Regional Casinos

WATCH the Truth About Casinos: “A Conflict Between Love and Greed”

, , , , , , , , , ,
“A Conflict Between Love and Greed” – Learn about the crisis of state-sanctioned gambling. Stop Predatory Gambling’s Les Bernal was invited to speak on the crisis of state-sanctioned casinos before an audience in Amherst County in Lynchburg, VA at Temple Baptist Church on Sept. 30, 2021. The region faced a massive lobbying push by out-of-state gambling interests attempting to force a slot machine casino into the heart of their community.
Stop Predatory Gambling believes people are worth more than money. Our members work to reveal the truth behind commercialized gambling operators to prevent more victims. Get started at https://www.stoppredatorygambling.org…
Les BernalWATCH the Truth About Casinos: “A Conflict Between Love and Greed”
read more
Why Commercialized Gambling is Different Than Any Other Business

Why Commercialized Gambling is Different Than Any Other Business

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Below is the testimony of Les Bernal, National Director of Stop Predatory Gambling, before a Georgia Legislature study committee on gambling in October 2019. As part of his presentation, Bernal explains why commercialized gambling is different than any other business. A copy of Bernal’s slides can be found here.

Les BernalWhy Commercialized Gambling is Different Than Any Other Business
read more

Journalists Reveal How Casinos are Complicit in Money Laundering

, , , , ,

Inspired by a criminal case of money laundering in Ontario, CBC investigative journalists used $30,000 to see if they could launder it through two B.C different casinos. They were able to convert $24,000 into “clean money,” an 80 per cent “success” rate.

View Original Article 

LesJournalists Reveal How Casinos are Complicit in Money Laundering
read more

Gaming The Poor

, , , , , , , ,

This New York Times column spotlights how casinos contribute to the lack of mobility out of poverty facing millions of Americans. As casinos have spread into de-industrialized cities, dying resorts and gritty urban areas, the rate of gambling participation has grown among lower-income groups. A research team from the University at Buffalo and SUNY Buffalo State has conducted studies that offer new evidence of the exploitative effects of casino gambling on lower-income Americans. Examining 15 types of legal gambling, the researchers came to a striking conclusion: Casino gambling had by far the most harmful effects on people at the lower end of the income ladder. ​

View Original Article 

LesGaming The Poor
read more

Average debt of problem gamblers in Wisconsin exceeds $34,000

, , , , , , , , ,

They max-out credit cards, drain their savings and checking accounts, seek payday loans, borrow money from relatives and friends, steal from employers and write bad checks. On rare occasions, they even rob banks. On average, they are $34,078 in debt by the time they seek assistance.

These are characteristics of those who called the helpline at the Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling in 2017. The council received 12,674 calls for help last year. The heavy financial losses are a catalyst to other serious problems. Gamblers have reported thoughts or attempts of suicide, bankruptcies and falling hopelessly behind on house and utility payments.

LesAverage debt of problem gamblers in Wisconsin exceeds $34,000
read more

How the gambling industry preys on senior citizens

, , , , , ,

According to this article from Salon, seniors are the fastest growing population of gamblers. They are gambling away their income, their savings, and their chance for a secure future. When they lose, they can’t make it up or start over.  It’s a no-win game, driven by a greedy industry united in unholy alliance with policy makers and politicians who turn a blind eye to the social and economic costs of gambling.

When dementia affects the frontal lobe of the brain, a person may lose inhibitions, and this sometimes translates into a gambling compulsion. A person with this type of dementia might seem perfectly fine on the surface and even perform normally on standard neuropsychological tasks, so the situation goes undetected

View Original Article 

LesHow the gambling industry preys on senior citizens
read more

Gamblers in Ohio have lost $9.7 billion over four years

, , ,

Ohio citizens betting at the state’s four casinos, seven racinos at horse-race tracks, and the Ohio Lottery have lost $9.7 billion in the past four years, according to a Columbus Dispatch analysis. Including all major forms of legal gambling, nearly $62.9 billion was bet and $53.3 billion was won from 2012 to 2015.

While the winning percentage at casinos is very high — up to 90 percent of the money bet on slots — losses add up when so much money exchanges hands.

In calendar year 2015 alone, $535 million was lost on slot machines and $273 million on table games at Ohio casinos.

View original article

Les BernalGamblers in Ohio have lost $9.7 billion over four years
read more