

In the meantime, anybody want to make a wager that the gambling industry will tell us that they're too big to fail?

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Kudos, I think

In June 2009, Senator Spilka convened a Casino Love Fest filled with the predictable shills and those whose wallets will bulge from predatory gambling, including Clyde Barrow who doesn't think $11,000 for 6 weeks' work is worth discussing, on top of his $144,000 taxpayer salary.
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I have been assured by ardent supporters of Senator Spilka's that she is fair, balanced and has done much good.

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Last week, when the "official announcement" was made of gambling hearings she scheduled, it seemed that only personal, private emails were sent to the "privileged few" like --

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....according to an e-mail received yesterday afternoon by Plainridge Racecourse President Gary T. Piontkowski.

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Kudos to whomever for recognizing that after a week long campaign targeted to motivate supporters, announcement of the hearings seems to have been made public --

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Mass. lawmakers plan hearing on more than a dozen bills on casinos, racetracks, slot parlors
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Associated Press
10/22/09 2:05 PM EDT BOSTON — The public is being given a chance to weigh on more than a dozen gaming bills, including several allowing the state to license resort style casinos in Massachusetts for the first time.
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Other bills set for a public hearing next week would allow slot machines at racetracks, create a network of video lottery terminals and increase the purse accounts on horse and dog races.
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Pressure has been mounting on Beacon Hill for expanded gambling in Massachusetts as the state struggles with plummeting revenues.
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Gov. Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Robert DeLeo all back the push for casinos.

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Democracy prevails! Finally.

This is embarrassing

When leaders of the Mashpee Wampanoags met with Middleboro's CRAC (Casino Resort Advisory Committee), the leadership indicated that their Mega Monster would be downsized to a bingo hall.

Would someone please tell the Tribe about the SCOTUS Hawaii decision?

LIT? Think not!

Would someone please tell CRAC there are no investors?

Middleboro's CRAC should be re-named to something more appropriate. Jack Healey's Rabbit Hole comes to mind.

Tribe scales back Middleboro casino plans

By George Brennan
STAFF WRITER
October 20, 2009
Tribe leaders have dramatically scaled back plans for a proposed Indian casino in Middleboro.

At a meeting in Middleboro last night, tribe leaders told the Resort Advisory Committee that the casino will be about one-third the size of the $1 billion casino first proposed by the Mashpee Wampanoag and its investors.


The economy has forced the tribe to downsize its plans, tribal council Vice Chairman Aaron Tobey said today. That means starting out with a gambling hall in the first phase and adding a scaled back casino, about 300 rooms, in the second phase, he said.

Original plans had a resort that would rival the Indian mega casinos that rival Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun in Connecticut.

“Things change,” he said. “All indications are that a $1 billion-plus casino isn't possible. That's just common sense given the state of the economy.”

The tribe has an agreement with Middleboro to pay $7 million per year for hosting the casino and additional revenue from a hotel tax. It's a controversial deal that ripped apart the community with casino opponents saying the town isn't getting enough for hosting a casino.

Other hurdles remain in place for the tribe. They still need a way to put the 539 acres into federal trust and they reached an impasse with their investors that remains unresolved.

Clyde Barrow: Duh?

Poor Clyde! Being torn between professional integrity and enjoying having your ego stroked with all that media attention, watching all that money being tossed to those overpaid lobbyists, what's a body to do?

.

And maybe others, like Senator Pacheco, will believe your denials and use of taxpayer funded resources to shill for a predatory industry in justifying your false claims.

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Time to slither off, Clyde!

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From Clyde's own work --

Clyde W. Barrow, Ph.D. is the director of the Center for Policy
Analysis at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in
North Dartmouth, Mass. He may be reached via e-mail at cbarrow@
umassd.edu. Matthew Hirschy, M.P.P., is a research assistant
at the Center for Policy Analysis. He may be reached
via e-mail at u_mhirschy@umassd.edu.
The authors do not have any institutional or commercial affiliations,
including consultantships, honoraria, stock ownership,
equity interests, arrangements regarding patents, or other
vested interests that might pose a conflict of interest.



From United to Stop Slots in Mass ---

Page 4

8 See Clyde Barrow, “Maximum Bet: A Preliminary Blueprint for Casino Gaming & Economic Development in Massachusetts,” Center for Policy Analysis, University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, August, 2007, http://www.umassd.edu/cfpa/docs/maximum_bet.pdf; Sean Murphy, “Massachusetts Casino Backers Playing Numbers Game.” Boston Globe, June 11, 2007; Holly Angelo, “Expert Outlines Casino ‘Blueprint,’” Chicopee Republican, August 27, 2007. Professor Barrow was previously a leading proponent of building a casino in West Warwick, Rhode Island. However, in last November’s election Rhode Island voters defeated the constitutional amendment that would have been necessary to allow the casino by a margin of 63% to 37%, despite an $11 million campaign that had been waged by casino advocates.

It may be worth noting that Barrow’s center accepted a $20,000 contribution last fall from the Rhode Island Building Trades Council, a union group that backed the unsuccessful casino referendum, for a study that would demonstrate the casino’s tax benefits; at about the same time, the group accepted a donation of $25,000 from Harrah's, which would have managed the casino. However, Professor Barrow insisted that he had maintained editorial independence in conducting the study, and said he had been unaware of the Harrah’s contribution – though his findings were prominently featured in Harrah’s campaign on behalf of the casino (Murphy, “Casino Backers”; Katherine Gregg, “Latest Casino Debate Centers on Tax Relief,” Providence Journal, July 7, 2006).

