State officials today told 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.
The state is cracking down on online gambling, which the state says is illegal in Minnesota.

A division of the state Department of Public Safety that enforces gambling and alcohol laws said today that it has instructed 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers (ISPs) to block access by all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites.

“We are putting site operators and Minnesota online gamblers on notice and in advance,” says John Willems, director of the state’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division. “State residents with online escrow accounts should be aware that access to their accounts may be jeopardized and their funds in peril.”

Willems said the state is acting even though he has no idea how much Internet wagering is going on in Minnesota.

“It’s hard to know that,” he said, because of its illegal nature. “I can’t tell you if it’s one [Minnesotan gambling online] or 500,000. My only concern is that it’s unlawful.”

He did say he has anecdotal evidence that Internet gambling “is fairly large” in Minnesota, noting that Canterbury Park in Shakopee has said that its casino-style games have been hurt. “Also, I’ve had people call me and say they’ve lost $20,000; can I help them? I can’t.”

Written notices from Willems’ division were served Monday to:

AT&T Internet Services, San Antonio; Charter Communications, St. Louis; Comcast Cable, Moorestown, N.J.; Direct TV, Los Angeles; Dish Network, Englewood., Colo.; Embarq and Sprint/Nextel, both of Overland Park, Kan.; Frontier Communications, Stamford, Conn.; Qwest, Denver; Verizon Wireless, Bedminster, N.J.; and Wildblue Communications, Greenwood Village, Colo.

In mounting its challenge, Minnesota is citing a 1961 federal law that gives states the authority to control illegal gambling.

Minnesota now joins at least one other state that has taken on Internet gambling, according to a national trade group that favors legalization of online betting in the United States.

In the 20 years he’s worked on the Atlantic City boardwalk, Joe Lochs has never seen business this bad.

Lochs, 54, makes his living giving rides to casino patrons in a “rolling chair,” a three-wheeled, wicker-sided buggy that he pushes up and down the boardwalk between casinos, shops and restaurants.

In good times, he can make $1,000 a week but since the beginning of winter, business is off by around 60 percent, and some days, there is no work at all.

Business at Atlantic City’s 11 casinos is falling at a record pace. Aggregate revenue plunged 19.2 percent in February from a year earlier, the sharpest decline in the 30 years since gambling was legalized in the city, according to the New Jersey Casino Control Commission.

“Before this year, I never had a day without a single ride,” Lochs said, rolling a cigarette outside the bankrupt Trump Plaza casino. “This year, I’ve had three of them.”

Nearby, six of Lochs’ competitors dozed in their chairs as potential clients strolled by in the late-winter sunshine.

Like everyone else in New Jersey’s gambling capital, Lochs has been hit by the contracting national economy and by increased competition from a growing gaming industry in surrounding states, particularly neighboring Pennsylvania, where casinos allow slot machines but not table games.

“We no longer have this total monopoly on the market,” Lochs said.

DRIVE TO DIVERSIFY

Along the Atlantic City Expressway, Pinnacle Entertainment (PNK.N) ran tongue-in-cheek billboard ads that said “You know what this town needs? Another casino.”

These days, it’s no joke.

Three of the city’s casinos, those operated by Trump Entertainment TRMP.PK, are in bankruptcy following a court filing by Trump on Feb. 17. Two new resorts planned by Pinnacle and MGM Mirage (MGM.N) have been scrapped because financing is unavailable in the tight credit market.

On March 6, Pinnacle said it was seeking a buyer for the beachfront land where it had hoped to build a $1.5 billion resort.

In a surprise move that expands her business ties with well-known Gala Bingo, Sharon Osbourne launched her own bingo site with the www.SharonsBingo.com website. If you do not know yet who Sharon is, she is the famous wife of the equally famous rocker Ozzy of Black Sabbath fame.
The site is a collaboration with one of the U.K.’s biggest bingo operators. Gala Bingo alone has a 40% share of the country’s bingo industry and claims close to 32 million admissions annually. With more than six million registered members, that translates to about 5 admissions per member. This bingo division of the Gala Coral gambling group pays out millions in pounds in winnings to lucky bingo players weekly.
As for Sharon herself, she is so excited about finally having her very own bingo site. She is breathless about the ultra-feminine pink-looking website which she claims her millions of fans will surely love.
Talented in her own right, she is a best-selling author and the star of “America’s Got Talent” TV show. Sharon hopes to expand further her business ties with Gala Bingo through added offerings such as chat rooms and the more traditional favourites like 75-ball and 90-ball bingo games. This will be mixed with side games such as Pharaoh’s Chamber, Magic Potion and Footballer’s Wags to enliven the site further.
Clive Cottrell, marketing head of the Remote Gambling Division of the Gala Coral Group, is ecstatic that Sharon chose them to help launch her new bingo site. He said that Sharon has been hugely popular with their own customers for the past two years so her dedicated site is simply a natural outgrowth of that. Sharon promotes Gala Bingo via TV ad spots on Gala’s own TV channel these days.

