I suspect there's Middleboro casino news out none of it is filtering down to the Casino-Friend.com office here on the dirt section of Tispaquin Street

5/28/08 It's been so quiet on the Middleboro casino news front that (as sidebar explains) I haven't found anything to write on the website in over a week and hence didn't notice it had gone offline. Without reasonably fresh or intersting opinions to express and news to report on local casino issues I'm been indulging my hpergraphic tendencies by writing my columns about national politics on another website where some zealous Hillary Clinton supporters in their comments have called me shrill and a two-bit therapist,

It seems that whether on local message boards or national ones my attempts to persuade some posters to refrain from ad hominem attacks and never write anything they wouldn't say to their pastor in front of their spouse and children falls on deaf ears under the protection of an Internet screen name.

Every day I read news about new reports about all issues related to gambling and what is transpiring across the world and country as thoughtful officials and concerned citizens are attempting to deal with the growing phenominon of gambling as a major money and job generator which also has a serious downside.

Anybody can follow the news about gambling and casinos by doing a search on http://news.google.com. I have added this to my peronalized Google News home page, and have email alerts from Google News sent to me thourgh the day every time a new article comes up with the key words I've specified.

I regularly get articles about events in Middlborough, England, and things that happen in towns that have Middleboro Roads in them. But I rarely miss published news items about Middleboro and about the casino.

But do I have any hot new insider information? I was asked that twice in the last two days by strangers who saw the Casino-Friend.com sticker on my car and recognized me.

The truth is that if there was hot insider information that I was asked not to share, I couldn't tell anyone who asked, and wouldn't publish it here.

However, if I ever hear anything and have the go ahead to publish it, you'll her the complete spin-free story here.

If you missed my May 1st discussion about gambling addiction on Adam Bond's radio show you can listen to it here.

5/20/08 Adam Bond is the chair of the Middleboro Board of Selectmen. He has a weekly radio show on WXBR-AM (1460) every Thursday at 11:00 AM called Coffee Shop Talk. On May 1st I was a guest and we discussed gambling addiction. Click the heading and scroll down the page to listen.

Second poll shows even more people for casinos in Massachusetts

5/12/08 As reported in The Standard Times (above) another poll shows more people in Massachusetts support casino gambling here. In this poll, conducted by Fabrizio, McLaughlin & Associates of Alexandria, Va., the numbers were slightly strong than those from the poll conducted by U. Mass Dartmouth and Dr. Clyd Barrow. Both shows support at about two to one.

Clyde Barrow answerers critics

5/12/08 In a letter to The Standard Times Professor Clyd Barrow answers his critics at that paper and elsewhere. Most important to readers of this website, he addresses concerns about measuring the social impacts of gambling. READ

NEW: "Passion against" vs. "enthusiasm for" a cause

5/9/08 Having attended one meeting of the CFO (the open meeting with Rep. Tom Calter) I can attest to the fact that it isn't just their leaders and those who hold signs at demonstrations who are passionate about their cause. I respect them for this even though I object at times to their tactics and to the behavior of a few casino opponents.

Not all casino advocates are pristine pure in their behavior either.

There was a heated political battle of persuasion for votes prior to the town meeting. It would be both naive and disingenuous to say that only the con side utilized calculated tactics to win. In politics each side has a strategy and every strategy has tactics.

Since the "KKK issue" has come up again I want to deal with that first. CONTINUED

Casino related blogging issue moves from sidebar issue to center page

5/5/08 Readers may not have bothered reading last weeks sidebar (The Fruit Hunters, left). The sidebar is where I publish peripheral stories that don't directly relate to the casino's coming to Middleboro. I just added a line to the title. If you haven't read it, I suggest you take a look (HERE) because it describes my own experiences some years ago running a website with a controversial message board which received national attention. CONTINUED

Quote on the history of gambling 4/27/08 From the Boston Globe South:

Native Americans are credited with inventing the game (lacrosse) some 800 years ago, and it is considered the oldest organized sport in America. Early players called it by several names, depending on the region, including one that translates to mean "little brother of war," according to historian Thomas Vennum Jr.

The games originally were designed to train warriors, but also were played as a way to resolve disputes between villages - perhaps a precursor to today's intertown sports rivalries?

Back then, wagering on the outcome was an integral part of the game, but contests also were played for medicinal reasons: Native Americans believed it would produce healing power. Game outcomes were believed to be supernaturally controlled by the Creator.

Read article Spirit of the Game.

Dare anyone speculate that a few lacrosse dads actually bet on the outcome of their children's games? Dare anyone suggest that there are a few silent prayers for divine intervention on the outcome?

Senate Indian Affairs oversight hearing on National Indian Gaming Commission

Class II gaming discussed

4/18/08 (From Indianz.com) The Senate Indian Affairs Committee held an oversight hearing yesterday morning on the National Indian Gaming Commission. Click above.

A good weekend for the Mashpee

4/8/08 With a "proxy win" In Middleboro's Board of Selectmen election, in which the town elected two strongly pro-casino candidates, and a resounding voice vote win in the Mashpee town meeting yesterday approving the Intergovernmental accord, the Mashpee's friends and neighbors in two towns said "yes" to their plans.

