December News and Off to Tahoe

Posted on December 6, 2017 by queen of comps

I hope your casino mailers and/or study of casino websites have given you a lot of December information to keep you busy all month. If you are over 50, you need to check out the senior specials that most locals casinos run. Fortunately, most casinos have “got the message” that they need to put promotional information online.

PALMS

One of the few that does not do a good job here is the Palms, even though they have been part of Stations for a year or so and their website for other properties is pretty detailed. Although Palms is part of some all-properties promotions (like the Wheel of Fortune jackpots), they march to their own drummer most of the time. They have not yet added a seniors or veterans promotional program like at other Station properties.  And many of their promotions, like multiple-point days, are restricted only to those who get a mailer and even then they vary greatly from player to player.

To complicate things, their machine inventory – as well as most everything else in the casino – is constantly changing as they are doing a complete remodel. The new buffet area looks very nice, but no one seems to know when there will be food there. One piece of good news; they now have the same check-cashing promotion as the other properties, with a “wheel” on an iPad. I had never cashed a check at the Stations before, but it seems like there used to be bigger prizes. Can a reader with experience on this give some information in the “Comments”?

They are continuing 2 good promotions that I have described in previous months, available to both locals and visitors. You can earn free movie tickets on Tuesdays and car washes on Thursdays.

Harrah’s Tahoe

Tomorrow (the 7th) Brad and I will be going out of town, to Harrah’s Tahoe. This will be a 3-generation reunion with my family, thanks to casino comps. How time flies. Our first time to share our comps with family was over 30 years ago, when we celebrated daughter Angela’s graduation from high school by flying her and a girlfriend to join us in Las Vegas at the Riviera. Too young to gamble (although I found out later they did put a few coins in a slot machine, but scared to death they would hit a big jackpot that I warned them would out them as underage), they spent most of the time at the pool flirting with the lifeguards. Then came her marriage to Army Ranger Steve and now over 21, they enjoyed casino gambling with us. The arrival of Zachary and then Kaitlynn didn’t stop our family get-togethers and we strollered them all over Vegas and as they got older they enjoyed the child-care facilities in the various casinos all over town.

The grandkids grew up, went to college, and still enjoyed their visits with us to casinos all over the country, not just in Vegas, but some of those closer to their home in Georgia, like Cherokee, Biloxi, and New Orleans. Since they were still too young to gamble, sightseeing was the main activity although they enjoyed the restaurants, the pools, and shows.  We also took many family casino-comped cruises during these years.

Now the grandchildren are adults.  Kaitlynn is presently working on her masters at Georgia State. Zachary graduated from Columbus State University, is in the National Guard, and is a policeman in his hometown of Columbus, GA. He is married to Taylor and they have 2 little boys who will now be the 3rd generation to benefit from our casino comps. The whole family is flying to Reno and we will all meet in Harrah’s Tahoe on Dec. 7 for a 4-day fun-in-the-snow reunion. Some of them will take to the ski slopes while Brad and I babysit Asher, age 3, and Bowen, 8 months. We all will enjoy watching the little ones take in their first snow experiences, tubing and/or sledding, making snow angels and snowmen, and throwing snowballs.

If any of you are in Tahoe this weekend, you can stop by and say hi if you see us. Brad and I will be at the VP machines some of the time, but you more likely will find us at a lively noisy restaurant table or in one of the arcades. We know it will be a fun visit, but if you see us at the Reno airport on Monday, the 11th, you might see two very weary great-grandparents. This active family can leave oldsters happy but a bit exhausted!

Posted in Casino Promotions, Family News, Non-gambling Activities, Non-Vegas Casinos | 5 Comments

Gift Ideas +CZR News

Posted on December 3, 2017 by queen of comps

Do you have hard-to-buy-for names on your holiday gift list?  If they are gamblers, you could look for ideas in the LVA Holiday catalog, accessible at a link on the LVA homepage.  One frugal suggestion: you will see there that you can order my new book, The Frugal Gambler Casino Guide, autographed and with a  discounted price.  I wrote this book specifically for recreational gamblers, covering not just the usual video poker basic information but specific advice for smarter play of all  casino games, including both tables and machines.  It would be a money-saving gift for almost anyone who visits a casino, no matter what game they play.

CZR

Since CZR exited bankruptcy, there has been a flurry of changes at their properties – some good news and some not-so-much for their players. I am going to mention a few, but not in detail. For full coverage with all the ins-and-outs I am steering you to a resource that concentrates on this company, the website Seven Stars Insider. Don’t be misled by the name; yes, it is a valuable source of information for players who have reached the top tier of Seven Stars. However, so much is covered that will be of great value to players at all the lower levels who need to keep up in order to make wise gambling decisions.