Pizza, mile-high sandwiches, gourmet burgers and mouthwatering BBQ are rounding out the expansive food options at MotorCity Casino Hotel. With the addition of a Little Caesars Pizza and the Pit Stop deli, the property now features six distinct eateries.

“Our culinary team is delighted to offer a very broad variety of dining options to our guests,” said Lucio Arancibia, vice president of food and beverage. “Players, spa visitors, concert goers and hotel guests have around-the-clock food options at MotorCity Casino Hotel. From fine dining at Iridescence to a quality sandwich, burger or slice, we cater to any craving.”

Little Caesars, open daily from 2-10 p.m., and from 2 p.m.-3 a.m. on weekends, will offer pizza slices, whole deep dish pizzas, wings, bread sticks and salads for a meal or snack on the go. “We’re excited to add a new Little Caesars restaurant in the heart of Detroit and look forward to serving guests at MotorCity Casino Hotel,” said David Scrivano, president, Little Caesar Enterprises, Inc. Scrivano said that the outlet is the first casino-hotel venture in Detroit for the company, who also operates restaurants in other Detroit entertainment venues such as Joe Louis Arena and Comerica Park.

The Pit Stop features an impressive selection of sandwiches, hamburgers, and BBQ. Hot and cold mile-high sandwiches with all the trimmings, 100% Black Angus beef hamburgers and hickory smoked ribs, along with salads and scrumptious desserts round out the menu at the Deli. Hours of operation are from 9 a.m.-5 a.m. daily.

Additional dining options at the casino-hotel include:

Iridescence - Enjoy an evening of breathtaking views and incomparable fine dining 16 stories above the city of Detroit. The Modern American cuisine includes signature dishes and scrumptious desserts with an emphasis on local and organic ingredients.
Assembly Line - A new concept in buffet dining featuring Asian, American, Italian and seafood action stations. Custom-made salads, sushi bar, freshly-made soups and artesian breads complement the meal. Crepes, ambrosial desserts and a variety of gelatos add a sweet finish.
MCC Flames - A full-service bistro featuring exciting American dinner fare.
High Octane Cafe - An Americana-style cafe offering organic hand-made coffee drinks, gourmet sandwich melts, hand dipped Hershey’s ice cream and a selection of pastries baked on site.

Say it isn’t so….!

One of the more way-out there articles spotted on the Internet this week came from Softpedia, which reported on the somewhat reaching theories of an Illinois academic in a three part publication entitled ‘The United States International Gambling Report Series’.

Apparently the latest in the series contains an article by University of Illinois professor and editor of the series, John W. Kindt, who is of the view that the surge in legalised gambling that the country has registered over the past two decades is posing an increased risk to the nation’s security.

Kindt makes the connection between gambling and the national security of the United States by claiming that monies that would have otherwise gone to strengthen the economy and to consumer services are now diverted to private interests, and that this state of events ultimately reduces the amount spent from federal funds for the military sector.

“We cannot maintain a strong military presence with a weak economy. Widespread gambling gambles with our national security by dragging down our national economic security,” Kindt, who is a professor of business and public policy at the University of Illinois, writes. He goes on to say that the influence of gambling extends far beyond the bank accounts of those who actually lose money in casinos, to the overall state of the national economy.

The three books are the first academic collection to look on how gambling affects the United States on a large scale, reports Softpedia. Some economists theorise that, if no casinos or other gambling establishments existed in the USA, then every dollar earned and spent would, in turn, generate three times its value, by supplying demand and thus forcing an increase in production. Such an increase would mean that more and more people would be needed in factories and that employment rates would increase in a short amount of time.

