Free Republic

A Pennsylvania lottery player who kept buying losing scratch-off tickets called her string of losses a conspiracy and threatened to kill employees at state lottery headquarters, authorities said. Towanda A. Shields is wanted on 53 charges, including harassment, stalking and terroristic threats, for phone calls and voice-mail messages that police said started as a “nuisance” last year and escalated into a “relentless” stream of hostile, sexually explicit and threatening statements to Pennsylvania Lottery officials in Lower Swatara Township. Police there issued a warrant for her arrest Tuesday and are working with authorities in Philadelphia, where Shields lives, to bring her...

Among the almost countless number of federal statutes that are both foolish and unconstitutional is the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA). It’s foolish because gambling is a peaceful, voluntary act for which no one should be punished by the government and it’s unconstitutional because nothing in Article I, Section 8 authorizes Congress to enact laws to prohibit conduct simply because enough politicians regard it as immoral. That’s why there had to be an amendment to authorize Prohibition. Constitutionally, gambling stands on exactly the same ground. Some members of Congress think that PASPA needs to be changed....

On Monday, Native Americans conducted a forgiveness ceremony with U.S. veterans at the Standing Rock casino, giving the veterans an opportunity to atone for military actions conducted against Natives throughout history. In celebration of Standing Rock protesters’ victory Sunday in halting construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline, Leonard Crow Dog formally forgave Wes Clark Jr., the son of retired U.S. Army general and former supreme commander at NATO, Wesley Clark Sr. This was a historically symbolic gesture forgiving centuries of oppression against Natives and honoring their partnership in defending the land from the Dakota Access Pipeline.

MGM National Harbor will bring many jobs to Maryland and should give the D.C.-area economy a boost. However, not everyone was in the holiday spirit at Thursday night’s grand opening — a fight broke out during the Vegas-style extravaganza.

MGM is ready to open in Prince George’s County, Maryland gaming officials said Wednesday. Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency issued an operating license Wednesday to the gaming giant, clearing the way for it to open to the public Thursday night.

A mystery gambler appears to be pretty confident that Hillary Clinton will be the next US President - after placing a staggering £183,000 ($223,000) bet on her to win. The 44-year-old woman - who had never placed a bet before - staked the bet, on the Democratic candidate at a William Hill shop in Northumberland on Thursday, Chronicle Live reports. And it appears the whopping stake wasn’t enough for this optimistic punter. The following day she returned to the branch to place an additional £13,200 on Mrs Clinton to succeed Barack Obama at odds of 1/8. The woman now stands...

There’s an old saying about election predictions which instructs people making claims against popularly held beliefs to put their money where their mouth is. That actually happens in the real world because betting markets exist where people can wager on the outcome of the presidential race (or pretty much any other endeavor). One such enterprise is the Irish website Paddy Power and they’ve been taking bets on the Clinton vs Trump rumble since before the conventions were finished. For some time now the “smart money” had been on Clinton, but they now report there’s been a shift in the trends...

A major gambling website says nearly all wagers on the presidential election in the last 48 hours have been on Donald Trump to win. Irish bookmaker Paddy Power on Tuesday said 91 percent of bets on the election in the last two days have been backing Trump, the Republican nominee.(TWEET-AT-LINK) “We’re not reaching for the rosary beads just yet but if money talks, and it usually does, it’s telling us that Trump still has a puncher’s chance and he’ll be leaving us with some very expensive egg on our face if he does manage to pull it off," spokesman Féilim...

Call it the $42.9 million dollar selfie. Katrina Bookman flashed her multi-million dollar smile. Behind her, on her slot machine screen, evidence of her mega win. "I kept thinking about my family," Bookman said. Bookman's voice cracks when she remembers her short lived joy. She's used to disappointment. Raised in foster care, homeless as a teen, Katrina raised 4 kids, who graduated high school, all by herself. "The struggle I've been through, it's hard to cope," said Bookman. She already earmarked the millions, to buy a barber shop for her son and the a big chunk she would give back...