Here is some of the recent news:

  • Parking and shuttles: The regular Rio shuttle is history, as is free parking for Vegas locals. You can read my recent blog that covers these changes and some available alternative options.
  • New benefit program for veterans: The SALUTE Total Rewards card will be available to all active-duty military, members of the National Guard and Reserve, veterans and retired military personnel, as well as their spouses. They will receive special discounts on rooms, restaurants, shows and attractions, as well as an automatic upgrade to Platinum status, with even more valuable benefits, including free parking.
  • New partnership with Wyndham Resorts:   Transfer Wyndham Rewards Points to Reward Credits® & Reward Credits to Wyndham Rewards Points. Link your Seven Stars® Total Rewards account to a Wyndham Rewards account and your status will be matched to enjoy their Diamond perks. Check here for details and limitations.

You can always go to the CZR website to try and find the details of new programs or changes, but the 7 Star website will give you some feet-on-the-ground and behind-the-scenes input, including information that might not have made it to the company website. And there is valuable advice on whether a promotion is a good one, giving the pros and cons and personal opinions from other players. For example, you can see whether the new short-term promotion of booking your retreat trip to Las Vegas in November/December and getting a full airfare refund in Reward Credits makes financial sense in your particular case.

If you are new to this 7 Star website, you can go back and read the monthly newsletters from the past for some information that is still current – and then sign up to get them regularly by e-mail in the future. But in-between those newsletters, you can keep up with current happenings by clicking at the top of their homepage on “News and Views.”

 

Posted in Book Recommendation, Caesars, Casino Promotions, Gambling Resources, Parking in Vegas | 3 Comments

Q+A about the Shooter Article

Posted on November 25, 2017 by queen of comps

As with most of us, I want to remember how Las Vegas so powerfully and thoughtfully reacted to the mass shooting of OneOctober. I don’t want to give the shooter any publicity – in fact I never mention his name. However, I do want to answer questions that arose after an article recently appeared on the front page of our local newspaper, one that contained some details of a reporter’s personal interview with Brad and me.

I usually ignore questions and comments from people who seem to always have a negative agenda. The Internet is overrun with unhappy maladjusted writers and posters who have to put other people down so they can puff themselves up, and unfortunately the gambling community is not immune from these malcontents. But most of the questions I get are friendly in nature, and I am always happy to respond to those who are sincerely and politely trying to seek accurate and/or helpful information.

Here are some of the facts that will help you understand the complexity of this media interaction, the problems and issues I have faced for many years with TV, radio, and newspaper contact. Most interviewers are not gamblers themselves, so they are trying to present a story on a subject they must write “cold,” with no personal experience. And the time element is usually so abbreviated that I can only touch on the basics, with no chance to explain exceptions or flesh out the details. Fortunately, this reporter who interviewed Brad and me had the whole day and, most importantly, the deep desire to “get it right” even though he was new in town and had absolutely no casino experience.

We visited two different casinos and I showed him examples of both low-level recreational choices and explained high-level skilled selections. There was no photographer with us during this time, so I don’t know the details of when or where the photos that accompanied the article were taken.

Some gamblers reading this article made a common mistake that I have warned about for years, that is, drawing quick conclusions about other gamblers without complete information. They look at a below-100% paytable being played and jump to the conclusion that the player is doing a negative play. They don’t know what bump they are getting for multiple points, what mailer bounce-back free play they receive, or what special bonus they are qualifying for. They don’t know the goals or parameters  of a particular session. And it is not just newbies that make this mistake; we can forgive them because they are still learning and don’t know the finer points of VP play. However, it is often the very skilled and experienced gamblers who love to play the one-upmanship game, looking for vague “implies” or stretched “infers” to support their fanciful conclusions.

When you read the article you will not see everything I said over a period of many hours – I can talk pretty fast and furious when I am “teaching.”  And you must remember that I did not write this article. The reporter did use some exact quotes, but he also had to “summarize” in his own words what I said on many topics. The main ideas he put in the article were quite accurate, particularly when he explained skilled play as picking good games and adding the extra casino benefits. Most importantly, the purpose of the interview was not how to learn to become a successful high-roller. The reporter just wanted to get a feel for high-limit gambling – how one could put through so much money through a machine in such a short time. He felt – correctly so – that most recreational gamblers who played at lower levels really didn’t understand higher-level play – not just the luxurious comps that came but also the extreme risk involved.

