CBS Local | Levine: Rick Hahn, White Sox Gambling On Right Trades At Right Time CBS Local GLENDALE, Ariz. (CBS) Arizona once boasted some of the craftiest gamblers. So when you consider what Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn has up his sleeve, it had better be the fifth ace in the deck. The poker table is weighted toward Hahn ... |
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Levine: Rick Hahn, White Sox Gambling On Right Trades At Right Time - CBS Local
Problem gambling is a significant societal concern that is set to get bigger.
Game and gambling operators are chasing the proliferation of new technologies readily accessible via your phone or tablet. This is breaking through traditional barriers to advertising, leaving the switched-on generation in the firing line.
Gambling operators may feel they have hit the jackpot as a result of the computer revolution, which is enabling gambling literally anywhere, anytime.
Gaming has made gambling even bigger business, with the market for the social casino 'games' alone which are among the most popular - predicted to grow to be worth more than US$4.4 billion (AU $5.75b) this year.
There are more than 2500 online gambling sites, most of which operate outside Australian regulations. These sites allow Australians to gamble using an estimated 200+ different payment methods many do not require proof of age.
So rife is gambling already amongteenagers, we can expect about one in five Australian adolescents to gamble this is based on our recent study investigating the impact of the changing representation of gambling online. Our online survey of more than 500 adolescents from 12 to 18 years of age also found that 60 percent of those teen gamblers do so online.
Gambling has a growing presence on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Even children are increasingly exposed to and interact with gambling themes, brands, and games because of the difficulties in age-gating social networking sites.
Our research has found that two in five adolescents have seen advertising or branding for gambling operators on social networking sites, including content shared by other users. The content appeals to teens in particular, by enabling gaming via social networking sites in real-time, for short or long sessions, on multiple devices, while alternatively enabling solo-play for a different audience.
Gambling operators are typically providing humorous and entertaining content, which is the most common motivation for adolescents connecting with gambling operators on social media; however, it is not just harmless fun, because more than one in 10 adolescents reported that their gambling had increased because of these promotions.
For technology natives on the lookout for fast entertainment, gambling sites masquerading as games are just a click away. Gambling-themes are promoted through online gambling games, including those that link directly to gambling and are used by offshore gambling sites to circumvent advertising restrictions on social networking sites.
The games are often accessed via free apps, and social casino games have proven among the most popular, and profitable, of this genre. Social casino games look just like online gambling. They may be free to play and do not offer real money rewards, but users can pay to further their play.
These readily available games incorporate social components such as leaderboards and competitions, linking to social media accounts. Users are encouraged to share updates and invite their online connections to play, increasing the promotion of gambling-themed games on social media.
Gambling-themed games increase the user's confidence in winning at gambling and alter perceptions of skill and risk-taking. Our research has shown that most social casino gamers reported game operators encourage them to try real-money gambling. More than one in four adolescent social casino gamers gambled as a result of using social casino games.
We have analysed how this happens and found a relatively high proportion of adolescents (40%) had spent money within social casino games, meaning they at least paid for the game, which is in itself a concern. Paying users were almost two-and-a-half times more likely to have gambled for real money than non-paying users and significantly more likely to experience problem gambling symptoms.
Youth often differentiate between games and gambling through the chance to win money. When players start paying real money, this may lead them to want to potentially have real money rewards, which has been reported by adult game players. The experience of spending money may normalise this and generalise to spending money on online gambling.
Many youths are able to resist marketing efforts, but the influence is also not always recognised because it can be implicit rather than explicit and may not occur immediately.
Research is needed to investigate newly emerging forms of gambling and gaming convergence.
It is imperative that policy makers tighten regulations and catch up with the new technology and interactive gamified-gambling activities.
The Internet will continue to expose young people to gambling themes, and the full impacts of today's exposure, which are only starting to be seen, will be felt years from now.
As such, regulators, policy makers, community groups, and consumers need to recognise that social media gambling games pose a huge risk for youth, and act to protect those most vulnerable before the problem matures.
Dr SallyGainsbury is thedeputy director of the Gambling Treatment Clinic in the University of Sydney's Brain and Mind Centre.
This is a modified version of an editorial published this week in BASIS, the Brief Addiction Science Information Source published by the Harvard Medical School's Cambridge Health Alliance.
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Gambling operators are cashing in on teens' addiction to online games - The Canberra Times
The amount of money people in America spent on gambling in 2016 was an estimated $116.9 billion, according to data from H2 Gambling Capital. Thats the amount won off of gamblers in areas including brick-and-mortar casinos, state lotteries and regulated online gaming sites.
The Economist first reported on the data, which showed that the U.S. is still by far the largest overall gambling market in the world. China was a distant second with an overall gambling market of $62.4 billion. About $30 billion of that comes from Macau.
The U.S. gambling sector has room for major growth. The American Gaming Association says that about $150 billion is wagered on sports (the handle) each year in the U.S., with nearly all of it coming through illegal channels. Traditional sports betting is only legal in Nevada, where bettors are now wagering about $4.5 billion each year.
Nevada casinos won about $220 million on those wagers last year.
There are efforts on Capitol Hill to legalize sports betting nationwide.
Silver State casinos won $11.26 billion from gamblers last year, a small uptick over 2015.
Online casino gaming is legal in just three U.S. states, but many more are still considering the activity. New York and Pennsylvania stand as the front runners to legalize internet casinos in 2017.
The size of the commercial casino market is worth about $40 billion annually, while tribal casinos win about $30 billion a year. The lottery is the next largest component of the U.S. gambling market, with annual sales in the tens of billions of dollars.
The popularity of the lottery has led to a handful of states bringing it to the internet.
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Americans Lost $116.9B Gambling In 2016: Report - CardPlayer.com
A new Bitcoin gaming platform has been launched with a promise to deliver the most transparent and quick casino service.
A new Bitcoin gaming platform has been launched with a promise to deliver the most transparent and quick casino service.
Bitcoincasino.us, as the platform is titled, operates using only Bitcoin. Which implies that you wont have to wait long to receive your pay-outs; they are processed instantly. And if you win big, the pay-out will be processed within 5-15 minutes!
Bitcoincasino.us is a casino that cares about their players, which is rare in the world which is witnessing an increase in online frauds. Bitoincasino, however, has agoal of offering its visitors thebest time possible. Its their passion for casino games and entertainment that keeps them driven towards their goals.
Bitcoincasino.us provides its users with amazing high-quality games, secure transaction, quick pay-outs and excellent customer service. They offer an online gaming experience that compels the players to keep coming back for more.
All their casino games are handpicked by the team. This is to ensure that they offer only the best to their customers. The Bitcoincasino.us team is also confident in the stunning graphics and the sharp sound effects used in the games to attract more players and having them return for more.
Bitcoincasino.us has also set up a robust customer care where the players can contact them for any problems they face. They promise to address any problems faced by the players right away. Bitcoincasino.us strives to keep their customers happy and wants to assure them they wont have to worry about being left out in the cold when playing in their casino.
What further distinguishes the casino platform from its counterparts and further reiterates its message about caring for its visitors is their option to purposefully block the clients from their casino who feel that they are getting addicted to gambling.