However, they claim that gambling ensures that this doesn’t happen, by channeling the money that would have otherwise been spent on consumer products and services into private bank accounts. Under these circumstances, people who lose their money cannot invest in purchases, which means that the overall demand decreases. Faced with less and less orders, factory managers are forced to lay off some of their employees, in order to minimise costs to avoid bankruptcy. This, in turn, fuels the economic decline, and, ultimately, impacts the military’s capability.

Kindt concludes: “The social costs of gambling are high, but the overriding strategic issue has always been the military and national security implications of economies that get weaker and weaker because of gambling.

“We’re seeing all kinds of really outrageous examples of people averse to our interests who are using gambling to their advantage and our detriment, such as laundering money through casinos around the world. Gambling actually destabilizes and corrupts governmental and financial systems, and legalized gambling poses significant threats to the national security of the United States and its allies,” Kindt concludes.

In the early 1980s, Steve “Lips” Kudlow and Robb Reiner were on their way to the top of the heavy metal heap. The Canadian rockers had been playing together since they were 14, and their band, Anvil, known for its fast and hard-driving, speed metal sound, was sharing the stage with some of the world’s biggest rock bands. Although their music had a big influence on groups like Metallica, Anthrax and Slayer, Anvil never achieved the same level of success as their raucous peers. But they never gave up their dream.

Anvil! The Story of Anvil, is a funny and inspiring documentary that catches up with Lips and Robb, now in their fifties, as they balance boring day jobs, family life and keeping the band alive. Opening Friday, April 24 at the Main Art Theatre in Royal Oak, Anvil! The Story of Anvil was directed by Sacha Gervasi, who at age 16, joined the band as a roadie during an unforgettable 1983 North American Tour. Twenty years later, the successful screenwriter looked up his old friends and convinced them to let the cameras roll as they tried to reignite their rock star careers.

“They had two different reactions to me making the movie,” Gervasi said in a phone interview. “Lips started to cry. He knew that something special was going on. Robb was a bit more, ‘huh, why would anyone care about Anvil?’ I said, ‘Because it’s about you two guys 40 years after you made a pact to rock forever and you’re still doing it!”

The film follows the band during a “come-back” tour of clubs in Europe — their biggest gig in 20 years. You feel the love and respect they have for their fans, and you cringe as they face one disappointment and disaster after another — they miss their trains, they get lost, they argue, they play in near-empty venues and they don’t get paid. Yet they keep believing they’ll catch a break. Maybe that will come with their 13th album, but first they need the money to produce it.

“It’s about never giving up hope,” Gervasi said. “If you can just hang on when it’s excruciatingly bad then at least a miracle is possible. That doesn’t mean it will happen but it’s absolutely impossible if you give up.”
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You don’t have to be a fan of heavy metal to enjoy Gervasi’s film. Anvil! is really a portrait of perseverance and enduring friendship.

“The audience is coming in with a preconception of heavy metal, long-haired guys and ‘isn’t it funny and silly.’ By the end they walk out going, ‘these guys are real people with real families,’ and regardless of what you think of heavy metal, they are authentically connected with what they are most passionate about.”

Chuck Bartels, an instructor at the Detroit School of Rock and Pop in Royal Oak, who plays bass with R&B artists Bettye LaVette and Thornetta Davis, said he was a fan of metal music in the 1980s and was surprised when Anvil disappeared from the scene.

“They were one of those bands that opened the floodgates for a lot of other bands,” he said. “They were ahead of their time and they’re finally getting the recognition they deserve. They should have gotten it a long time ago.”

Call the Main Art Theatre at (248) 263-2111 for movie show times. The Anvil Experience — the movie premiere and a live performance — will happen at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 21 at the Crofoot Ballroom in Pontiac. Call (248) 858-9333 for ticket info.

CASINO ROYALE BENEFIT

Get ready to spin the roulette wheel and bid for prizes at the YWCA - Oakland Branch Casino Royale Benefit, 6-11 p.m., Saturday, April 25. This year’s 14th annual auction includes gambling entertainment — craps, roulette, blackjack, hold’em — but auction coordinator Barb Glidden tells me there’s plenty to do aside from rolling the dice. There will be bucket raffles, 50/50 raffles, a super silent auction and a live auction with prizes that include vacation cottage weekends, Detroit Tigers tickets (plus parking!), sports memorabilia, and more. Tickets are $30 which includes $10 in gambling chips, food and non-alcoholic beverages, or $20 if you skip the gambling. The evening also includes a cash bar. George Gomez is back as the master of ceremonies and auctioneer. Rocker mom Paula Messner of the Candy Band will be the chef, making everything from “soup to nuts.”