I talked to him a lot about volatility, but couldn’t magically will that day’s results to give him a good example. It was just a lucky happening that I had a roller coaster ride he could actually watch in real time. And as a side benefit, the small victory in the end was a perfect way to end the interview. The reporter was caught up in our enthusiasm as we played – Brad and I love multi-line VP and I guess it showed.  But he started worrying when we were in a long losing streak; I had to assure him that this was a common experience and we had a big enough bankroll to plow through them as long as our energy level held up.  However, even with no money of his own at risk, I think when we finally got back up with a small win he was more excited than we were!

Posted in City News, Media Appearances, Q+A | 2 Comments

Vegas Parking Update

Posted on November 18, 2017 by queen of comps

Now that there is no longer free parking at CZR Strip properties for all locals, I want to review the situation and give you some good news about new options.

  •  Check here for list of free Strip and near-Strip parking and shuttle options (with a list of the various charges for where it is not free).  One bad-news change is that the Rio shuttle to the Strip has been discontinued except during special events like tournaments.  The Gold Coast shuttle is still running but I have heard reports that it is not always available to everyone who lines up; people who have a room at a Boyd property have first dibs on the seats! 

 

  • Be aware that anyone can park free at any Strip MGM or CZR property for one hour, handy for short errands inside like placing or collecting a sports bet, doing some business at the players club desk or kiosk, or picking up or dropping off people.

 

  • Veterans have a great option, an older program at MGM properties and now a new one at the CZR ones.  Both veterans programs include a players club tier upgrade –  to Platinum for CZR, to Pearl for MGM – and one of the benefits of both of those include free parking.
  • Of course, you can reach those levels – and score the free parking benefit – by playing but that involves risking your money.  There is one other way that doesn’t involve any risk – unless you can’t handle credit cards responsibly.  Both offer no-fee credit cards that will get you to those levels with a free-parking benefit.

Feel free to put in the “Comments” any details that you can add to help out your fellow parkers.

Posted in Casino Policy, Non-gambling Promo, Parking in Vegas, Transportation | 5 Comments

A Solemn Reflection

Posted on November 11, 2017 by queen of comps

I spent a lot of time this week helping to “educate” a non-gambling local reporter who was working on a story about the One October shooter. I was happy to do this; so many media stories contained incomplete and bad information because reporters knew little or nothing about casino gambling in general much less high-level VP play.

However, being asked about not only the actual mechanics of skilled play but also the psychological aspects led me to some serious thinking. I have always tried to stay pretty positive when I write about casino gambling, my goal to shine a light on the path that leads to better financial results. I started wondering if I had painted this journey with colors that were a little too bold or bright.

True I have mentioned the negatives.   I put the list of problem gambling danger signals in most all of my books. I have talked about the risks of playing above your bankroll. In my most recent book, The Frugal Gambler Casino Guide, I changed the emphasis from pure financial success to increased entertainment value.

But the change in the casino environment for the last few years has not been kind to skilled gamblers and many are having a hard time adjusting. I addressed this problem here in this blog over two years ago, with a 3-part series starting in my March 19, 2015 blog, continuing in Part 2  and Part 3.  Although I gave many coping options for gamblers at all levels, I especially was seeing the danger that might lie ahead for players who were mixing in not-as-good plays with their former best plays.

The advantage player knows the math, that the more under-100% plays they do, the more their profits on the over-100% will be diluted.  And they know that they will need a bigger and bigger financial bankroll as the non-advantage plays become a bigger percentage of their total play.  There can also be a psychological bankroll problem.  They may be used to short-term losses because they have always seen long-term success.  But if the average of their various plays is now under 100%, they might not be able to bear the pain of short-term losses with no hope of long-term financial success.

With so few available facts, there can be only speculation about the motivation of the Vegas shooter to turn to such extremely violent action on One October. There might have been mental-health factors that had nothing to do with money issues. If financial downturn was a factor, it might have been caused by failing real estate deals and/or risky speculation in other investments.

And yes, it could have been wholly or partly because there was no longer the opportunity for skillful high-level casino gambling with the accompanying luxurious comp life that he had been enjoying for many years. Skillful gamblers can be addicted gamblers. Their problem might not have manifested itself during the golden age of advantage casino gambling, when serious, hard-working, and well-bankrolled players who knew the math and could use it to their advantage, would be able to scramble and find plays that would allow them to achieve financial success.