In a gesture of care, they do not want their users to lose a healthy life balance. In order to do so, they offer a safeguard against gambling too much.
If you reach the point where you feel that you can no longer trust yourself with using bitcoins to gamble on Bitcoincasino.us, you can mail them. They will purposefully block you from their casino.
They also offer to help in case you suspect your spouse or relative might have a problem.
Bitcoincasino.us wants their casino to be a fun and friendly place, where everyone gambles responsibly.
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BitcoinCasino.us Ensures Instant Payouts and Responsible Gambling - newsBTC
In this June 4, 2010 file photo, Kim Jong Nam, the eldest son of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, waves after his first-ever interview with South Korean media in Macau, China.
AP Photo
The half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has died in Malaysia, police on the island nation have confirmed to CBS News, amid reports in South Korea that he was killed.
South Korean news agency Yonhap, along with other outlets in the country, reported Tuesday that Kim Jong-Nam had been assassinated. There were few details available, and the media all cited unnamed South Korean officials in their accounts.
Speaking to CBS News, Malaysian police would only say that the cause of death for the 46-year-old was currently listed as sudden death.
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Kim Jong Un has had a number of senior North Korean officials executed for vague crimes of disloyalty, from education and defense ministers to intelligence chiefs, as he seeks to consolidate his power in the isolated nuclear kingdom.
In 2013, North Korea said it had executed Kims uncle, calling the leaders former mentor a traitor who tried to seize power and overthrow the state. The announcement came only days afterJang Song Thaek-- long considered the countrys No. 2 power --was removed from all his postsbecause of a long list of allegations, including corruption, drug use, gambling and womanizing.
More than a decade ago, Kim Jong-Nam, the casino-loving eldest son of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, spoke out against his little brother Kim Jong Un inheriting power in the country.
Analysts said at the time, toward the end of 2010, that Kim Jong Nam was prone to spending so much time outside his native land that his opinion carried little weight within the Kim dynasty.
The oldest of three brothers who were then in the running to take over secretive North Korea, Kim Jong-Nam was the closest thing the country had to a playboy.
Unlike many of his countrymen back home who lack the resources and connections to travel overseas, Kim always traveled freely and spent much of his time in China or the countrys special autonomous region of Macau -- the center of Asian gambling with its Las Vegas-style casinos.
He sported the family pot belly and favored newsboy caps and an unshaven face, while frequenting five-star hotels and expensive restaurants.
2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Kim Jong Un's gambling half-brother reportedly assassinated - CBS News
HARTSVILLE, S.C. -- A search warrant resulted in one arrest when numerous illegal gambling events and machines were discovered on Thursday, Feb. 9 at 1826 S. Fifth Street in Hartsville.
Deputies with the Darlington County Sheriff's Office, with assistance from the Hartsville Police Department and SLED, found several "poker style tables" with poker chips and money tallies of illegal gambling events.
Multiple illegal poker video gaming systems were also discovered during the search, according to a release from the Darlington County Sheriff's Office.
Shannon Marie Witherspoon, 40, of Darlington was arrested during the service of the search warrant and was charged with five counts of possession of gambling devices, one count of operating a gambling house, one count of unlawful games and betting and one count of betting.
Witherspoon has since been released on a $10,000 bond.
This case remains under investigation by the Darlington County Sheriffs Office and additional arrest warrants are pending, according to the release.
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Darlington deputies bust gambling house in Hartsville | News ... - SCNow
The U.K. Gambling Commission late last year released updated data on its gambling market, which highlighted the fact that now a third of all gambling dollars in the country come over the internet.
The Commission said that online gambling generated 4.5 billion over a 12-month period (April 2015 to March 2016), which was 33 percent of the entire gambling market. That includes the lottery, the 148 brick-and-mortar casinos and nearly 9,000 betting shops in the country.
That means that gamblers now lose about 13.6 billion ($17 billion USD) each year in the U.K., an increase of more than 20 percent since 2014. For comparison, the entire casino gambling market in America (commercial and tribal) is worth about $70 billion annually.
Growth in the U.S. casino gambling sector has been much less dramatic.
Online casinos in the U.K. represented 29 percent of the overall market between April 2014 and March 2015, the government said. The Commission also noted that the number of brick-and-mortar betting shops has decreased by about two percent over the aforementioned period. No additional land-based casinos have opened up during the time frame.
Online sports betting is regulated in the U.K., leading the country to crack down on illegal betting on games, whether they are real life sporting events or even video games.
The breakdown for online gambling in the U.K. is as follows:
Table Games: 2.6 billion Sports Betting: 1.6 billion Slots: 1.8 billion Bingo: 153 million Betting Exchanges: 152 million
James Green, program director for the Commission, said in a statement:
Our latest statistics show that with the growth in online gambling the industry is increasingly taking a creative approach to using technology to engage consumers. As the online sector grows operators will also need to demonstrate that they are taking an equally innovative approach to ensuring gambling is safe for all online consumers.
Link:
Online Casinos Generate A Third Of UK Gambling Dollars - CardPlayer.com
LAKEWOOD The Village Board is set to vote Tuesday evening on an ordinance that would rescind McHenry Countys last remaining ban on video gambling.
An ordinance that would allow for video gambling within village limits is on the agenda for the meeting, which starts at 7 p.m. at Turnberry Country Club. The new management of the club at 9600 Turnberry Trail approached village leaders in October about undoing the ban.
Should Lakewood reverse the ban, the country club and three of the four other businesses holding village liquor licenses would be eligible for gaming permits.
Lakewood was one of six local governments that banned video gambling under an opt-out in the 2009 state law that legalized it to finance a $31 billion capital plan.
Five of the six have since changed their minds, the most recent being Crystal Lake, after bar and restaurant owners complained that the bans put them at a competitive disadvantage.
Establishments that serve alcohol, truck stops, and fraternal and veterans organizations can have up to five of the machines under state law.
The state gets 30 percent of the proceeds, 5 percent of which goes back to local governments. The remaining 70 percent is split between the business and the company that operates the machines.
The machines under state law must be located in an area accessible only to people at least 21 years old, and in the case of restaurants, must be within view of an adult employee. Machines cannot be visible from outside the building.
Woodstock reversed its ban in 2012. Cary, Algonquin and the McHenry County Board reversed their bans in 2013, and Crystal Lake reversed its ban last year.
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Last holdout Lakewood to vote on repealing video gambling ban - Northwest Herald
Geelong veteran Harry Taylor says the saturation of betting advertisements during AFL games is concerning for young fans.
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Jen McCormick snaps a ripper as Adelaide see off the Doggies, Mo Hope kicks her first but the Dees take the points, the Blues yet to be beaten and Tayla Harris will be a superstar.
Taylor has thrown his support behind Western Bulldogs premiership captain Easton Wood, whose public stand against gambling commercials has placed the issue firmly on the AFL agenda.
The two-time Geelong premiership star says he shares Wood's concern that the advertisements are normalising gambling for children.
"I've got three kids at home, and when my eldest can name a lot of the ads on TV, that is a bit of a worry," Taylor said.
"It's certainly something that we need to keep talking about and educating people about.