It may be worth noting that I attended Senator Spilka's Casino Love Fest in June 2009 at which, when asked very specifically about receiving $$ from the gambling industry, Clyde vaguely remembered something having to do with the Rhode Island Business Trades Council, but omitted Harrah's.

.

Clyde was personally paid for the work below, but seems to have misrepresented his credentials or maybe he misused a taxpayer funded institution --

Job Creation Promises Now Key To Maine Casino Hopes

13 Oct, 2008 / GamblingCompliance Ltd. / Scott Van Voorhis

A lackluster campaign to bring a resort casino to Maine’s ski country has received a jolt of new energy, with a Nevada developer taking the reins. In a bid to win over voters before a statewide referendum next month, The Olympia Group issued a report this week predicting the new gambling venue would create hundreds of new jobs and bring in tens of millions in new taxes.

The report, conducted by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, estimates the new casino, which would take shape not far from the well-known ski resorts of Sugarloaf and Sunday River, would generate $164 m in total revenue. The casino would shell out nearly $70 m in taxes for cash-starved state coffers, while also generating more than full-time jobs, the report found. The state tax rate on the casino would top 47 percent, relatively high for a gambling resort.



We reviewed the tape of the "Commonwealth Report"
in which Senator Pacheco interviewed Clyde Barrow.

Clyde stated --

"...not on a retainer, not a consultant to any casino company and never have been."

.

This bears further investigation and public discussion.

Casino Shill Barrow Exposed -- Again! #2

As a polite request to consider the credentials of Clyde Barrow's false claims, I sent the following to Senator Pacheco --

Honorable Senator Pacheco:

We had a brief conversation at the Middleboro COA at which
I suggested that you consider unbiased sources for your
information regarding predatory gambling that is being
considered on Beacon Hill.

To me, those sources might include economists who have
no connection to the industry, such as Professor Goodman.

It might include Grinols or Kindt, who have written extensively
and studied the industry in meticulous detail.

I realize the voices of serious studies are frequently drowned
out by those, like perennial casino cheerleader, Clyde Barrow,
but you might want to consider the posts of Ryan Adams:
Will Beacon Hill Make an Informed Decision on Casinos?
or
http://www.ryanstake.net/2009/09/will-beacon-hill-make-informed-decision.html


During Senator Spilka's mostly one sided "informational hearing,"
Cyde Barrow seemed to develop amnesia and failed to mention
industry funding he has received.

I linked to a Ball State University Study:
Racinos Create Low Paying Jobs

The study ended in 2004, so failed to consider the impacts of
the economic downturn.

Maybe we could recapture tax free sales flooding over the New
Hampshire border by establishing a tax free zone in northern
Massachusetts.

Friends of ours travel to New Hampshire for major purchases,
liquor and to purchase cartons of cigarettes in large quantities.

If Lawrence and Lowell were promoted as tax free zones, what
would the impact of job creation be? Or even Taunton or Worcester?

Just my thoughts.

Respectfully,

Jessie Powell
Middleboro, MA

To which the Senator responded --


Professor Barrows has NOT received any funding from the Gaming industry

Casino Shill Barrow Exposed -- Again!

Critics hit ‘objective’ researcher for pro-gambling tilt
Prof makes casino pitch

By Jay Fitzgerald

A University of Massachusetts professor, who has billed himself as an objective voice in the long-running debate over casino gambling in the Bay State, is now a paid consultant for a gaming proponent in New Hampshire.

Clyde Barrow, whose research has been criticized for being biased in favor of gambling, will testify today for a developer who wants to open a resort casino just across the border in the Granite State.

Gambling opponents say Barrow’s work for a gaming interest confirms their belief that his research has a pro-gambling tilt.

“It’s about time the people of Massachusetts know where the (gambling) proponents are getting their numbers” on jobs and tax revenue,” said Kathleen Conley Norbut, a critic of casino gambling and a member of the Western Massachusetts Casino Task Force.

Barrow’s work has been cited by Gov. Deval Patrick and other Bay State gambling proponents as proof of the benefits Massachusetts would reap from resort casinos.

Barrow, director of the Center for Policy Analysis at UMass-Dartmouth, acknowledged yesterday he’s getting paid an unspecified amount of money for producing a “market feasibility” study for the Greenmeadow Golf Course, which is pushing for a resort casino in Hudson, N.H.

“It’s really not much,” Barrow said of the amount he’s getting paid.

Though his UMass-Dartmouth center touts its financial independence on its Web site, Barrow said he’s doing the paid Granite State casino-development work “on my own.”

Some gambling critics have long insisted Barrow has had at least indirect ties to the gambling industry in recent years. But Barrow said yesterday the Greenmeadow work is the first time since 1999 that he’s performed paid work for a gaming interest.

He claims the New Hampshire contract doesn’t discredit his past gaming research, which has been used by Gov. Deval Patrick and other casino proponents to justify opening new resort casinos in Massachusetts.

Barrow’s studies have touted the gains in jobs and tax revenue if resort casinos are approved in Massachusetts - and his study for the proposed “Sagamore Crossing” project in New Hampshire predicts roughly the same benefits.

A spokeswoman for Patrick, who cited some of Barrow’s findings in legislative testimony he delivered last year in favor of new resort casinos, said Barrow’s past research wasn’t the only material Patrick used to support expansion of gambling in Massachusetts.

“The administration based its support for destination resort casinos on their economic development and job creation potential,” said spokeswoman Kofi Jones. “Numerous sources, studies, and analysis were used in reaching our estimates’ conclusions.”

Casino backers just want your money

From Ohio --

Casino backers just want your money; vote no on Issue 3


Casino backers want your money

The casino ads on TV don’t tell the whole story. The casino proponents aren’t really interested in creating more jobs; they just want more of Ohio’s money. They don’t really care that money is leaving Ohio; they just want to move it from your pocket to theirs.