This golden-age opportunity has been fairly quickly disappearing the last couple of years, to the dismay of players on all levels. All of us have had to made major adjustments, as I described in the 3-part series I mentioned earlier, “When Casinos Cut VP Benefits.”

Violent actions following a person’s major financial loss is not unheard of. There were stories of men jumping from their penthouse offices when the Great Depression hit. Sadly too often the news has to cover stories of individuals who lost a good job and then returned to shoot co-workers and/or bosses they blame. Many relatives will talk about a suicide of a family member and how he or she was depressed over recent financial struggles.

Most reactions to financial downturns do not end up in violence, and certainly not mass shootings. However, many consequences of problem gambling do have serious effects – broken marriages, splintered families, and painful lives and wasted talents.

It behooves us all to not shut our mind to possible negative consequences of our gambling. In this rapidly changing casino environment we will need to constantly re-evaluate our actions and perhaps make adjustments that will make us feel less stressed out and give us more inner peace– and maybe will make life better for the ones we love.

Posted in Problem Gambling | 6 Comments

NOVEMBER CASINO PROMOTION NEWS

Posted on October 31, 2017 by queen of comps

Watch for food specials in November, including free buffets for veterans at many locals casinos on November 11. Most casinos have special menus for Thanksgiving Day dining for those of us who don’t want to cook. However, be careful if you decide you want to use a food coupon that day. Read the fine print. Many coupons will say “Not valid on holidays.”

 

THE PALMS

 Construction is still in progress here, with terrible pounding and drilling racket especially in the morning and early afternoon hours. If that bothers you, wait until after 3 p.m. when many of the workmen go home. At any time, be sure to check the signage; you never know when a temporary wall goes up and your path through the casino will change. And although some machines have been taken out, you will probably find your favorites eventually, albeit in new locations. It’s an exploration adventure every time you walk in the door.

Two favorite promotions of many locals – and of interest to some visitors – continue in November. Earn 300 points on Tuesdays for a free movie ticket to the Palms Brenden Theater. This ticket does not have to be used the same day you earn it; it is good any day Monday through Friday. Tickets earned now don’t expire until the end of 2018. The second promotion, earn 300 points on Thursdays, is a coupon for a Terrible Herbst anytime basic exterior car wash. Coupons have no expiration date. For both these offers, you merely earn the required points, not “redeem” them; they are not taken from your account.

One important note: Often when I go up to the Palms Reward Center, I overhear a conversation an employee is having with a frustrated customer who is showing a mailer they received that said they had such-and-such offer or gift. The clerk will have to explain that is a “Station’s mailer,” not a “Palms mailer.” This is a confusing situation with a lot of customers. Although the Stations company now owns the Palms, the transition to make Palms a Station has been a very long and drawn-out process that is still going on. Some programs and promotions include all Stations and the Palms, i.e., The Wheel of Fortune hit-any-time jackpot, but the Palms still sends out mailers to its customer base that include offers and coupons that are specific only for this one property. Station players get a Station mailer with different offers and promotions. If someone plays regularly at both places, they might get both mailers. Keeping this straight also involves reading newspaper ads carefully and checking what property logos are under each promotion described.

 

 SOUTH POINT

Throughout November, South Point Hotel will offer slot club players half price groceries. Players can redeem $25 in slot club points and receive a $50 Smith’s Food & Drug Stores gift card. Check their website for details on this “Bounty Bonus Buck” promotion. This is one that gives both locals and out-of-towners an opportunity for a positive play, depending on the game you choose. It’s like getting double points for the first 83,000 points you put on your card to get the maximum of ten $50-dollar cards you can earn. And don’t worry if you live somewhere with no Smith’s grocery stores; you can use the cards at any store in the Kroger family.

If you are 50 and older, you could organize yourself to combine that promo with “Prime Time Mondays” senior day and play in the $5,000 Free Slot Tournament that runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Also you could take in a movie anytime that day for $4 (additional fee for 3D & XD, and not valid on holidays or during special bingo events). You know how I love to find what I call a big ice-cream-cone promotion with lots of “dips.”

 

THE ORLEANS AND GOLD COAST

Both these casinos for many months have been running the promotion “A Chance to Double Your Royal,” but neither Brad nor I have been able to cash in on this. However, last Wednesday Brad finally got a $4000 royal playing a $1 single-line NUSD game at the Gold Coast. We were hoping, of course, he would draw the $4000 doubler for his bonus, but he had to be satisfied with the minimum $100. However, the promotion continues in November – so there is always “next time.”