"It's not as simple as just cutting them out of the AFL, I can certainly understand that, but more education about gambling in general is a really, really important part of what our society and AFL players need."
Wood, who led the Bulldogs to a drought-breaking premiership last year in the absence of injured captain Bob Murphy, raised the issue after attending the AFL's annual player education sessions on Friday.
He said he "couldn't stomach" the AFL educating players on the dangers of gambling while also allowing an influx of betting commercials during games.
"Every year we are told it is a sinister and dangerous activity because of the associated risks that come with gambling, all of which have proven very real," Wood posted on Twitter.
"What I can't understand is that if this is such an issue that we need an annual education session, why - as an industry - do we support the onslaught of gambling advertising you are now faced with when watching an AFL game.
"The obvious issue here is the effect this advertising has on children every time they watch us pull on our boots."
With the exception of Geelong, all of the Victorian-based AFL teams have signed a charter pledging not to sign partnerships with sports betting companies.
However most continue to profit from gambling, with North Melbourne the only club which does not generate revenue from poker machines.
AAP
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AFL's gambling ads a concern for Geelong Cats star Harry Taylor - The Age
MANILA, Philippines - While the Philippine National Police has declared an all-out war against illegal gambling, it would not be as bloody as the war against illegal drugs, PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa assured the public yesterday.
The PNP would adopt the same double barrel approach, a term meaning that the upper barrel would be focused on gambling financiers or high-value targets and the lower against street-level operations.
This is an all-out war but it would not be as bloody (as the war against drugs) because gamblers are not as crazy as drug addicts who kill even if there is no threat. Gambling is just about money, theres no need to pay for it with life, Dela Rosa said in Filipino.
Under Executive Order 13, President Duterte directed the PNP, National Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies to intensify the campaign against illegal gambling in coordination with the departments of Justice, Interior and Local Government, and Information and Communications Technology.
It also directed the agencies to coordinate and act on requests of gambling regulatory authorities to investigate and stop illegal gambling activities in their respective jurisdictions.
If the stakeholders will cooperate, Dela Rosa said, the problem on illegal gambling will be addressed within six months, after noting that the entire country is affected by this problem.
Headlines ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
Unlike illegal drugs, which infected 92 percent of Metro Manila barangays, Dela Rosa said illegal gambling operations could be traced even in far-flung and mountainous areas.
It has not been eradicated. Every barangay has it and its more widespread than drugs. There is cara y cruz, cards it is present. When we say massive, all forms of illegal gambling, even cockfighting, will be checked. Many barangay chairmen may get angry with us. But we will prioritize the illegal numbers game because it robs the PCSO (Philippine Charity Sweepstakes) of income, Dela Rosa said, referring to the forms of illegal gambling that use coins, cards, fighting cocks or lottery.
The PNP directorate for operations is also tasked to check on all illegal online gambling activities.
For those that would be caught, Dela Rosa promised strict enforcement of Presidential Decree 1602 and Republic Act 9287, which both set stiffer penalties against violators.
Duterte wanted to rid the country of all forms of illegal gambling activities that may mutate into other forms of organized crime including drug trafficking, illegal vices, money laundering and kidnapping.
Dela Rosa tasked the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group to lead the anti-gambling campaign as he also ordered all regional police directors to implement similar operations.
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Bato: War on illegal gambling won't be bloody - Philippine Star
WARREN, Ohio (WKBN) Two men from Warren are facing criminal charges after a raid of a Warren bar.
The Ohio Investigative Unit raided Kracker Jacks on Youngstown Road SE after complaints of illegal gambling.
Administrative charges were issued against the liquor permit for four counts each of acquire, possess, control or operate a gambling device; electronic video gambling device; game of chance for profit or scheme of chance; operating a gambling house; and recklessly permitting public gaming.
In addition, giving away alcohol as a prize and illegal raffle violations were issued.
During the search, 60-year-old Don Flaminio, of Warren, was charged with five countsgambling, operating a Gambling House and possession of criminal tools.
Daniel Goddard, 42, of Warren, received summonses for two counts of gambling.
Flaminio and Goddard will appear in the Warren Municipal Court on February 22.
Ohio State Highway Patrol said administrative charges will be presented to the Ohio Liquor Control Commission at a later date. Possible administrative penalties include fines, suspensions or revocation of the liquor permit.
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Highway Patrol: Raid of Warren bar uncovers illegal gambling - WKBN.com
Australians are losing big on pokies. Picture: Marc McCormack
WERE supposed to be the lucky country, but a scary graph proves Australia is a nation of losers.
Gambling has become so prevalent in the Great Southern Land that weve taken out the dubious gong of the nation with the highest losses per capita, dwarfing the casino hub of Singapore.
An analysis by The Economist reveals that Australians lose more per person than any other country in 2016, an average $1292 ($US990) thats averaged out across the population, not just gamblers.
Australia, you are the biggest loser. Picture: Economist.comSource:Supplied
By comparison, the United States home to the glittering punters paradise of Las Vegas lost less than half that amount.
To the general public, Australia hardly leaps to mind as a gambling hotbed, yet industry insiders know it is far and away their most lucrative market, the Economist reported.
Its analysis is based on data from H2 Gambling Capital (H2G), a consultancy, which found that Australias betting losses per resident adult were about double the average in other Western countries.
And the reason? Pokie machines.
The losses from the ubiquitous gaming machines found in pubs and clubs across the nation are bigger than the total per capita gambling losses of nearly every other country represented largely because of Australias permissive bet limit rules, which allow punters to lose up to $1498 ($US1150) an hour.
Sometimes the wheel of fortune doesn't spin in your favor, especially when you're new to gambling. WSJ visits the Big Deal Casino in New York City to learn how to play roulette. Photo/Video: Carly Marsh/The Wall Street Journal
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Scary graph shows how Australians are the biggest losers - NEWS.com.au
The take down of a mafia run gambling ring in New York City threatens to trap a gaggle of high-profile celebrities who a source claims may have been caught on wiretaps making illegal bets, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned.
Thirteen members and associates of the Genovese Organized Crime Family were nabbed in the Dec. 15 bust, which included Vincent Vinny Taliercio, a long-time Brooklyn bookie who collected wagers from a Whos Who of Hollywood elite, a well-placed source told Radar.
The list of New York City born celebs may include: The Godfather star James Caan; Taxi actor Tony Danza and Paul Sorvino, who played a mafia boss in the wise guy drama Goodfellas, the source told Radar.
James Caan is a big gambler he bets on anything. Hell even bet on which elevator doors open first, the insider claimed.
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Some of the other high profile gamblers may include: Bronx born TV talker Regis Philbin; Two and Half Men star Charlie Sheen; the late Law & Order star Jerry Orbach; Seinfeld co-creator Larry David; the late Wise Guy actor Ray Sharkey and famed producer James L. Brooks, an Oscar winning director, and Ed Weinberger, who both created Taxi and numerous other television classics.
They probably caught some of these celebrities on the wiretaps, the source said, adding the gamblers would usually place their bets with Vinny by telephone if they werent in New York.
Vinnie is not just a bookie everybody who is anybody in the gambling world would call him up because hes the best handicapper in the world, the source told Radar. He has dealt with all the big celebrities.