The real truth is that casinos create losers, increase poverty, and destroy families and communities. Someone has to lose for others to win. Statistically, poor families pay a greater share of the costs involved with gambling. Communities where casinos have located have seen divorces, gambling addiction, homelessness, crime, and child protection cases increase while watching local businesses close.

It is the gambling industry that will benefit the most. They want more states and more casinos so that it will be easier to take more of America’s money. Let’s use our money to create real jobs that will add to real productivity and not ones that just create more problems at the taxpayers’ expense. Vote no on Issue 3.

— Edward A. Bell

Middleboro CRAC Meeting with "Tribe"

Middleboro's CRAC (Casino Resort Advisory Committee), the one that's supposed to do whatever to plan for the doomed Mashpee Wampanoag Slot Parlor, will have as their guests this evening the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Leadership.

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Since the leadership fantasizes that a "Carcieri Fix" will solve all problems, the meeting might be worth a few chuckles.

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Note to some: The Hawaii SCOTUS decision ended LIT, the Tribe no longer have a federal bureaucracy foolish enough to invest the $400 million or thereabouts for infrastructure improvement and the Tribe is of no value to commercial investors to avoid state taxes and regulations. Ooops!

Watch Out Milford: This is How it starts

Predatory Gambling is so wildly profitable for the greedy owners that they can afford the best full-time lobbyists who provide glitter filled propaganda that is readily regurgitated by short-staffed newspapers.

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Why work, compose and do any research, when you can just print what's handed to you?

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And by all means, make sure "No questions are asked!"

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Selectman Chair from Milford, Brian W. Murray is NOT allowing public comments at tonight's meeting.

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It is undetermined is Brian W. Murray is related to Massachusetts Senate President "Ca Ching" Murray or Middleboro's Very Own Arrogant Gavel Queen, Marsha Brunelle, who thought nothing of gaveling opposition to silence in front of the media.

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Genealogy aside, the failure to allow questions, input or study should set off alarm bells.

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You might want to review some of the reports that are available to inform yourselves. You just might want to consider some of those pesky little details, like say public safety costs, public school impacts, and, oh yes! Where will those low wage, low skilled workers working dead end jobs live?

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When public input is prohibited, what are they hiding?

Centaur Lamenting Their "Bad Deal"

Centaur and others agreed to a $250 million licensing fee and other stipulated investments, but now cries foul?

Hoosier Park challenges bankruptcy claim


ANDERSON — Hoosier Park Racing & Casino is in no imminent danger of bankruptcy, say officials with its parent company, Centaur.

Without parity in Indiana gaming, however, its financial future is uncertain.

“If we fail at every turn... is it a possibility out of 20 possibilities?” said Centaur Chairman Roderick Ratcliff. “It is a possibility.”

Ratcliff said under no circumstances would Hoosier Park close its doors. His comments came after State Sen. Luke Kenley, R-Nobleville, in a televised report, essentially predicted bankruptcy for Hoosier Park due to trouble repaying two large bonds.

Centaur borrowed heavily in order to pay a $250 million licensing fee to Indiana and to fund the construction of its 92,000-square-foot casino. The televised report on Wednesday suggested that Hoosier Park has two large bonds due within 90 days, which Ratcliff characterized as “incorrect,” saying its first loans are due in 2012.

He framed Hoosier Park’s financial troubles in the larger context of excessive taxation.

“The model set up for the racinos today does not work,” Ratcliff said. “Even without the $250 million license, we would be unable to compete.” Jim Brown, general manager of gaming at Hoosier Park, said the Anderson racino and Indiana Live Casino in Shelbyville are taxed at a rate of 47 percent, while Indiana’s riverboat casinos are taxed at 35 percent. They have lobbied legislators to level the playing field and the matter is under consideration by the Gaming Study Committee. Kenley chairs the committee, which will meet again on Oct. 19.

Ratcliff said a study undertaken by the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University found that a $125 million licensing fee would be appropriate for a casino based at Hoosier Park. Given the crushing debt it incurred to pay twice that amount, Ratcliff said paying $250 million was a mistake.

“Do I regret it? Absolutely,” Ratcliff said. “I regret agreeing to $250 million.”

Indiana Gaming Commissioner Ernie Yelton previously told The Herald Bulletin that without financial relief, the bankruptcy of Hoosier Park Racing & Casino is “imminent.” Joe Gorajec, executive director of the Indiana Horse Racing Commission, said he is not familiar with Hoosier Park’s financial status and has received no paperwork to suggest a bankruptcy.

“We’ve received nothing from Hoosier Park,” Gorajec said. “I’m not aware of any scenario whereby the track would discontinue operations.”

Ratcliff and Brown said Hoosier Park’s business is actually very healthy. Relieved of the burden of debt and excessive taxation he said he believes the facility can thrive.

“We’re very optimistic that the capital structure is going to get re-worked,” Ratcliff said.

Rivers Casino Not Making Enough Money

'That's Of Concern In A Lot Of Ways,' Pittsburgh Mayor Says

PITTSBURGH -- With revenues far below expectations, the new Rivers Casino on Pittsburgh's North Shore is upping the ante with more giveaways to attract customers inside to play slot machines.

Team 4's Paul Van Osdol reported that the most recent financial report shows the casino made less money per slot machine than any other casino in Pennsylvania.

What's the reason? "That is what we're actually trying to figure out," Rivers Casino spokesman George Matta said.

In August, the casino celebrated its grand opening and owners projected a first-year take of $400 million. But statistics show that the casino has made just $34 million in its first two months, which projects to $203 million for the year -- only half of the estimated haul.