Martin in San Diego wrote to me about his Vegas casino experiences: “Still playing as frugal as possible in a less frugal-friendly casino world. I’ve found the Boyd weekly slot and/or VP tournaments to be a good promotion for visitors.” Don’t forget tournaments as a way to pump up your EV in playing VP – or any game, for that matter. Many casinos, especially off-Strip, run regular weekly tournaments and/or drawings. Don’t think these are just for locals. Check the details and you will find that many will give an extra opportunity for out-of-towners too.

We finally found time to check out the new Orleans buffet which recently reopened. Maybe it was because of the new arrangement of food – in one long continuous line rather than having several detached sections – but it seemed there was a larger selection of food choices. We had always liked this buffet and this new incarnation was just as good as before, if not a little better. We went for lunch – on coupons, of course! – but a non-gambling guest we took thought it was a terrific bargain even if you had to pay for it!

Posted in Casino Promotions, Food Review | Comments Off on NOVEMBER CASINO PROMOTION NEWS

Last-Minute Freebie

Posted on October 27, 2017 by queen of comps

Ordinarily if you want to take a trip back into Vegas history, told through the neon signs of the past, you have to buy a ticket for a guided tour. However, I just ran across this frugal option on the Neon Museum website:

 Join us on Saturday, October 28 from 1 to 7 p.m. for free, self-guided access to the Neon Boneyard in recognition of our fifth birthday.   Reservations NOT required.  The lobby opens at 12:30 p.m.

Posted in Memories, Non-gambling Promo, Vegas History | 1 Comment

Why Your Casino Offers are Going Downhill – Big Data Update

Posted on October 21, 2017 by queen of comps

Here is something I wrote in my book More Frugal Gambler, published in 2003. This was in the chapter talking about the casino host system, a rant about using the term “player development.”

I HATE the term “player development.” I have visions of wild-eyed scientists in the casino basement, madly working with multi-colored fluids and rows and rows of test tubes, cooking up a potion to add to the casino’s free drinks that will turn a sensible thrifty deliberate conservative nickel-playing Iowa hog farmer into a reckless loud-mouthed out-of-control money-flinging red-eyed marathon high limit slot player.

Even more sinister, I see psychologists, advertising mavens, market researchers, and time-study experts sitting around a large boardroom table discussing how they can get gray-haired retirees to dig into that deep dark part of their wallet, take out the $20 stashed for emergencies, and try to hit that progressive jackpot that they know is “due.”

I can develop myself — my character, my physical body, my mind — all by myself, thank you. I don’t want to walk into a casino and feel I’m a subject in an experiment.

What happened to the warm word “host”? Having a host in a casino gives you the feeling that you’re coming into a place that’s personal, inviting, friendly, a place that’s — well — like home.

Fast-forward 14 years – and recently I see this seminar advertised for casino executives:

Finding the Unconscious Drivers of Customer Behavior:

An overview of neuroscience and other advanced marketing tools to understand your customers at the deepest level.

Are you struggling to find new insights about your core customer? Are you searching for more effective ways to attract your competitors’ customers?  Or, perhaps you’re working on how to attract a whole new segment, like Millennials?   

Ask yourself, do you really understand customers’ deepest needs and desires that are so vital to your company’s success?

If you answer no to this last question, you’re not alone.  Most marketers still use obsolete models of consumer behavior and outdated research tools to try to understand their customers.

No longer are traditional tools like focus groups and web surveys enough. Advances in technology and the mind sciences have changed the marketing research landscape. We now have the opportunity to use more powerful tools based on neuroscience that truly get inside our customers’ minds.

I didn’t know how reasonable my fears really were in 2003!  

One very knowledgeable gambler, who has many casino executive contacts, discussed this subject of “big data” with me, saying that the new way of casino marketing is very different from the “old-school” way that we long-time gamblers are used to. Data formerly was used as a tool to deepen the relationship with the customer; now it is used as a weapon. The one big theme today in casino management is that they are trying to predict future behavior instead of rewarding past action.

Examples abound. One large casino corporation just rolled out a companywide program where a computer is telling the hosts which players to call.  The computer is now able to use all this big data to figure out who is most likely to be able to be convinced into making an extra trip or who would not be worth the host’s time in making a phone call. I have a friend who discovered this concept just recently. He started playing at a new casino, at a level that gave him contact with a host at similar-size casinos where he played. He wanted to talk to a host at this new casino so he asked at the players club desk whether he had been assigned to a host yet or, if not, could he be given the name of one. They said, not in a friendly way either, that “the computer would decide when he could contact a host.”