Everybody went to Vinny for advice even the members of all five crime families. Anything you needed to know about sports that guy Vinny knew about it he was like a walking encyclopedia an almanac!
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Vinny was arrested during the gambling and loansharking investigation dubbed Operation Shark Bait by the New York Attorney Generals Offices Organized Crime Task Force and the NYPDs Criminal Enterprise Investigations Section, who used wiretaps to secure the indictments.
The ringleader Salvatore Sallie DeMeo, 76, and the others are accused of running the gambling site 4Spades.orgbased in Costa Rica along with a lucrative loansharking and illegal cigarette smuggling business that raked in millions, according to a 56-page indictment obtained by Radar.
Vinny, who operated his family owned grocery store, the Smith Union Market in Brooklyn, served as the money collector/distributor of illegal gambling proceeds, according to the indictment.
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In one chat tape recorded on Feb. 14, 2015, Vinny is heard giving the spread to college games: Michigan States two-and-a-half, 37-and-a-half, Clemson is nine, no total. Xavier is eight and 48.
The celebs relied on Vinny for gambling advice and enjoyed betting on college basketball and football games because they enjoyed the spread, the inside source told Radar.
According to the source, they also gambled on professional sports, boxing and horse races a favorite of the Brooklyn born Sorvino, who also starred on the television series Law & Order.
Some sports superstars who placed bets with Vinny include: Yankee great Mickey Mantle, disgraced hitting champ Pete Rose and famed L.A. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda.
Vinny plead not guilty in Brooklyn Criminal Court and was released on a $20,000. He scheduled back in court on February 15th.
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On Thursday, President Donald TrumpDonald TrumpFocused engagement: A realistic way forward in Afghanistan Overnight Tech: GOP split on net neutrality strategy | Trump's phone worries Dems | Bill in the works on self-driving cars Trump's Africa policy finally gets going, and there's reason for hope MORE signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Justice to implement a plan to stop crime and crimes of violence against law enforcement officers.
The order instructs the department to pursue appropriate legislation...that will define new Federal crimes, and increase penalties for existing federal crimes, in order to prevent violence against federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement officers. That recommended legislation could include defining new crimes of violence and establishing new mandatory minimum sentences for existing crimes of violence.
The order also directs a thorough evaluation of all grant funding programs currently administered by the Justice Department. About the order, President Trump said Its a shame whats been happening to our great -- truly great -- law enforcement officers, the president said at the signing. Thats going to stop as of today.
While all law enforcement line-of-duty deaths are tragedies requiring swift legal response, Floyds death draws attention to a dangerous discrepancy that directly conflicts with the White Houses efforts to protect those who protect us.
The dangers of working in law enforcement, both in policing as well as corrections, have been nationally recognized and codified with the Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act of 2004, a federal law enacted by President George W. Bush that allows "qualified law enforcement/corrections officers" and "qualified retired law enforcement/corrections officers" to carry a concealed firearm in any jurisdiction in the United States, regardless of state or local laws, with certain exceptions.
Some states, however, choose to get around this law by classifying the members of corrections and certain law enforcement agencies outside the scope of the act. This creates a discrepancy as to what a corrections officer, peace officer, or law enforcement officer is from one jurisdiction to another; which puts officers and those they serve at significant risk.
For example, both state and municipal Corrections Officers in New York and New Jersey are classified as peace officers (law enforcement) in their respective state codes, and have standardized training necessary to comply with LEOSA. Meanwhile, right across the borders of Pennsylvania and Delaware, Corrections Officers are still considered guards in the eyes of state law; as they are in many southern states.
Not only does this hinder the professionalism and retention of corrections officers, but restricts men and women who have exactly the same jobs as their counterparts across the Delaware River from the same protections afforded to them under LEOSA, potentially endangering their lives. LEOSA states that any sworn law enforcement officer (with the authority to make arrests) in active service, and any retired officer serving a total of ten years service as sworn law enforcement has the right to interstate firearms carry.
Instead of embracing this law, numerous agencies have created elaborate ways to circumvent it. For example, a myriad of agencies refuse to issue retired identification cards to members who leave after the ten year requirement, giving those members no way to prove they are LEOSA eligible.
Even more of an outrage is that numerous police and corrections agencies will not arm or train their officers with respect to their titles. In New York, numerous police agencies within the city are unarmed despite their state authority as peace officers to make arrests. This includes the NYC Hospital Police, who polices a city hospital system in where violent crime victims are taken, drug-seeking behavior is manifested; City University Public Safety and NYPD School Safety officers; among many others. Surely, the murder of Hospital Police Officer James Low in 1999, the presence of gangs in schools and threat of active shooter incidents demonstrate the need for uniformed, sworn law enforcement officers to be armed and operated professionally.
Unfortunately many local political leaders ignore best practices in public safety. This extends beyond New York, where even the Philadelphia School Police; in one of the most violent public school systems in America, are unarmed and have no arrest authority.
Local powers that be continually reject request from officers unions to train and equip them properly. For some jurisdictions, this is merely a budget issue, where agencies dont want to increase the salaries, training and equipment funding to make these officers safe. Some, especially in educational environments, however highlight a disturbing politicization in where leaders have expressed that arming school police results in a ludicrous pathway to corrections because the mere presence of firearms on campus, even on the hip of a uniformed law enforcement officer, creates the feeling that kids are in jail. Meanwhile, officers and kids are at risk from armed criminals because they are not equipped to intervene in an attack.
If states would simply invest in professionalism and training; they can move toward standardization. In 1994, six years before being appointed Police Commissioner, NYPD Detective Bernard Kerik was appointed by Mayor Rudy Giuliani to the New York City Department of Correction as the director of Investigations and by 1998 he was appointed as the Commissioner of the department.
As Corrections Commissioner, Kerik was responsible for the creation of the Total Efficiency Accountability Management System, the development of a nationally-recognized gang intelligence unit and database, and a reduction of inmate violence by a whopping 93 percent from 1995 to 1999.
Similarly, overtime spending decreased 45 percent from 1995 to 1999 and the uniform sick rate dropped for the same period by 25 percent; all during a period in NYC history when the inmate population rose by 25 percent. What Kerik showed the national corrections and law enforcement communities was that when you train, equip and manage corrections officers like professional law enforcement officers; facilities will operate accordingly saving both the lives of officers and inmates alike.
For an off-duty Pennsylvania Corrections Officer to be arrested in front of his family for carrying a weapon across the bridge in New Jersey because Pennsylvania classifies corrections officers differently than New Jersey does is legally unfair and puts officers at risk. For a school police officer in Philadelphia, PA to be completely unequipped and without authority while school police officers in rural Clarksdale, Mississippi are sworn and armed makes no sense; as the value of our childrens lives is no more valuable in Mississippi as it is in Pennsylvania or New York.
While our President and federal lawmakers have been diligent in their efforts to protect law enforcement; they need to legislate a standard for the authority and use of force capabilities of what a law enforcement officer is. If states like Delaware were to follow the best practices of New York and professionalize their corrections department; then they can honor the life of Sgt. Floyd by protecting the safety of their officers and preventing future loss of life.