For the week ending Oct. 4, Philadelphia Park Casino earned $350 per slot machine, Presque Isle earned $233 per slot machine, the Meadows in Washington County earned $194 per slot machine and the Rivers made $161 per slot machine.

"Over the course of the first two months, I think revenues are lower than we expected them to be. That is of concern in a lot of ways," Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said.


Pittsburgh and Allegheny County are relying on casino money -- a projected $49 million for the city and $49 million for the county over five years -- for many projects.

Also, $7.5 million per year in casino money is expected to help fund construction of the Penguins' new arena, the Consol Energy Center. Another $6 million is needed for community development projects on the North Side and in the Hill District.

Maybe football fans will venture across the street from adjacent Heinz Field and spend their money at the Rivers.

"When the Steelers or (Pitt) Panthers score a touchdown, it's $5 free play throughout the house," Matta said.

A car is being given away every week as another promotion to attract more casino business.
"They took for granted people were just going to come because it was there. Maybe that's not the case. Maybe they need to do more marketing like the other casinos do," Ravenstahl said.
Casino officials are also hoping for table games to draw more customers, but legislation to legalize table games is still being debated in Harrisburg.

Earlier this month, Standard & Poor's downgraded the credit rating for casino affiliate Holdings Gaming Borrower from B to B-minus, citing concerns about what it calls the Rivers' "weak operating performance" and its ability to meet debt service payments if there's no change in fortunes.

Mohegan Sun: Low Wage Jobs

The video is worth watching to hear Mohegan Sun exec gloss over the low wage jobs that are created.

Casino capitalism only benefits the casino operators


The crisis on Wall Street- AIG, Lehman Brothers, Bernie Madoff and so on - are all part of what’s been called “casino capitalism” – using predatory practices and financial gimmicks to promote an illusion of free money, all at the expense of unsuspecting Americans.



Predatory gambling is casino capitalism in its crudest form. Watch the brief video below of Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs (PA) CEO Robert Soper testifying before a PA Legislative Committee that his blackjack dealers in Connecticut, not including tips which come out of the customer's pocket, are paid somewhere between "$6 and $7 an hour" and, if table games are approved in Pennsylvania, his dealers would probably be paid even "lower."

Slot Revenue Declines

BUSINESS IN BRIEF: Revenues for casino slot machines drop again in Connecticut
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The Patriot Ledger
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QUINCY —
Revenues for casino slot machines drop again
The operators of the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods casinos in Connecticut continue to report declining slot machine revenues.

Foxwoods reported slot revenue of $54.8 million in September, a 10.2 percent decline in total slot handle from the same month a year ago. But the president of the authority that runs the casino said the results represented the casino’s strongest take, in terms of market share, since May.

Meanwhile, Foxwoods’ big rival also reported declines. The Mohegan Sun gaming authority said slot revenues at the Mohegan Sun casino and at Pocono Downs in Pennsylvania declined by 6 to 10 percent in the quarter that ended on Sept. 31, to a range of $250 million to $260 million for the quarter. Table game revenue took a bigger hit, though, with a projected drop of 23 percent to 26 percent.

The casino industry had largely been considered recession-proof until this recession, when cash-strapped consumers curtailed their casino trips and casino operators suffered under the weight of mountains of debt from recent expansions.

State's lottery is dishonest business

State's lottery is dishonest business

Billed as a harmless way to pump up education revenue without raising taxes, the empathetically named North Carolina Education Lottery was created to compete with surrounding state lotteries, where Tar Heels often dropped thousands of dollars.

Smelling another money-raising avenue, the N.C. Legislature voted the lottery into existence over the objections of many religious leaders, as well as those who feared it would become an indirect tax on the poor.

The lottery was justified by lofty promises that lottery proceeds would directly benefit the state’s educational system, but those promises conveniently soon were forgotten as lawmakers plundered the funds with about the same constraint as investment cheat Bernard Madoff exhibited when helping himself to his own clients’ money.

Although tough times often do call for tough measures — and it certainly can be argued these are tough times — where the lottery was concerned, the state chose to assume the role of a reverse Robin Hood, robbing both the poor and the schools in order to fund other projects.

Meanwhile, back in Onslow and Carteret counties, as well as across the Tar Heel State, residents increasingly struggle with unemployment, rising living costs and the burden of higher taxes. Some have also discovered a new and potentially devastating addiction that many would never have even known they had without government intervention: Gambling.

Gambling is one of the least understood of all addictions, but one of the most destructive. Those who suffer from it often lose everything to its pull, leaving their families with little or nothing. Very often gambling addicts go through their assets before anyone else is even aware of the problem, leaving debt and misery in their wakes.

While there is certainly an element of free will in the purchase of a lottery ticket and many gamble without losing their shirts, government should not actively push gambling or the sale of alcohol, for that matter. If the state needs the money these activities provide, then it should tax them instead. With North Carolina actively exploring the expansion of its lottery ticket sales, the state can now lay claim to the dubious distinction of finding new ways to prey upon its poorest citizens.

If lottery officials have their way, the lottery will grow yet again, with multi-million dollar jackpot drawings four days a week instead of two. The move will add another high stakes pay-out to the lottery; however, the state’s goal isn’t to multiply the chances of a Tar Heel winner but to make more money from desperate people buying lottery tickets they can’t afford.

If North Carolina expands the lottery again, the state should change the name. Education is certainly not its true focus. Instead it should be called the “North Carolina Whatever We Want to Do with It Lottery.” It doesn’t have much pizzazz, but unlike the whole lottery business itself, at least it’s honest.

