Bettie: What Would You Do If... ?

[Bettie]

Anyone catch this show on Travel Channel? They bill it as "conscience vs. Nevada Law,? but it?s a whole lot of bullshit. The law part, I mean. It?s basically stuff like, would you tip the dealer for a better hand?, if you saw a fellow poker player?s cards, would you use the info?, that kind of softball garbage.

Let me put it this way: The show?s experts are Scoblete, Thomason, and the founder of Golden Touch craps (they cover dice control for about 30 seconds). Tamburin was in it, too, and I wonder if their company didn?t produce this themselves to get airtime.

I usually don?t watch these shows, but was flipping through channels and stopped because I saw an interesting question, which was ?If a casino used preferential shuffling to end the players? advantage, would you continue to play at that table?? 82% said "No."

Other questions that followed before I got sick of watching (all questions, including the above, are paraphrased, and I have no idea how many people were surveyed for their answers):

?Would you try to enter a game mid-shoe if you realize that the remaining cards favor the players?? 85% said "Yes."

?If you owned a casino, would you throw a player out for counting cards or controlling dice?? 83% said ?No.?

?If a dealer was flashing their hole card, would you continue to play?? 92% said ?Yes? but, believe it or not, people interviewed (not the ?experts,? but the regular casino-goer) said they would tell the dealer. Dumbasses. Well, at least the Gaming Control rep said that it WAS NOT illegal to use that information because it?s the casino?s responsibility to make sure that their dealers are trained not to flash their cards.

This obsession with Vegas has just got to stop. It?s ruining games, attractions, traffic, and even the weather (more water, grass, golf courses, and bodies means more nasty humidity). The Travel Channel must die!
Bettie

[Sun Runner]

> if you saw a fellow poker player?s cards would you use the info

Phfff!

I saw the program and felt the same.

You raise a good question though.

What is it with the meteoric rise in all things dealing with gambling in general and Vegas in particular?

[Illusion]

Hollywood is out of ideas

[Wolverine]

All things Vegas interest people for many reasons, but here are a few I can rattle off in a few seconds:

1) Those that HAD money before the stock market burst enjoyed the quick rush of making money. It was like hitting the lottery to them. The stock market does not appear to be ready to create any overnight millionaires tomorrow, so maybe they can make some quick money gambling. They were gambling in their stock portfolios for years, this is just an extension of that same feeling.

2) What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. I don't need to tell anyone that the good ole US of A has got a seedy underbelly that we try to hide. Porn, strip clubs, swingers, and infidelity (by both men and women). The campaign has made it "ok" to do what you want in Vegas, hence the obsession with coming to Vegas and "breaking the rules." Gambling is a part of that seedy underbelly.

3) Many "average people" don't have exciting lives. Not even close. Vegas offers them a chance to enjoy a "change in personality." They aren't Jane Secretary or Joe Garbageman when they are in Vegas. As long as they can pull out the wad of 100's and flash them around, they are "somebody."

4) A chance to be a "millionaire." Why are people obsessed with winning or making a million dollars? One pull of a slot machine, and voila, instant millionaire (talking Megabucks machine here). The lure of easy money.

I could go on, and I hope that others add their thoughts in too, but it is time to move on.

[Neonbill]

I caught most of this show when it first broadcast, and also was a little surprised at the 'poll results'. I'd imagine the typical person they questioned was your average tourist schmo visiting Las Vegas and somehow expecting to 'beat the casino' and actually leave Vegas with more money than they had when they got there.
This show seemed different from all the other Las Vegas themed shows that the Travel Channel airs, in that it actually had some new material. Most of the other shows seem like they've just been re-titled and edited from old material. They're cheap from a production standpoint, and they probably know they're going to get x amount of viewers by just having the word 'Vegas' in the title.
I did catch part of 'Caesar's 24/7' (on a different network), the other nite, and to me, it was unwatchable. I mean bad. I'm embarrassed to even admit watching it.
And the show based at Green Valley Ranch (is it 'Casino'?), is just boring; another cheaply produced reality show that tries to dramatize the fact that the chef doesn't have enough jumbo shrimp for the early bird buffet crowd. Heads will surely roll. (Nothing personal against Station Casinos; I get regular room comps with them.)
I have no facts to back this up, but I don't think any of these programs are going to cause droves of people to uproot and move to Las Vegas. On the other hand, what might make them move is the weather, low property taxes relative to a lot of other places, no state income or corporation taxes, etc.
But me being so inconsiderate, I never realized I was using up your air when I'm there, so I'll cut back next visit. (Isn't it typical human nature that once you get somewhere, you want to close the door on everyone behind you?) (Just kidding.)

[Norm Wattenberger]

I tried to read this post twice. Can't get past the part about Thomason being one of the show's experts without falling out of my chair.

[Bettie]

> I did catch part of 'Caesar's 24/7' (on a
> different network), the other nite, and to
> me, it was unwatchable. I mean bad. I'm
> embarrassed to even admit watching it.

Yeah, I've watched a couple times to catch people I know who are on it, and it just plain sucks. Too bad, since I really like another A&E reality show, "Family Plots," and I was hoping it'd be just as good.

> And the show based at Green Valley Ranch (is
> it 'Casino'?), is just boring; another
> cheaply produced reality show that tries to
> dramatize the fact that the chef doesn't
> have enough jumbo shrimp for the early bird
> buffet crowd. Heads will surely roll.

Again, I've watched it ("American Casino" ? "Casino" was about the Golden Nugget) a couple times, mostly when it first started because there was a chance that I was in an episode or two (I wasn't). Very boring stuff, as you say. A few months ago, I took my parents to eat at the steakhouse there and some management woman came up to ask us how everything was. After she left, my mom turned to me and said that the woman is a total idiot on the show (who isn't?). I'm sure that's the image they were trying to portray, right?

> (Isn't
> it typical human nature that once you get
> somewhere, you want to close the door on
> everyone behind you?) (Just kidding.)

No, you're not kidding. A lot of people I know feel that exact same way, including myself. Hell, I say it all the time ? "Now that I live here, everyone else should go the Hell home!"

Bettie