Are we casino gamblers doomed to be forever the victims of cold-hearted computers? Stay tuned and in my next blog I will discuss whether we can do anything about this disturbing trend.

Posted in Casino Hosts, Casino Policy | 18 Comments

The Vegas Tragedy – Update

Posted on October 13, 2017 by queen of comps

In my last blog entry I wrote how Brad and I were in Tahoe during the October 1st mass shooting in Las Vegas. Of course we followed the news and were greatly saddened by such a large loss of lives, but didn’t personally know anyone that was connected to this terrible incident. We then found out early that the shooter was a gambler, but as more details came out, we realized that he wasn’t just a casual recreational player but one that had used many of the same techniques that many of us knowledgeable video poker enthusiasts use to reduce casino losses and increase wins.

However, I was stunned when I found out that the shooter had actually ordered my book, Tax Help for Gamblers. This was a connection I never expected.

This publicized fact, plus writings and comments on my public Jean Scott Facebook page, brought reporters calling for several days, wanting any little bit of information I could give them.  I had no personal details about the shooter, but I could give them some general material about taxes.  There had been some stories – rumors? – that he had reported  5 million dollars in gambling “winnings” on a tax return one year.  I explained that this sum was likely the total of his many W-2G jackpots resulting from frequent play at high denominations. This is usually a gross amount, not a net profit amount, and will be offset by a deduction of losses.  Actually the tax return might not show if you were a net loser, since you can only deduct your losses up to the amount of your wins.

I also had to explain the details of video poker to some of the reporters, many who are not casino gamblers themselves.  There has been a lot of misinformation being put out by uninformed reporters.  If you want to find out more details, accurate ones, about the shooter’s gambling life, I suggest you read the blog Anthony Curtis wrote on this website.  There is also a very interesting discussion in the “Comments” that follow that blog.

 

Posted in Casino Crime and Security, City News, It's Personal, Taxes, Video Poker | 3 Comments

The Tragedy in Vegas

Posted on October 6, 2017 by queen of comps

Brad and I live just a few blocks from the scene of the terrible mass shooting that took place last weekend in Las Vegas.  However, it just so happened that during this time we were gone on one of our occasional out-of-town trips, to Harrah’s Lake Tahoe.

Of course we heard about the awful events very soon since my phone woke us up in the middle of Sunday night with a flood of pinging messages asking if we were okay.  We turned on the TV and followed the news closely until we returned home Tuesday.

We were shocked when we heard the details that the shooter was an avid video poker player, one who played in a similar way we do, figuring the math odds to choose good machine schedules, taking advantage of bonus benefits, and utilizing the comp system.  It made the whole thing even more personal for us when we learned that he was a CZR’s player who had attained the highest players-club level of 7 Star.  We were staying at Harrah’s Tahoe as a free fully comped trip because we both also were 7 Stars!

Right now there seems to be no evidence that the shooter’s  deadly motivation was connected to his choice of gambling as an activity he avidly pursued, i.e., that he was losing or going broke and that triggered violent action.  Although he used a casino as his crime base, he targeted not casino employees but a wholly different group of people, country music fans.  And this added more to the confounding unknown motivation since his family said that he had always liked country music.  This incident reinforces the fact that people of all different types and from varied circumstances can commit violent crime, whether there is one victim or many: no matter what job or hobby or interests they have, whether they are rich or poor, no matter what ethnicity or religion or political beliefs, whether they suffer from a known or obvious mental problem or seem perfectly “normal.”  And sometimes there is just no answer to “Why?”

Some people are asking Brad and me if we knew the shooter because they know that we might have played in the same casinos or participated in some of the same activities he did.  We haven’t played on the Vegas Strip for the last couple of years, sticking mostly to the off-Strip casinos that attract mostly locals.  But for many years we did play in the Strip high-limit areas, at the higher denominations that generated invitations to big-money tournament and drawings.  We don’t know how long he had been gambling at the high level and at which casinos and whether our paths might have crossed.  But we do not remember ever seeing him.

We feel the same sadness that permeates our whole city, but we rejoice in the positive surge within the community to pull together and try to make something positive come out of this terrible tragedy.  Our country is so divided these days; it is so inspiring to hear stories how people were so quick to help others, during and after the bloodbath – police and civilians,  white and  people of color.  No one asked someone in need if they were liberals or conservatives, Democrats or Republicans. Why does it take a disaster to unite as fellow human beings?

Posted in Casino Crime and Security, City News, It's Personal, Video Poker | 4 Comments