Gambling Addict Jailed Over $16 Million Scheme

Gambler jailed over $16 million investment scam
DANIEL HURST
October 17, 2009 - 11:04AM
A "compulsive" gambler whose high-risk, unregistered investment scheme left mum and dad investors $16 million out of pocket has been jailed for 13 years.

The Brisbane District Court yesterday heard the promoter of the money-losing scheme, Brett Tony Best of Middle Park, had also faked loan applications to borrow $4.3 million as he fed his gambling addiction.

Westpac, National Australia Bank and Bank West were among the eight lenders defrauded when the trucking industry enthusiast sought finance to buy 45 non-existent prime movers and semi-trailers, the court was told.

The 40-year-old married father of three yesterday pleaded guilty to eight fresh fraud charges over the truck loans, following earlier guilty pleas on eight federal charges for running and dishonestly profiting from an unregistered managed investment scheme.

Commonwealth prosecutor David Kent told the court the company he headed, Arafura Equities Pty Ltd, promised investors 5 per cent profit per month, or 60 per cent annually, to be derived from futures market trading.

Some 200 clients, most of whom lived in South-East Queensland, entrusted their money to the company between 2003 and 2005 until the business was handed over to liquidators, Mr Kent said.

Investors dispensed with more $17.8 million in that time but were still owed $16.4 million when the company was wound up with just $3 million in assets, a report by the receivers found.

Best knew the company was insolvent in May 2005 but continued to take on clients until just before liquidators were appointed in October that year, the court was told.

He also "ignored" the law about registering the investment scheme.

Mr Kent described the crimes as "serious, systematic and deliberate", adding they appeared to have been committed "for no other motive than personal gain".

He said as investors started to demand the cash they were owed, a fellow promoter of the scheme, Patricia Jenkins, who was jailed earlier this year, started handing over money from new clients to the older ones.

"She was doing a bit of a Robin Hood job herself," Mr Kent said.

Best's charges included dishonestly gaining a financial advantage for himself worth $30,000 and six charges of dishonestly gaining a financial advantage for Arafura Equities worth $330,000, amounts that reflected cash taken when the company was already insolvent.

The court also heard yesterday details of his earlier fraudulent activities involving the use of fake or modified truck vehicle numbers to justify banks loans which he "frittered away" betting on horse racing.

But the semi-trailers and prime movers he supposedly purchased either did not exist, had already been written off or were unregistered, state prosecutor Dennis Kinsella said.
Best, the son of a truck driver, paid off about $300,000 of the debts, but millions had been funnelled into his own accounts, he said.

Defence lawyer Eoin Mac Giolla Ri said the common thread than ran between the two activities were his client's "compulsive gambling", pointing to one month in 2001 in which more than $100,000 was gambled.

But Best genuinely believed he would make money for investors on the futures markets, he said.

"Mr Best suffers from a chronic gambling addiction, a very powerful gambling addiction which drove the offending ... because he needed money to gamble."

Judge Katie McGinness told Best his investment scheme had taken a heavy toll on "mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters" and other community-minded people.

"You have managed to ruin their lives," she said.

"Some of them have suffered a breakdown in their relationships with their family and friends."
She imposed a 13-year jail term, but he will be eligible for release after four years and four months as a bonus for his guilty pleas.

He has already served 158 days in custody

Senator Cha Ching Murray

The following was sent by a regular reader --

Honorable Senator Murray

Casinos are not inevitable, and IMO those who think or say they are clearly poor leaders. The last time I looked we still live in a democratic society, where the people have a voice, so hopefully you will here my voice.

I work but do not live in the districts you represent, and ALL of those I work with do not think casinos are inevitable, but seriously wonder why "you" think and tout they are? They just question you telling people what you might want, without listening to what they would like. Some are ready to fight this bill, as they hear rumor the Kingston Mall is a possible casino location.

Many, including myself, feel casinos and legalizing gambling in Massachusetts is fraught with more problems than benefits, and that our state leadership is weak. Or they're merely delaying the vote to receive election funding. Sometimes hearing the truth is hard to believe. But I think you might want to listen a little closer.

Casinos and expanding gambling is not the magic pill, and I suggest those who feel they are, like you, do a little research before placing their seat in jeopardy.

I plan to go the extra mile, and help educate the public on the risks you, Deleo, and Patrick plan to expose MA to.

Do you really want to bet your career in politics on this issue?

Regards,

Resident of Middleboro, MA
Where we were also told a Tribal casino was inevitable, by a man now in jail.

Personal Bankruptcies

The Standard Times reports --

The number of Bay State residents filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection shot up 35 percent in the first nine months of the year, compared to the same period in 2008.


On a more hopeful note, Warren noted Chapter 7 filings had decreased in the third quarter of this year from the second quarter by 8.7 percent.

If the economic news continues to improve, some people weighing bankruptcy may reconsider, he said.

"Nobody wants to file for bankruptcy," he said. "It's a terrible thing to go through."

Personal bankruptcy is a devastating process for families
and it would seem that our leaders would be anxious to
prevent it and reduce the numbers.

Studies indicate expanded gambling increases the number
of bankruptcies. So, why would we support it?

Taken from --
We Can Always Build More Casinos, Right?
A 2005 study by the Federal Reserve found a statistically
significant relationship between proximity to casinos in
Mississippi and bankruptcy rates in the region, which
includes impoverished states like Alabama and
Tennessee.

The evidence is in! We just have to listen to it.

To the Voters of Salem

Wow!

You folks sure elected a woman with a great sense of humor to request my attendance and support for Predatory Gambling at the October 29th Gambling Hearing!

