We’ve seen what the proposals by Gambling
Interests have done to communities around the
Commonwealth.
Money is lavishly spent, grand promises made
that will never be fulfilled and grassroots activists
are unable to compete.
Once approved, projects become ‘Bait & Switch,’
such as Plainridge where a Mega Entertainment
venue is now included. And Palmer where the
proposal is not what was promised.
Taunton, Plainville, Milford and Palmer lack
adequate water for the proposals.
Revenues and Jobs are grossly overstated and
the truth is overshadowed by proponents.
[Easily disproven.] Jobs are mostly low wage,
lacking wages that will eliminate taxpayer
subsidies for food stamps, housing, etc.
Requisite infrastructure costs are ignored.
Suffolks Downs alone will cost ALL Massachusetts
taxpayers + $500 MILLION! Big Dig anyone?
All this at a time of Gambling Market Saturation
and the industry’s declining revenues.
Will we, as taxpayers, end up bailing out insolvent
Gambling interests?
This makes no sense. Let’s just be done with it!
Opponents of Predatory Gambling across
the Commonwealth are gathering petition
signatures to add their voices and allow
voters an opportunity to express their
opposition on the ballot.
http://www.repealthecasinodeal.org/
The site recently added a new feature:
5 Signatures
Download the petition and ask your friends
and family to help put this on the ballot.
[Remember, names on a petition must all
be from the same city/town. Download
another petition if you add a different
community. Then just MAIL!]
Time is growing short, so speak out NOW!
It’s time to protect ALL Massachusetts
communities from the ultimate 1% Scam
to suck $$$ from those least able to
afford it!
who opposed MEGA MONSTER PREDATORY GAMBLING developers, LOBBYISTS, misguided union support, those too eager to deny the facts on Beacon Hill and defeated not just ONE, but 2 GAMBLING DEVELOPMENTS that would have destroyed 2 great communities?
SHOUT OUT TO BOTH COMMUNITIES FOR THEIR GREAT WORK to protect their communities!
This is what it’s all about!
Now…..let’s REPEAL THE CASINO DEAL and be done with the Gambling Industry!
The East Boston casiNO vote kicks the Beacon Hill power politics paradigm in the teeth.
Palmer voters, despite the desperation for jobs and the millions spent by the gambling industry over years of trying to buy influence, said NO.
Will the Governor and lawmakers rethink their folly?
The expanded gambling law (casinos/slot barns) has been one of the worst examples of special interest-insider control of the Commonwealth in memory. Will the casino shills running for the corner office be called out for their disconnect with voters, taxpayers and sound public policy? Will their casino-gambling consultants face the consequences of their wrong-headed self-serving quests?
Will the candidates who stood for the good of the Commonwealth but did not win in recent elections be rewarded and supported in the future over the shills who flipped and voted for bringing the predatory gambling industry to the Commonwealth when any rational person can see that it is an industry in decline and the proposals are local feeder “hubs” not destination resorts?
It is gratifying to see that despite the impacts of big money, power and corruption our democracy still survives.
http://www.repealthecasinodeal.org
Sign the petition.
I have already signed up and started collecting signatures and will continue to do so until November 20th. The tide is definitely turning against the poorly-considered failed experiment of casinos. If it hasn’t worked for any state in the country, how is it supposed to work here?? Let’s get it on the ballot and repeal casinos in MA!
P.s. Is there anything more antithetical to Massachusetts than an anti-community big-business regressive tax corporation that profits off of addiction and ruined families? The role of government in society is to regulate oversized predatory industries like these, not partner with them and give them special breaks to compete against our own local businesses.
But, more importantly, I’ve been working with Casino Free Milford to get out the NO vote at our referendum on Nov. 19. Please click here and make a donation if you can to help us kick Foxwoods out of our nice suburban town:
http://casinofreemilford.com/donate/
Also, take a look at the latest episode of my local access TV show, where I discussed a report on casinos from the American Values Insitute with two other residents:
http://youtu.be/aZGLLvszIDQ
The full report can be found here:
http://www.americanvalues.org/why-casinos-matter
We get to claim,
We could not agree more and are gratified that the clarion call of educated and informed citizens making good decisions has rung loud and clear from East to West.
Something for nothing is not a sustainable American value.
Just imagine for a moment where we would be if all the politicians, staff, lobbyist, business leaders, media collaborators and unions had spent their time, treasure and talent fixing broken infrastructure, raising education and health outcomes in the state over the past seven years instead of on slots.
Let’s get busy to REPEAL the slots/casino law and move on bringing the resources wasted on these wrong-headed proposals into positive, sustainable directions with energy, education, health care, technology and innovation throughout the Commonwealth.
Lost in the shuffle of official votes, let’s not forget LONGMEADOW!
FOXWOODS in MILFORD will be defeated next! [Their ‘suitability’ is questionable.]