“We really do a nice spread. All kinds of munchies from Italian to Mexican to Greek, meat lovers and veggie lovers alike, healthy to non-healthy!” she said.

How different nationalities play? What can be the impact of the external events on a player’s ability to function well at the poker tables? Because of these quirky player surveys, Everest Poker an online poker operator made a name for itself.
After the six months study, the company found out that there are several factors that affect the poker players’ performance. Such factors include live TV, some social factors and sometimes even the day of the week.
Ed Pownall, PR and Events European Manager for Everest gave a situation as an example. There were two first timers who in their aim to save money on accommodation costs flew on the day of the live event, instead of choosing to arrive a day or more days earlier for them to be able to relax. Within their first hour of playing poker, they were already busted out, tired and stressed. Even a personal life can be a measure of how a player gets on in tournaments. There is one team player that ended last year with three final tables in three months. When he split up with his girlfriend, he went into early exit just months beforehand the final tables.
It is also proven that live tables covered by television broadcasting can also give the players the jitters. Mariken Hogenhout, the Everest Poker Dutch Event Coordinator says, “I have seen many players playing well, looking relaxed but when faced with the TV table they suddenly play far too tight. This is because they are aware every hand is being analyzed and they do not want to be considered fish!”
Another factor that can also upset player’s rhythm is a table that gets “broken up”. Clever players can already realize that they are on an outside table, which can be broken up quickly. A little time can be wasted assessing their opponents. Other really clever players would initially ask the tourney director which tables are to be broken up early.

Bidding for the national lottery privatisation contract just got less competitive
According to a Turkish Press report the bidding for the Turkish lottery privatisation contract is now less competitive following the withdrawal of local group Dogan Holding and its Italian partner Lottomatica. Both companies had already met the government’s preliminary requirements for bidders.

Dogan advised the stock exchange that it’s withdrawal was due to adverse market conditions, but little more is known beyond that.

In a separate statement, Lottomatica, one of the world’s largest commercial lottery operators and a market leader in the Italian gaming industry, announced that it has exited the Turkish process and that it had terminated the memorandum of understanding signed earlier with Dogan Holding to participate in the tender.

The much delayed privatisation process for Turkey’s state-owned national lottery is expected to begin in August after enactment of a bill on financial control.

Along with several foreign companies, Koc Group, Cukurova Group and Is Yatirim are among the Turkish companies competing in the tender process for management of the lottery, which generates an annual turnover of US$ 683 million and US$ 189 million in net profits.

Million dollar challenge now over the 20 percent complete mark
Online poker aces Patrik Antonius and Tom ‘durrr’ Dwan got it together for another 890 hands Thursday, although the session count at Full Tilt Poker for the epic 50 000 hand online poker marathon appears to have jumped from 12 to 17 with little record of what happened in the brief period from session 12 to session 17.

That said, InfoPowa will take Full Tilt at its word and report that session 17 saw the two online poker aces pass the 20 percent complete mark with a 890 hand session that brings total hands played thus far to 10 180, with Antonius still ahead although by a slightly lower margin at $79 277.

This session saw some marked swings in pot size, including seven pots that reached $100 000; the two pretty evenly matched players have now wagered a total of $ 59 246 993 in the competition. Biggest pot of the session was a whopping $292 000, which Dwan took.

Interesting stats from the independent poker site MarketPulse show that so the average pot size in the challenge is $4 124 and that total time played as session 17 ended was 31 hours and 40 minutes.

An online poker site from Cake network, Lock Poker is offering their players new Mac poker software which is first on the network.
This Mac based poker software has the same characteristic and game play with their PC version with Play and Real money games, including ring games, Satellites, MTT’s and Sit ‘n Go’s. There are also other great features that players can enjoy like player to player chat, table resizing and multi- table play.
CEO of Lock Poker Jennifer Larson says, “One of our mandates as a company is to provide a superior online poker experience. It only makes sense that we would extend our product to the Mac platform - as Apple is a leader in innovation and customer experience.”
With Lock Poker, players are allowed to experience the innovative download software without an application from the third party for a more stable and smoothly running game.