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The invitation provided a letter to sign that contains some bizarre logic --

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Declining Lottery revenues, town budget deficits, important state projects that need funding, crumbling infrastructure, and rising unemployment rates.

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Casinos, racinos and slot parlors around the country have filed for bankruptcy. Lottery revenues are declining because disposable income is declining and because unemployment is increasing, and OMG! Money will fall like manna from heaven to fill that pot o' gold!

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Straight from The Playbook, NEVER EVER call it a Slot Parlor!

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Please take note: Last year, they called it a Destination Resort Casino -- this is their new marketing phraseology that they paid a lot of money to conjure up (as a result of those lengthy polls) --

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Massachusetts needs resort-style entertainment complexes to remain competitive with our neighboring states and provide another revenue source for our cities and towns.
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Isn't that choice? They thought you'd like it!
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No one will notice that several of those states they want to compete with have higher taxes and higher unemployment rates.

To Steve Grossman

Dear Steve:

Allow me to weigh in as "just your average voter."

When Middleboro was confronted with a Mega Slot Parlor in its
midst, questions and opposition were silenced, impacts never
considered and it was "inevitable" we were told.

Increased crime, public safety and school costs were NEVER
factored into the whopping $7 million offered, while supporters
raved "Wow!"

Some of us just knew intuitively it was wrong - not solely from
a moral perspective.

From examining other states that have allowed themselves to be
blinded by the Fool's Gold of Gambling, it becomes clear that,
since Predatory Gambling fails to cover its costs, continued
expansion is needed to cover revenue shortfalls in the false belief
that more gambling will somehow pay for the current mess.

Grandiose promises of job creation, economic development and
revenues are promised that never come to fruition because
they were flawed from the beginning, but no one questioned.

To meet those false promises, it is then argued that taxes are
too high, hours not long enough, additional slots must be
added, restrictions must be lifted.

Indiana is confronting tax bailouts.

Twin River is proposing in bankruptcy court 24 hours gaming
even though Lincoln, RI voters opposed it. Local control will
be disregarded. Greyhound racing will be eliminated even
though preservation of racing was the purpose of creating
a slot parlor.

Casinos around the country are filing bankruptcy or in the
case of the CT casinos, "restructuring their debt." And
this is the partner we propose getting in bed with?
Tribes have defaulted on their loan payments.
What type of fiscal review is being considered?

The Bay State will move from being a regulator to being a
stakeholder and promoter in the success of slots venues
because you too have become addicted to gambling and
fail to recognize the folly that it simply doesn't pay its
way and the costs are too high.

That anyone in a position of authority allows the conversation
to be monopolized with false promises is disappointing.

I would hope our legislative leaders would have the wisdom
to follow New Hampshire's lead and insist on an impartial
cost benefit analysis.

We simply can't afford the costs of predatory gambling.

Respectfully,

Jessie Powell
Middleboro, MA
No longer home to the Mashpee
Wampanoag Mega Monster thanks to
Hawaii

Gambling Ban

County votes 18-4 to ban video poker (emphasis mine)--

The Lake County Board slammed the door on video poker in unincorporated areas.

In an 18-4 vote Tuesday, the board passed an ordinance opting out of Illinois' new gambling initiative, which was intended to help fund the state's capital bill through video gaming machines in taverns and other facilities.


...they were unwilling to advance a state revenue plan they felt came with steep social costs, including gambling addiction, bankruptcy and increased crime.

At least one person got it right about the continued expansion of predatory gambling --

Glenn Stewart, pastor of Agape Christian Fellowship and a leader of the Greater Waukegan Ministerial Association, said that allowing video poker in taverns would eventually lead to gaming in other establishments such as fast-food restaurants.

"Right now, it might just be in these certain places, but eventually it will be everywhere because the state will never have enough," he said.

SCOTUS and Hawaii Being Ignored

Saturday, July 11, 2009, the following was posted -- Mashpee Wampanoag Pipedreams, including the following --
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Within weeks of the 8-1 Carcieri v Salazar decision, a second

strike on fee to trust was issued. This time it came from a case
originating in the state of Hawaii. In the 9-0 decision on Hawaii
v. the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Justice Alito wrote, "It would
raise grave constitutional concerns" Congress sought to "cloud
Hawaii's title to its sovereign lands" after it had joined the
Union. "We have emphasized that Congress cannot, after
statehood reserve or convey....lands that have already been
bestowed upon a state". How many readers of this paper could
be effected by issues concerning land that has been "bestowed
upon a state"; as an original colony, through disestablished
territory or when the territory entered into statehood?
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Simplified versions may be found here --
SCOTUS WIKI
Opinion Recap: Hawaii v. Office of Hawaiian Affairs

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Recently, Federal bill could get Middleboro casino plans back on track ignores the Hawaii decision to which a majority of states' AGs signed onto.

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Although no expertise is professed, in our midst are legal experts who surely will opine that the Hawaii SCOTUS decision cannot be undone.

Playbook: Silence the Facts! Tyranny Prevails!

On Saturday, October 10, 2009, the USTA officially announced that the Massachusetts Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies would hold hearings on Gambling on Thursday, October 29 at 10 AM, Gardner Auditorium.

Oh?

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Since below is the address of USTA, Huh?
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United States Trotting Association 750 Michigan Ave. Columbus, Ohio 43215
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Since Ohio will be voting for the 5th time on predatory gambling, that's a curious connection.

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The article indicates --
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....according to an e-mail received yesterday afternoon by Plainridge Racecourse President Gary T. Piontkowski.
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Senator Spilka, did you forget to notify the Massachusetts media? Did you neglect to post an agenda of any sort anywhere on any type of "official" web site?