MGM has ties to organized crime in Asia.
Wynn violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act [bribing foreign officials – does $16 MILLION count?]and much else. Wynn was bounced from Connecticut and New York [because of his well-known ANTI-UNION position].
Download the REPEAL THE DEAL PETITION, mail it ASAP!
It needs to be approved by the Town Clerk or City Clerk, so don’t procrastinate sending the petition in even if you haven’t filled a page.
We’re shooting for a deadline of NOVEMBER 13TH to have petitions in, but can continue to collect.
East Longmeadow
West Springfield
Holyoke
Do you any links handy to data on Wynn’s anti-union positions, or being bounced from CT an NY? Everett is looking like the real possibility, the more people know about that stuff and can refer to it the better! Thanks
Several years ago, I discovered that when you go to look for an article you had read, it’s gone.
I was specifically seeking information about GAMBLING ADDICTION and SUICIDES, the Gambling Industry’s DIRTY LITTLE SECRET and discovered no one was categorizing information.
I began a blog: Middleboro Remembers strictly for the purpose of saving those articles.
The categories and number of posts are listed on the right side.
Silly me believing the Casino Vultures would disappear quickly before the blog got so lengthy!
There are ~ 50 articles under ‘anti-union’:
http://middlebororemembers.blogspot.com/search/label/anti-union
There are +200 articles about Wynn – at the bottom of the page, click on ‘Older Posts’ to see additional.
http://middlebororemembers.blogspot.com/search/label/Wynn
As you may remember, Foxborough was but one of Wynn’s targets for which there are ~ 182 posts:
http://middlebororemembers.blogspot.com/search/label/Foxborough
Wynn’s Plans for Bridgeport, CT
One of the most striking issues is POVERTY:
http://middlebororemembers.blogspot.com/search/label/poverty
Atlantic City: Ignoring the failures of Predatory Gambling
This is a Federal Reserve study of Atlantic City where all jobs, except for Revel are UNION:
Poverty in Atlantic City
Of Atlantic City casino jobs, this says it all –
…the low-skill service jobs available in casinos or other industries may not provide enough income to escape poverty. Residents often noted that they or someone they knew held two or three casino jobs in order to make ends meet.
I hope that provides some answers and information.
I am a firm believer that the more you learn about Predatory Gambling, the more you oppose it!
I completely agree. The economics make zero sense, and yet because state governments get enough of a cut, they keep approving it. They are willing to let their most vulnerable residents lose billions of dollars to out-of-state corporations as long as they get a few million for their budget. It’s amazingly cynical and short-sighted.
As someone who cares about the macro-economic picture and general economic justice, I have never heard an argument in favor of casinos that made any economic sense.
In case you haven’t heard:
Public hearing on Bill S.166 scheduled for Wednesday, November 13, 2013 at 11:00 AM in room B-1 of the State House.
This Bill would amend the Gaming Act thus:
BE IT ENACTED by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, finding the best interests of the Commonwealth greatly served, does hereby AMEND H.3807 Acts of 2011 c. 194, Chapter 23K § 15(13) as follows:
i.) All registered voters in any “host city-town” where a proposed Casino Establishment is to be situated are eligible to vote;
ii.) Following a rejection by certified ballot election denying a Casino Establishment in any “host city-town,” another such election shall not be held for at least 24 months from the date of such rejection;
iii.) Full details of the entire “host city agreement” shall remain available in hard copy and on the Web site of the municipality for at least 24 months or for the duration of any Casino License which ever is longer.
Read the entire text of the bill here:
https://malegislature.gov/Bills/188/Senate/S166
Here’s the COMMITTEE, looks like all PRO-CASINO FOLKS:
Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies
Please tell them NO!
Let’s REPEAL THE CASINO DEAL, not amend it!
The strategies of reforming the broken law and repealing it are not mutually exclusive. The current timelines are untenable and the repeal won’t take affect until the November 2014 ballot, so amend the hell out of it….do I hear ten years or even better, never for a revisit! I also suspect despite the Speaker and Kathi-Ann Reinstein’s comments today about throwing the Suffolk Downs dice into Revere that many more legislators will think twice before being reckless casino shills from this point forward.
Senator Brownsberger is bringing this forward at request of a constituent. Just imagine a community having to go through that hell again in six months…..waste of resources.
Thank you, Will.
‘SUITS’ [well paid lobbyists] filling the galleries, pacing the halls on their cell phones and dictating TERMS.
This was NEVER about the people!
This was about prostituting themselves for campaign donations and ego-stroking, shutting the people out, failing to allow even minimal protections.
This was about Doug Rubin cramming this through and Spectrum Gaming soaking up taxpayer dollars with phony projections.
The entire process was disgusting!
When it was proposed that LOBBYISTS should wear TAGS to clearly identify themselves, those who enjoy the largesse were the ones to protest loudest.
It’s time for change!