A. Benjamin Mannes is a national subject matter expert in public safety and regular contributor to The Hill. He serves as a member of the Pierce College Criminal Justice Studies Advisory Board in Philadelphia and is a governor on the executive board of InfraGard, the FBI-coordinated public-private partnership for critical infrastructure protection. His writing has appeared in the Washington Times. Follow him on Twitter @PublicSafetySME
The views expressed by Contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.
See the original post here:
States are gambling with law enforcement safety - The Hill (blog)
Geelong veteran Harry Taylor has concerns over the effect of the AFL's gambling ads on young fans. (AAP)
Geelong veteran Harry Taylor says the saturation of betting advertisements during AFL games is concerning for young fans.
Taylor has thrown his support behind Western Bulldogs premiership captain Easton Wood, whose public stand against gambling commercials has placed the issue firmly on the AFL agenda.
The two-time Geelong premiership star says he shares Wood's concern that the advertisements are normalising gambling for children.
"I've got three kids at home, and when my eldest can name a lot of the ads on TV, that is a bit of a worry," Taylor said.
"It's certainly something that we need to keep talking about and educating people about.
"It's not as simple as just cutting them out of the AFL, I can certainly understand that, but more education about gambling in general is a really, really important part of what our society and AFL players need."
Wood, who led the Bulldogs to a drought-breaking premiership last year in the absence of injured captain Bob Murphy, raised the issue after attending the AFL's annual player education sessions on Friday.
He said he "couldn't stomach" the AFL educating players on the dangers of gambling while also allowing an influx of betting commercials during games.
"Every year we are told it is a sinister and dangerous activity because of the associated risks that come with gambling, all of which have proven very real," Wood posted on Twitter.
"What I can't understand is that if this is such an issue that we need an annual education session, why - as an industry - do we support the onslaught of gambling advertising you are now faced with when watching an AFL game.
"The obvious issue here is the effect this advertising has on children every time they watch us pull on our boots."
With the exception of Geelong, all of the Victorian-based AFL teams have signed a charter pledging not to sign partnerships with sports betting companies.
However most continue to profit from gambling, with North Melbourne the only club which does not generate revenue from poker machines.
AAP2017
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AFL's gambling ads concern for Cats star - Wide World of Sports
Date published: Monday 13th February 2017 1:50
Ave a bang on that.
Sky Bet used to have It matters more when theres money on it for their advertising tag line, as though football couldnt satisfy you in itself, and you needed some sort of additional fix to make it matter, to make it enjoyable, to briefly thaw out your frozen soul. It always seemed a pernicious statement, speaking of dull, pointless lives, needing the adrenalin of the threat of money loss or, less likely, the glory of money won.
Who wants to buy into that? As it turns out, a lot of people. Why? Because we live in desperate times, and desperate times lead to desperate lives.
Ave a bang on that.
Although I dont gamble, I do know how addictive gambling is. Eight years ago this month, me and my missus rented a house in Las Vegas for five weeks. We were doing quite well at the time, or at least, we had access to a giant f*ck-tonne of credit. Back then, we were dedicated boozers, and we soon worked out that you got free drinks in most casinos if you sat at a poker machine and pushed enough money into it. Like so many before us, we thought we could balance gambling losses out against free drink. But of course, no matter how much we drank, we couldnt quite manage it.
Like Jonny Wong, we knew we could never win, we were just trying to lose a little more slowly. We could no more hold on to our money than grab mercury. And it went on like this for 36 days. We just couldnt stop. As we drank more and more free liquor, we lost more and more money, but kept pumping more and more in to try and stem the losses. A few big wins deluded you into feeling you were getting close to even. You werent.
So we dug ourselves a 35,000 hole and jumped into it, drunk and screaming wildly into the infinite black velvet desert night sky. Climbing out would take years.
Now looking back, it feels like it was one long period of psychosis (and not just because Winty and the boy Tyers, formerly of this parish, were also there). We shouldve realised that being fully paid-up members of the If A Thing Is Worth Doing Its Worth Over Doing Club, gambling would get its hooks into us and would only let us go once it had cleaned us out, stripped us naked, and left us on our knees in the desert, with only a loaded pistol as a way to solve our problems.
Losing money whilst pished on free tequila and gin feels perversely like a win, especially when youre from a poor background, when in reality, youre just a big fat loser. Yet it was so compulsive.
And because I felt its lure so strongly, I worry about gambling being so pervasive in our football lives. Games arepreceded and followed by TV ads for betting companies. Ten Premier League clubs are sponsored by international gambling firms. The second, third and fourth tiers of English league football are all sponsored by Sky Bet. Listen to talkSPORT and theyre giving you in-game and half-time odds, telling you how much you could win if x,y, and z happens. The same goes for TV: up pops Ray Winstone with pre-match and half-time suggestions for bets to place and encouragement to feel that you are master of your domain; a betting overlord, traversing the globe in search of profit.
Ave a bang on that.
At every single football ad break, the first ad is always for gambling. Betfred, BetVictor, Bet365, William Hill, Paddy Power, Unibet, which is now pitching for the educated middle-class male market (its always aimed at men, it seems) or Coral, with the fat bloke and the blonde woman and that is just a small selection. Theres all those heinous, Ladbrokes Life ads where they try to establish different characters, such as Generous John and The Professor, who just look like idiots that have a horrible existence, their pain only numbed by lager and gambling.
Lad Broke, indeed. Ave a bang on that.
Gambling is a terrible addiction which can ruin lives every bit as comprehensively as any drug you can mainline. And like a confection designed to melt at just the right temperature in your mouth, to make it so deliciously compulsive that you will overindulge, the betting industry knows just how to press our psychological buttons, even offering up ready-made excuses for your losses. The Ladbrokes Life caption, for example: When you win, its skill, when you lose its bad luck.
Wheres the fun in form?, says one of the characters from the Ladbrokes Life adverts. When you know, you know you knowyou know?
This is what we really know: you will lose. Now or tomorrow or later. You will lose. You are, or you will be, a loser.
Ave a bang on that.
Anywhere from 0.5% 3% of the population of Europe has a gambling problem and an addicts most favoured sort of betting is spreadbetting, the exact sort of betting pushed most at us football viewers.
This isnt a harmless bit of fun, even if Kammy does look good dressed as a woman. In fact, its so not a harmless bit of fun, that the industry has had to pretend to care about its punters welfare with vacuous advice such as When the fun stops, stop. Well, frankly, if the fun has stopped, that advice is already too late. Youve already got a problem.
Please bet responsibly, says Ray, which is just as pointless as please drink responsibly on a bottle of vodka. People without a problem dont need telling; people with a problem cant take the advice.
Its just PR. Its faux caring from a vampiric industry.
Ave a bang on that.
Betting used to be something you had to enter a bookies to do. You had to brave the smoke-filled, gadgee crowds to put your money down. Now, its intentionally been made so easy to lose your money that you hardly notice its even happened.
At least in Vegas you know youre on a Fear and Loathing, Electric Kool Aid Acid Test in a Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby. You know its not normal life and that this is one big freak out which will end. Yet football betting has deliberately become unremarkable through its persistent omnipresence, the encouragement to gratuitously lose your money made standard, as though its just a natural part of life.