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Or, Senator, was it your intent to hold another Casino Lovefest filled with gambling shills like your June 2009 Joke? Remember, that was the one you claimed was 'educational,' included mostly casino shills and you refused to release an agenda until just prior to the event, refused to allow audience questions or even a balanced agenda?

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Did you read the Globe article posted here -- Know when to fold 'em ?

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Senator, did you fail to notice that resolution that was passed at the June 2009 Democratic State Convention? Hmmmm. I'm sure someone could get you a copy and maybe they could explain that those delegates are the ones who work really hard to get you folks elected. Seems like a pretty trashy way to treat the dedicated.

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Pretty sleazy! Consistent with The Playbook, but a few of us expected better of you.

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Professor Kindt spoke at Ambassador Hunt's home. Did you invite him to your love fest?

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It's time for a cost/benefit analysis that considers the expenses and impacts, just as New Hampshire is doing.

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The closest thing the Commonwealth has had to a gambling referendum was Ballot Question 3.

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Here are the results --

Ballot Question 3 - Senate Districts

Ballot Question 3 - House Districts

Karen Spilka 58% Second Middlesex & Norfolk

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Leadership is doing what's right to serve the common good, not ignoring the "crappification" of the Commonwealth.

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CT Slot Parlors: How Do You Define Bankruptcy?

Mashantuckets, Mohegans lack flexibility when dealing with debts
Indian Gaming Act restricts solutions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By WILLIAM SOKOLIC
For The Norwich Bulletin
Posted Oct 11, 2009 @ 11:25 PM

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In May 1978, Resorts opened in Atlantic City, N.J., as the first casino outside Nevada.
A decade later, Merv Griffin bought the property. Almost a decade after that, Griffin sold the company to Sun International, which sold it to Colony Capital in 2001 for a huge loss.

Each new owner assumed the debt of the previous ownership.

This year, the creditors are seeking to take over ownership from Colony Capital for failure to pay its debt service.

At the center of all these changes was debt — an issue very much on the minds of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe, owners of Foxwoods and MGM Grand at Foxwoods, and the Mohegan Gaming Tribal Authority, which owns Mohegan Sun.

Millions, billions owed

The Mashantuckets reportedly have debt obligations of more than $2 billion. The Mohegans have to repay $150 million in $30 million increments, beginning next year, the result of an agreement with the bank to retire a $330 million note.

Neither tribe can seek any of the options available to previous owners of Resorts. They cannot look for a buyer to take the load off their shoulders. Or sell off a gaming hall to reduce debt. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act says only a tribe can own a casino, said Shawn P. Pensoneau, a spokesman for the National Indian Gaming Commission. If property is on the reservation, the land is owned and held in trust by the federal government.

The Mashantuckets have retained Miller Buckfire & Co. LLC as a financial and restructuring adviser and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP as legal counsel to provide professional services in connection to restructuring its large debt.

Mohegan Sun faces similar approaches.

“We’ll have difficulty making those payments on the $150 million, so we are considering debt restructuring,” said Leo Chupaska, Mohegan Sun’s chief financial officer. “We are studying what we can do to take care of the issue.”

More options

Nontribal gaming companies have more options. They can issue additional debt or stock, he said.

“The tribes can’t sell off or convert anything to equity,” said Clyde W. Barrow, director of the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.

Said Chupaska, “If the casino goes belly up, creditors can’t take the land.”

And while tribes can lease land for retail and restaurant operations — and can hire a company to manage the casino — it cannot sell its casino assets to a nontribal entity.

There are a lot of private operators on Indian reservations, Chupaska said. Mohegan Sun has a number of third-party retailers who pay a leasing fee. Most pay a percentage of revenue, he said.

“The regulatory act is specific for Indian gaming, not for retail,” Pensoneau said.

So what’s a financially strapped tribe to do?

If a tribe went into default, creditors could hire someone to run the casino, but the management team would have to be licensed by the National Indian Gaming Commission, Chupaska said.

“It’s difficult to pass muster with the NIGC,” he said. “The only thing we can do to raise money is to go into debt markets or issue bonds, so we’re at a little disadvantage.”

Like foreign nation

Barrow likens it to trying to collect on a debt from a foreign government.

“You can cut them off,” he said. “But if they do not have money, you can’t get blood from a stone.”

They may declare bankruptcy.

“But don’t expect an Obama bailout,” he said.

If banks are so inclined, they can write off the debt as they do for mortgages, restructure to lower interest rates, or lengthen the time to pay to back, Barrow said. Those steps are in the bank’s self-interest, since they cannot take over a casino.

Meantime, it’s business as usual, Chupaska said.

“We do not anticipate that the financial restructuring being considered by the tribe will affect our employees, customers, vendors or business partners,” he said. “The tribe does not plan to make any additional comments regarding this matter at this time.”

.

Whew! Who knew our perennial casino cheerleader was an expert in such complex law that others avoid comment? Pity he didn't offer advice to the other Tribes that have defaulted.

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This performance sends chills through the capital markets.

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And it certainly should raise alarms after the casino gambling investment fiascos.

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This highlights a complex issue the Attorney General touched upon in her testimony before Senator Spilka's Casino Lovefest in June 2009.

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Who will vet prospective owners? What are the consequences of a bankruptcy?

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Other venues have prohibited gambling interests from making political contributions.

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If the depth of support is "Ca Ching," it sure raises questions.

.

Big Dig, anyone?

Gambling Threatens What We Have Built

Joe Hallett commentary: Downtown could end up big loser if casino issue passes
Sunday, October 11, 2009 By Joe Hallett


It was a comfortable Friday night in August and three old buddies were in town for a weekend of biking and brews.

