"Is gambling evil?"
That is the question Hawaii House Committee Chairman Tom Brower asked last week when the Gaming Commission elected to defer discussion of a bill that would have broken the state’s multi-decade practice of prohibiting the expansion of gambling.
Hawaii and Utah are the only two states that do not permit any form of gaming.
House Bill 2788 would have permitted the commission to grant a 20-year license to just one casino. That property would have at least 1,500 slot machines.
Attempting to keep the casino discussion open, Brower asked, "Is gambling evil, or do people lack self-control? Personally, I don’t think gambling can make people anything that they aren’t already."
It’s likely deferring discussion on the bill will end further attempts to approve casino gambling in the current session of the legislature.
GamingToday’s Micah Roberts went right back to the Oracle for a new Preakness pick and Jay Rood came up with his selection once he knew Union Rags was not headed to Pimlico.
An Internet gambling bill being considered by New Jersey lawmakers could allow Atlantic City’s casinos to take bets from people in other states or countries, although key details remain to be worked out.
The nation’s commercial casinos continued their slow-but-steady comeback from the recession last year, with revenues up 3 percent nationwide and jobs holding nearly steady, according to a report released Wednesday.
Revel, the $2.4 billion casino resort widely seen as Atlantic City’s best hope of survival, trailed most of its competition in its first month of operation, placing 8th out of the city’s 12 casinos.
New signs are up to direct visitors, the sidewalks have been power-washed, crosswalks have been freshly painted and 1,600 people have been hired to inaugurate the Horseshoe Casino Cleveland on Monday.