Ave a bang on that.
What is this doing to the quality of all our lives, whether we do or dont gamble? Do the grubby, downmarket values not cheapen all of us? Can we not raise our eyes to the sky and stop staring at the soul-sapping smartphone odds? Are we not about better things than winning or losing money? Surely there are plenty more fulfilling intellectual and emotional stimuli available, without pretending that pointlessly throwing money away is fun.
At least in Vegas we were being social it involved attractive waitresses in skimpy clothing. We laughed, we had the time of our lives, we rocked. By contrast, football betting on a phone seems a desperate, solitary, sad little habit carried out in a Wetherspoons with the piercing screams of a hen party from Seal Sands as a soundtrack.
Compulsive gambling, like compulsive drinking, is clever. It sneaks up on you, tells you youre having a good time, tells you anyone who says you arent is part of the bleeding heart, PC, bedwetter, hand-wringing, do-gooder nanny state. You havent got a problem, or at least not a problem that one more big bet or one more bottle wont fix.
Ave a bang on that.
Thats why footballs addiction to betting is so dangerous. It has put gambling front and centre, has encouraged and completely normalised extreme behaviour, marketing it away as just a bit of fun and banter, as all the while it drums up huge profits by preying on the vulnerable and the poor. This will have actively provoked and fed many thousands of peoples addictions, making their lives worse and worse. And that isnt just pain the gambler alone endures.
When the fun stops, stop? Well, the fun has stopped, but there seems no stopping the takeover of football by the gambling industry, and thats to the benefit of no-one except those who feast on the profits it carves out of its low rent, shallow, debased culture, and still, more importantly, carves mercilessly out of human misery.
Get yer mobile out.
Time to cash out.
Lets all ave a bang on that.
John Nicholson
If gambling is a problem in your life, Gamcare can help you.
This week Johnny goes all Butch. Oooh, get him. No, not like that. My word, it's Ray, young man.
John Terry thinks the 'best' footballers should not have to take full coaching courses. Oh dear...
This week Johnny goes all Oirish, so he does, and wonders if Richard Dunne is the victim of a nuclear explosion.
Club managers 'rest' players because they don't really care if theyre knocked out. It's as simple as that.
This week Johnny goes dahn sarf to the Romford manah, my son. Its only that fackin Ray Parlour, geezer.
Not for his poorer, later albums. Our Johnny is in philosophical mood after Wayne Rooney's record...
Read more:
Football's gambling problem: You better, you better, you bet - Football365.com
After some 27 years of serialization and 33 collected volumes of high-stakes gambling tension, Nobuyuki Fukumoto's seinen manga about a maverick mahjong master,Akagi, will be coming to an end with the final chapter to be published in February of 2018.
A series of posters announcing the manga's conclusion will be on display at the 15 major stations of the Japan Railways Yamanote Line from February 13 - 19, 2017. Akagi began serialization in 1992 in Takeshobo's Kindai Mahjong magazine, and the series has also been adapted into a 2005 TV anime and a 2015 TV drama, both of which are available via streaming on Crunchyroll.
Crunchyroll descibes Akagi as follows:
"Tokyo, 1958. A man seriously gambles at a mahjong parlor. He's playing against members of the Ryuzaki yakuza clan. If he loses, he must pay his debt through his own life insurance truly a game of life and death. With his own existence at stake, he can only play passively, and the game comes to a head. Suddenly, a mysterious boy appears. His name is Akagi, a thirteen-year-old kid. The man senses a strong aura around the youth and decides to have Akagi substitute for him in the next round."
Source: Mainichi Shimbun via Otakomu
Paul Chapman is the host ofThe Greatest Movie EVER! Podcastand GME! Anime Fun Time.
Continued here:
Gambling Manga "Akagi" Begins Countdown to Conclusion - Crunchyroll News
The volunteer Montgomery County Problem Gambling Prevention Coalition next month will begin distributing free calendars created by local students intended to draw attention to problem gambling during National Problem Gambling Awareness Month.
The calendars display the winning entries from local calendar competitions among art students from four schools Wright Brothers, West Carrollton and E.J. Brown Middle Schools and Ponitz Career Technology Center who created artistic posters with problem gambling prevention messages to be used as calendar pages.
The highest-rated poster was selected as the calendar cover, and 12 other posters were chosen for each month of the year.
The calendars feature the same images but come in two varieties: Fine Arts, created by middle-school kids using techniques such as sketching or drawing with crayons, colored pencils or markers, and Graphic Arts, created by students at Ponitz using computer software programs such as Illustrator and Photoshop.
Read this article:
Calendar urges gamblers to cut their losses l Dayton, Ohio - Dayton Daily News
Welcome MMA bettors, speculators, and gambling lurkers! Were back at it again for another week of comprehensive gambling analysis from your friends at MMAFighting.com. This weekend we have the first ever UFC womens featherweight title fight between two top-15 bantamweights.
For those of you who are new here or those who have forgotten, this aims to be an exhaustive preview of the fights, the odds, and my own personal breakdown of where you can find betting value. The number after the odds on each fighter is the probability of victory that those odds imply (so Holm at +110 means she should win the fight 48 percent of the time). If you think she wins more often than the odds say, you should bet it because there's value in the line.
All stats come from FightMetric and all the odds are from Best Fight Odds. Net Value means how much money you would have made if you bet $100 on that fighter in every one of his/her fights that odds could be found for. Doubly as always, I'm trying to provide the most thorough guide I can for those who want to legally bet or who just enjoy following along. If you are a person who chooses to gamble, only do so legally, responsibly, and at your own risk.
Now with all that out of the way, lets go.
Breakdown
Holly Holm is predominantly an out fighter who relies on volume to rack up points. Though she made her name as a professional boxer, it is Holm's kicking game that is a threat on the feet. Holm lacks real pop in her hands when coming forward because she doesn't transition any weight into her shots, preferring to flick her punches out as set-ups for her left kick. When fighting on the counter, she is much better at sitting down into her punches and landing hard shots than pivoting out of the engagement, which makes her much more dangerous on the back foot.
Elsewhere, Holm is a competent fighter but somewhat reliant on her size and athleticism instead of a depth of technique. She has good positional awareness in the clinch and is very difficult to control, but she provides no real offense and mostly just looks to disengage. Shes an excellent defender of takedowns and can also wrestle a bit offensively, though she doesnt often look to do so. As a grappler though, she still isnt great and lacks urgency in getting back to her feet.
Germaine de Randamie is a big, rangy striker who likes to use her physical advantages to her best effect. Shes a former Muay Thai practitioner and her game looks like you would expect. She operates behind a heavy, thudding jab, which she follows up with sharp right hand. She also has ridiculous kicks and all of her strikes carry real power. Moreover, she is textbook sound in her technique and her footwork is some of the best in womens MMA.
De Randamie also has the clinch as an excellent secondary skill set. Her size and Muay Thai background make her a handful, and she also has excellent uppercuts to compliment her elbows and knees. Shes a solid defensive wrestler at range, but once she gets taken down, GDR offers very little off her back.