En route to Huntington Park to watch the Clippers get slaughtered by Indianapolis, we walked through the Arena District, dodging fans of Keith Urban, who was playing Nationwide Arena. The district was vibrant and exciting as people hurried to various venues.

We left the game five innings after it was over and, shoulder-to-shoulder with other patrons, waited for a table at Marcella's. After dinner, we strolled through the Short North, window-shopping the art galleries and unusual stores.

Observing other pedestrians, my friend from southern Indiana said he felt as if he was walking the corridors of the United Nations: "Is this really Columbus, Ohio?"

No denying it -- we have built a good thing here.

Let's not ruin it.

That, I fear, is exactly what will happen if voters approve State Issue 3 on Nov. 3 to permit casinos in Ohio's four largest cities. In Columbus, the casino would be built in the Arena District on Nationwide Boulevard, west of Huntington Park.

It would suck the life out of everything good we have built, everything that caused my buddies to marvel about what Columbus has become, making them eager to return. For sure, the casino would draw big crowds, but research shows that once inside a casino, patrons spend little money outside of it.

"If you bring a casino down here in Downtown Columbus, you're going to ruin a lot of the economic activity you have here already," warned John W. Kindt, professor of business and legal policy at the University of Illinois and a leading expert on the impact of legalized gambling.

The casino, in fact, would diminish the amount of money available for spending elsewhere, Kindt said. Some of the nation's most respected economists, including Nobel Prize winner Paul Samuelson, have concluded that gambling actually shrinks the economy.

Speaking to the Nebraska Business Forum, Howard G. Buffett, the eminently successful Nebraska businessman and son of the nation's second-wealthiest man, said, "Those who win at gambling obtain someone else's wealth without giving anything in return. It is the transfer of resources with no tangible benefit or gain. . . . It is not a formula you build an economy on."
At a news conference in Columbus last week, Kindt said that the average casino slot machine collects about $100,000 per year. The Columbus casino would have up to 5,000 slot machines.

"That's $100,000 that's not being spent on cars, refrigerators, computers and the necessities of life: food, clothing, banking, savings," Kindt said. It also won't be spent at Huntington Park, Nationwide Arena and the Short North's restaurants and shops.

Casinos adversely hit the wallets of all citizens. Studies presented to Congress project that the cost of legalized gambling to taxpayers is at least $3 for every $1 of theoretical benefit, primarily due to increased crime and addiction.

It is indisputable that with casinos come rises in assaults, rape, robbery, burglary, auto theft, bankruptcies, embezzlements, child abuse, homelessness, drug usage and prostitution. After a 10-year study, researchers at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology concluded in 2006 that crime increased 8 percent to 10 percent on average after a casino opened in a county -- and crime increases continued thereafter.

"For the FOP to ignore the mountain of evidence that casinos cause crime is astonishing," Kindt said, referring to an endorsement of Issue 3 by the Ohio Fraternal Order of Police.

But like other unions and a number of public figures duped or paid to lend support to Issue 3 in nonstop television commercials, the FOP fell victim to a $50 million propaganda campaign by greedy developers positing casinos as panacea for job and tax losses.

"Let them call it gaming instead of gambling," Buffett said. "Let them refer to it as family entertainment rather than casinos. But no matter what they call it, it will always be a losing proposition."

A Columbus casino will leave us poorer, less safe and burdened with social costs. It threatens what we have built here.

Let's not do it.

Joe Hallett is senior editor at The Dispatch.

Development, not gambling, for Wonderland

Ambrosino: Development, not gambling, for Wonderland


By Thor Jourgensen / The Daily ItemREVERE - A top state legislator says the arrival of casinos in Massachusetts is "inevitable" but Mayor Thomas Ambrosino thinks the chance of one opening at Wonderland Greyhound Park is slim.

"I assume it will be dark for awhile," Ambrosino said Thursday in reference to the dog track's grim future after a Jan. 1 ban on dog racing begins.

Gov. Deval Patrick lost a bid in the Legislature last year to bring casinos to the state but the ascension this year of House Speaker Robert DeLeo, who represents Revere and supports casinos and slot machines at racetracks, has gambling proponents enthused about their prospects, although they'll need to turn many votes in the House.

DeLeo's state Senate counterpart, Senate President Therese Murray, told a radio interviewer Thursday she thinks the advent of casino gambling "definitely is inevitable."

A spokesman clarified Thursday that Murray believed both a vote on casinos and the facilities themselves are foregone conclusions. Murray did not specify a time frame.

Asked whether she backs racetrack slot machines, she replied, "I support destination casinos. But that's only my own opinion."

Legislative leaders have said a gambling vote would take place next year. Nine months into the session, they still haven't scheduled a public hearing on gambling bills, though one is expected sometime this month.

Dog racing supporters have threatened to file a lawsuit arguing the racing ban violates the constitutional right of dog owners and racing workers to earn a living. The suit cannot be filed until after January when supporters will be able to demonstrate the economic cost of the ban by pointing to layoffs and cutbacks at the tracks.

Proponents of the ban won voter support to end racing last November. They say dog racing is harmful to greyhounds and say they have sufficient enough support in the Legislature to oppose any move to overturn the ban. Ambrosino on Thursday said he "would be very surprised" if casinos or other types of gaming come to Wonderland.

"I expect the land to be redeveloped," he said.
Wonderland and Suffolk Downs signed an agreement in August 2008 giving Suffolk the option to develop both track sites and share in future development prospects. Wonderland is located across North Shore Road from the Wonderland subway station and adjoining land parcels where developers plan to build hotel, residential towers and a commercial plaza during the next decade.