Middleboro Election Results

Marsha Brunelle 892

Muriel Duphily 850

Gregory Stevens 692

Fredrick Eayrs 603

Michael O"Shaughnessy 398

Jessie Powell 285

Thomas Murphy 143

(several write-ins )

263 blank

Total votes cast in election - 2066

CasinoFacts and CasinoFreeMass president puts political muscle behind statewide casino advocate

4/3/08 Rich Young of Middleboro is the president of two Massachusetts organizations organized in oposition to casinos in the state. One, CasinoFacts, is local and primarily focused on stopping the proposed Mashpee casino in Middleboro. The other, CasinoFreeMass, is opposed to any and all casinos in Massachusetts. click above

March, 2008

Slot machine bells and water park whistles

Some day, along with Las Vegas, Montreal, Philadelphia and Tanglewood, maybe Middleboro will make the New York Times list of the "31 places to go this summer"

5/31/08 When Glenn Marshall shared his vision of a resort casino complete with a water park in Middleboro I thought that would be something that I would enjoy. I thought in addition to my usual regimen of swimming laps at the Old Colony YMCA, healthy, relaxing but repetitive, a wave pool would be lots of fun. However, the math just didn't add up to me since maintaining a large standard pool is expensive enough and indoor water park facilities would have to generate lots of cash just to break even. CONTINUED

Gambling addiction specialists argue both sides of casino debate

5/19/08 An article in the Baltimore Sun, "Treatment groups see windfalls from slots" (click above) quotes addiction therapists with opposing views about legalizing casinos. The article illustrates how conscientious and compassionate therapists disagree on the issue of legalizing casino gambling.

The pro and con arguments in this article are virtually identical to those we hear in our local debate. My own opinions as a therapist, albeit not an addiction specialist, coincides with those expressed by the "pro side". The con arguments are about the same too, with a with a similar level of hyperbole: "It's like in Vietnam, saying we've got to burn the village to save the village."

Point of clarification on land into trust

5/12/08 Residents of Middleboro will be voting on whether the town should purchase 12.2 acres of land abutting the proposed resort casino site as conservation land. Some people have the impression that at some time in the future this land could become part of the Mashpee reservation and taken off the tax rolls.

According to the agreement with the town of Middleboro, the tribe has agreed to only take land into trust that has already been mapped as their reservation. Any land purchased in addition to this would be taxed. In addition to this, any land taken into trust after the initial reservation (or reservations) has to go through the BIA approval process.

On intellectual property, copyright, citing articles and accuracy in critiquing this website

And a few word about netiquette

5/11/08 As more and more blogs related to the casino are coming online I find that this website and me personally are being referenced more frequently. In the interest of fairness for all concerned, and to promote accuracy in clarity and criticism, I am publishing some basic guidelines and suggestions.. CONTINUED

Two editorials from prior to the town meeting bear reviewing again in light of the recent debate on blogging.

Some casino opponents have been likened to members of the Ku Klux Klan. Let's look at why.

5/8/08 (revised at 5PM) There is only one usage of the name "Ku Klux Klan" on this website. It was in the context of reference to an article about Citizens Equal Rights Alliance (CERA) which had that in its title. CONTINUED

An open letter to Rich Young about links to blogs

Opinion on "playing the race card": We must talk about about the unspeakable

4/20/08 -- The anti-casino movement is made up of hundreds of sincere and decorous people who have devoted considerable time, talent and energy to their cause. There are a number of reasons people are strongly against casinos in their communities or gambling in general and it is important to recognize that some are unrelated. Not all are opponents for the same reason. They have concerns I accept and understand about increased addiction, traffic, crime, and their bucolic towns which are already suffering suburban sprawl becoming even less rural. CONTINUED

New survey:

South of Boston region biggest supporters of casino gambling
The area south of Boston is the most supportive (61%) of expanding gambling options in Massachusetts of any other area in the state.

CasinoFacts.org - PAC board member publishes anti-sovereignty activist's email in Gazette letter

4/17/08 To date, CasinoFacts has, to my knowledge, taken no position on the sovereign rights of a recognized Indian tribe over their land into trust. In today's Gazette Letters to the Editor section Judy Gibbs, who is a member of the CasinoFacts Board and who is scheduled to host a "a letter writing campaign which will send a strong and clear message to our government" at her house this evening, had letter published which was mostly a copy of an email she received from a California anti-casino activist named Kathryn Bowen. CONTINUED

How can a town endorse a blog?

4/12/08 When, yesterday, I wrote the following I wanted to be restrained and not overreact to my initial impression that there was something quite untoward about the town of Plympton endorsing Mary Tuft's "Gladys Kravitz" by not only referencing it as the only blog they included in their list of websites, but especially by calling it "educational and entertaining". Click above

A response to Frank Dunphy from CasinoFacts

4/11/08 Read 1 Comment HERE

4/10/08 In a letter to The Middleboro Gazette CasonoFacts member Frank Dunphy brings up a number of points which he states as outright facts. However, while there are elements of truth in all he brings up, none are as factual as he makes them out to be. CONTINUED

Quotes of the week:

From the sublime...

4/10/08 "CASINO SUPPORTERS VICTORIOUS - The outcome of last Saturday's race for two seats on the Board of Selectmen could be interpreted as another endorsement by Middleborough voters of the proposed Mashpee Wampanoag casino in town." The Boston Globe.

...to the worse than ridiculous...

The Plympton BOS Chairman Joseph Frietas speaks:

“This is something that is extremely important if you like Plympton or love Plympton the way it is.."

“I am in favor of gaming in Massachusetts,” ( he added he remains opposed to the proposed tribal-run casino in Middleboro, due to the potential impact it will have on Plympton) and then says:

“If something comes to Middleboro, hopefully, it won’t be an Indian-run affair.” from article on Plympton selectmen voting to oppose casino in The Brockton Enterprise.

An "Indian-run affair?"

They even have an official municipal anti-casino website with links to articles, and to various anti-casino and gambling education organizations, and also to CasinoFacts.org, CasinoFreeMass and to one blog, the Gladys Kravitz blog by Bridgewater resident Mary Tufts. They refer to her controversial blog which has come under fire for being in bad taste, for sarcasms and for mocking Middleboro town officials as "educational and entertaining!"

You can read the official letter from Plympton to the Bureau of Indian Affairs here.

March, 2008