Many people are underwhelmed by this main event but its only because of the circumstances of the title fight. Were the specter of Cris Cyborg not hanging over this fight, everyone would be excited about the high-level striking match thats about to ensue. De Randamie is the better, more powerful striker, but Holm is more athletic and has faced a much higher level of opposition. Holm also trains out of a much better camp and can theoretically use other avenues besides just striking to engage GDR.
This fight is a question of tactics. If de Randamie keeps a long range, this fight instantly becomes a nightmare for Holm who isnt great at leading and will be walking herself into de Randamies power shots. If de Randamie chooses to pressure, Holms chances go up dramatically, as she is much better on the counter, attacking and angling out. It also depends on whether Holm is content to stay striking or whether she mixes things up. Holm was never getting dominated by Valentina Shevchenko, but she wasnt winning the rounds and her lack of desire for changing the theater of combat cost her.
So really its a question of whether de Randamies stylistic advantages are the controlling factors or whether Holms intangibles add up enough for a win. The confluence of Holms small edges in cardio, experience, athleticism, camp, and strength of competition make me genuinely unsure of this one but ultimately I will favor de Randomie to win a back and forth decision. As for a bet, I think the odds are close to right, though just a hair too much in favor of de Randamie here so a bet on Holm by decision at +250 is a decent value bet since Holm has never been much of a finisher.
Breakdown
To put it bluntly, Anderson Silva is old. Hes 41 years old and he hasnt officially won a fight in five years. At his peak, Silva was the best fighter in the world thanks to sniper accuracy, sneaky power, and unprecedented countering ability, but even then he was still known for curious instances of inactivity and disinterest that would show up between explosions of offense. Now that hes older, those lulls are even more frequent to the point that he often looks entirely defensive but for one or two salvos each round. When hes feeling it, though, he still poses a threat to anyone alive, as evidenced by the liver shot to Daniel Cormier in the third round at UFC 200 that badly hurt the light heavyweight champion.
Derek Brunson is an athletic, powerful fighter who is often too aggressive for his own good. He likes to pressure forward before leaping in with a big straight left. If he connects, the fight is often over, but his reckless leap forward also opens him up to counters, which is how Robert Whittaker took him out in his last fight.
Outside of over-explosive striking, Brunson is also a great clinch fighter and grinder. He works well with knees and punches in the clinch and he also can change levels to drop for takedowns. When he gets the fight to the floor, he is a punishing ground-and-pounder and defensively sound.
If this were a couple of years ago, Silva would be the prohibitive favorite, as the stylistic match up favors him a good deal. Unfortunately, its not 2015 and Silva appears to be on his last legs as an elite fighter and his chin is a major concern. If Brunson lands on him, that will probably be the end of the fight. The question is, can Silva snipe the overly aggressive Brunson coming in? I think Silva absolutely could do that, but Im not predicting it. In my head, I think Brunson understands the threat Silva presents and wont come out as ridiculously, chin-up aggressively as he did against Whittaker. I expect Silva to back himself up to the fence like he has done his last few fights, and from there, Brunsons clinch game is enough to neutralize the faded Silva and allow him to secure takedowns and landing punches inside. Silvas chin fails him and Brunson earns a TKO in the second round. Having said all that, I think Brunson should only be a -120 favorite, so a bet on Silva is not a bad idea.
Breakdown
Ronaldo Souza is, at worst, the second- or third-best grappler in the history of MMA. A multiple-time world champion jiu-jitsu practitioner who also possess elite athleticism and top level wrestling, there is a very good argument that Jacare is the best middleweight on the planet right now.
Everything about Souzas ground game is impeccable, but whats perhaps even more impressive is his success as a striker. He has an excellent pressure game and he cuts the cage well. He throws punches and kicks with big power. He doesnt have sensational cardio though, and his athletic window is closing at 37.
Tim Boetsch is a brute of a puncher with a power wrestling game to supplement it. This isn't to say that he has no skills elsewhere they're fine just that his success comes almost entirely as the result of his big-time power and a strongman style clinch game, replete with punches, knees, and elbows that do enormous damage.
Take a gander at Boetschs record as an underdog above. Tim Boetsch is the consummate spoiler, which means you should never count him out. That being said, this fight should be one-way traffic in favor of Jacare. Boetsch doesnt have great wrestling defense and Jacare is a great finisher of takedowns. While Jacare could do fine on the feet as well, I expect him to plant Boetsch on the mat and find a submission early in the bout. The pick is Jacare, and though I dont support a bet on him straight, parlaying Jacare Inside The Distance at -255 with somebody else isnt bad. Alternatively, you can play Jacare straight and offset it with Boetsch by TKO at +725 to basically guarantee a small profit.
Breakdown
Glover Teixeira has an excellent pressure game on the feet that is backed up by well-rounded offensive skills. Hes a meat-and-potatoes striker centered on a sharp jab, straight right, and a left hook. While not the most diverse attack, Glover's pressure footwork, speed, and timing make it a highly effective one, and his power means he doesnt have to land a lot to win the fight. Hes a bit plodding, but he feints well enough to set up the big left hook kill shot, and not many people can eat that without falling down.
Where Teixeira really excels though is on the ground. Hes an excellent wrestler on the inside (though not much of a shot takedown artist). He chains snatch singles and doubles off of duck-unders to great effect, and once on top, hes a hellion, punishing and passing until he can lock up a submission.
Jared Cannonier is the inverse of Teixeira: a striker who prefers to use his exceptional reach to fight at a long range and would much rather avoid the ground. Hes works at a good clip on the feet and is an accurate striker, building everything off of his jab. He also is a good kicker, but his best asset is his sharp right hand, which packs tremendous power.
Cannonier isnt much for grappling. Hes a middling defensive wrestler but he is very defensively minded when taken down, constantly moving and looking to stand back up. Hes also got excellent cardio for the division but hes a small 205 pounder who has talked about eventually ending up at middleweight.
I think this fight is closer than the odds indicate. 2017 looks like it might be the year we start getting major turnover at the top of the higher weight divisions and Cannonier might be part of that trend. Hes much younger and looks to be coming into his own as a future light heavyweight contender, whereas Teixeira is 37 and coming off a violent knockout loss. Moreover, Teixeira needs to get inside to operate, and Cannonier has the power and mobility to deny him that. This fight comes down to the wrestling and whether Cannonier has improved enough to keep the bigger man from dragging him to the mat. I think we can expect some improvement in that department but ultimately not enough to save him. I expect Teixeira may have some early trouble but will eventually be able to clinch up with Cannonier and get the fight into his comfort zone. It also helps that Cannonier has been susceptible to a solid left hook in the past and that is Teixeiras best weapon. The pick is Teixeira by late submission but the odds here are much wider than I believe they should be and so I suggest no bet or a small value bet on Cannonier.
Breakdown
Dustin Poirier is a well-rounded fighter who has found his stride since moving up to the lightweight division. He is a good combination boxer who works well in the pocket and has big-time power. Hes still a lacking defensive fighter, but he's been steadily improving his footwork and head movement, which has been a big part of his recent success. While Poirier is at his best when he is coming forward, hes also an improved counter puncher on the inside and keeps a high pace.
Poirier is also an excellent clinch fighter. He has good knees and trips from that range, and he has a really nice uppercut that he hides behind his own head before bringing it up the body to score. He has good defensive wrestling and solid takedowns. Once on top, he is a powerful ground-and-pounder with solid scrambling.
Jim Miller is a rugged southpaw who can do everything at well above average skill level. He is a serviceable striker with an underrated kicking game, decent defensive fundamentals, and a snappy left hand. Though hes fading physically, hes still a fairly durable guy as well.
Millers real talent lies in his grappling. Hes aggressive in hunting for submissions either from on top or on bottom and hes a great scrambler. Hes also a very solid takedown artist who has excellent timing on his shots. Defensively, though, hes not much above average as far as staying on his feet goes.
Miller is surprisingly on a three-fight winning streak after the Diego Sanchez loss, but that likely ends here. Poirier is a good enough wrestler to keep this on the feet and Miller doesnt really have the power to put him in danger. From there, Poiriers speed and power should give Miller fits, and I expect him to win a wide decision or possibly a late stoppage. Despite my confidence in Poirier here, though, theres not enough meat on this particular bone and you should pass on betting this one.
Randy Brown (-140/58%) vs. Belal Muhammad (+120/45%)
Randy Brown is a long, athletic striker who throws powerful combinations and a good jab. Hes enormous for the division and uses his length well, especially in the clinch, where he can use trips to compliment his knees and elbows. Muhammad is a sharp, technical striker who prefers to strike at range and at a high volume.
This seems like a tough row to hoe for Muhammad. He wants to fight at distance but hes giving up four inches of height and six inches of reach to Brown, who also has more power. Moreover, Brown is better in the clinch and can hit takedowns if need be. The pick is Brown by decision, and I like a bet on him.
Wilson Reis (-600/86%) vs. Ulka Sasaki (+450/18%)
This is a weird fight. Reis had a title shot until Demetrious Johnson got injured, and now hes fighting an opponent whos 2-2 in the UFC. Reis is a slick, dangerous grappler with explosive takedowns and fair striking. Sasaki is huge for the division and has a six-inch reach advantage. Hes also a good grappler and hes strong in the clinch as well.
Reis is a much better fighter than Sasaki and that should be enough to carry him here, but it wont be easy. Sasaki has a massive size advantage here and is a willing striker. He isnt a great defensive wrestler though, so I expect Reis will be able to land takedowns eventually and find his way to the back for the submission. The pick is Reis, but the odds are way off and you should definitely not have money down here.
Nik Lentz (+240/29%) vs. Islam Makhachev (-290/74%)
Makhachev is the long time training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov and he fights like a guy who has been grappling with Khabib for most off his life. Hes a stifling wrestler/top control artist who excels in the transitions between the phases of the game. Lentz is also a grinding top control artist but one who also likes to scramble. He can strike a bit but that is definitely not his best facet.
Both guys want to grapple and, as Chris Wade found out, spending prolonged amounts of time on the floor with Nurmagomedovs lifelong grappling partner is not a winning strategy. On top of that, Makhachev is also the more dangerous striker and will have a slight size advantage. The pick is Makhachev by decision, but the line is high. If the line drops to -250 or so, he would be a fine parlay include though.
Ian McCall (-105/51%) vs. Jarred Brooks (-125/56%)
McCall is a grappler by trade with a variety of trips and takedowns and excellent scrambling. Hes also a solid, high-volume striker, but hes been out of action for two years and hes been open about his many injuries that have hampered him. Jarred Brooks is a hot-shot 23-year-old who is making his UFC debut on short notice. Hes a good wrestler and passer and a willing, powerful striker but hell be small for the division having competed at 115 pounds before.
I have no idea what to expect here. McCall, at his best, is several steps up in competition for Brooks, but hes also been out for a long time and is open about his close proximity to retirement due to injuries. The pick is McCall by decision based on his skill set and experience but theres no real confidence and you should definitely not bet this one.
Rick Glenn (-200/67%) vs. Phillipe Nover (+170/37%)
Glenn is a tall guy for the division who doesnt always use his length to his best advantage. He prefers to walk opponents down and maul them in the clinch, where he can use his long frame to great effect. Nover is an anomaly in that he can do everything decently, but he never seems engaged and his lack of urgency often costs him.
Nover likes to operate at range and Glenns game is built around denying his opponent space. I expect Glenns preferences will prevail here and he will overwhelm the stagnant Nover, earning a late stoppage. The pick is Glenn by TKO, but dont bet on this one.
Ryan LaFlare (-300/75%) vs. Roan Carneiro (+250/29%)
Jucao Carneiro is my BJJ coach and a friend, and as such, Im going to refrain from speaking on this fight. But I am very excited for the match-up and believe it will be a good one.
That's all folks. Enjoy the fights everyone and good luck to those who need it. If you've got any questions, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @JedKMeshew
(Editor's note: All of this advice is for entertainment purposes only.)
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The global gambling industry generated $385 billion in profit in 2016, data provided by betting and gaming market intelligence firm H2 Gambling Capital and cited by The Economist showed. What is more, online gambling was the fastest growing sector last year. Proceeds from iGaming products accounted for 11% of the bulk.
A chart by The Economist providing information about the biggest gambling losses by country once again demonstrated the immensity of the US gambling market. The nation was the one to top the full-year losses chart for 2016. Here it is important to note that losses stand for the amounts staked by gambling customers minus payouts.
Americans collectively lost the total amount of $116.9 billion last year. Services offered by brick-and-mortar casinos were the most popular gambling products among US customers. Lotteries were also among the biggest contributors to the nations gambling industry.
The US gambling landscape may change significantly in the years to come, provided that multiple industry re-regulation efforts in a number of states succeed. It is believed that there is a huge demand for online gambling and sports betting offering in the US, and legislators from here and there have been pushing for the legalization of these particular sectors.
China, including its special administrative region Macau, lost $62.4 billion on gambling last year. The aforementioned figure could have been larger, if it had not been for a gambling crackdown initiated by Chinese President Xi Jinping that resulted in a withdrawal of high value players from Macau, known to be Asias and the worlds largest gambling hub at the moment.
Japan, Italy, and Australia comprised top 5 of the global gambling losses chart (or the global gambling gross win chart, as seen from the industrys perspective) with losses of $24.1 billion, $19 billion, and $18.3 billion, respectively.
Australia, which has proved to be a highly lucrative market over the past several years, topped another chart the one for the biggest losses per resident adult. An annual average of $990 per adult gambling customer was lost last year, according to H2 Gambling Capital. Slot machines, or pokies as they are known Down Under, were the most popular gambling product last year.
Singapore, with its two large integrated casino resorts, was listed as a runner-up in the losses per resident adult chart. Gambling customers lost an average of close to $700 per resident adult in 2016. Ireland came next with an average loss of around $500 per resident adult. Online gambling was the activity Irish gambling customers lost the most on last year. Finland and the United States were the other two countries listed in top 5.
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US Grabs Biggest Global Gambling Industry Win Share in 2016 - Casino News Daily