Casino operators know there’s no gambler quite like the Chinese. With their affinity for baccarat, the most lucrative game in Las Vegas, Chinese gamblers have long commanded special treatment — be it with private Chinese gaming salons, Lunar New Year festivities or performances from pop stars flown in from Hong Kong and Taiwan. No one in Las Vegas, however, has built a casino and hotel strictly for Chinese visitors until now. The Lucky Dragon Hotel & Casino is billing itself as Las Vegas’ first Asian-themed resort, funded in large part by Chinese investors. The property, set to open Dec. 3...

65% of all bets on the market have backed Trump to win the U.S. presidential election Donald Trump’s odds to win the U.S. presidential election may not match that of bookmaker’s favorite Hillary Clinton, but a late surge of bets have been placed on the Republican candidate ahead of the final presidential debate on Wednesday. British-based bookmakers William Hill have launched their list of bets for the final debate, with Clinton placed at 1-3 to win the final televised showdown and Trump at 9-4. Overall, Clinton remains the hot favorite to win the presidency, whereas Trump now has a 20%...

Irish bookmaker Paddy Power has paid out its customers who backed Hillary Clinton to win next month's presidential election. With less than three weeks to go until polling day, the firm declared that Donald Trump's White House bid had imploded and had very little chance of moving into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in January. The bookmaker claimed customers had been lumping on the former First Lady in the past week as Donald Trump's campaign became embroiled in a succession of scandals over his conduct.

As of 2008 we are now at 1000 posts for Mainestategop, the blog of those of us who are refugees of New England Socialism and the voice of the New Hampshire based New England Alliance for Liberty and Free Markets. We've come a long way I think and I am just ecstatic. Eight years of fighting liberalism and saving America from liberal failure. I love it. Thank you to all for your continued support.  Now, with that said I want to discuss political issues concerning elections in New England. There's not much to be said, we are voting straight GOP...

The day after it became public that billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson gave $20 million to a super PAC with close ties to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), three GOP senators introduced legislation that would effectively ban online gambling — a measure Adelson has long pushed for. The super PAC, the Senate Leadership Fund, backs Senate Republicans and is run by McConnell’s former chief of staff Steven Law. The group received $28 million in August — more than it raised during the entire 2016 election cycle. The vast majority, $20 million, came from Adelson and his wife Miriam. The...

A Republican member of the Michigan House of Representatives has proposed legislation to make it legal to play online fantasy sports for money and bet on the March Madness basketball tournament, as long as the prize is less than $3,000. Rep. Aaron Miller, R-Sturgis, introduced House Bill 5849 on Sept. 8 to decriminalize these activities. Miller said people from all facets of life are involved in fantasy sports and filling out NCAA basketball tournament brackets. “Winning $100 for winning your league – that shouldn’t be a crime,” Miller said. Miller said he didn’t expect the bill would be acted on...

LITTLE SAIGON – Las Vegas casinos employ a deceptive bargain: They offer free drinks to gamblers, knowing the booze will impair judgment and loosen wallets. The latest incarnation of underground gambling in Little Saigon takes a harsher tack – free meth. Gambling has long been endemic in the Vietnamese American community in Orange County, a thinly veiled cultural touchstone. Friends and family gather at houses to win one another’s money during the Lunar New Year. Indian tribes’ casinos set up booths at Little Saigon festivals to lure potential customers to their establishments. For years, the so-called bikini coffee shops in...

A 25-year-old man is expected to face charges after he left two young children in a car while he gambled at Detroit’s Motor City Casino. Detroit police were called to the parking garage at 11:25 a.m. Monday on a report of kids left unattended in a vehicle. According to police, a concerned citizen broke into the car and rescued the two boys, who are 5 months and 2 years old. Police said the children seemed to be physically OK and were turned over to casino security before police arrived. It’s not known at this time how long they were in...

A Buddhist monk living in Lafayette was sentenced Monday (July 25) to 30 months in prison for taking more than $263,463 from his own temple to gamble at a casino. U.S. District Judge Donald Walter handed down the penalty on Khang Nguyen Le, 36, a Vietnamese citizen who had pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Walter, whom President Ronald Reagan appointed to the Western District court, also ordered Le to pay full restitution. Le might also face deportation to Vietnam after release from prison, authorities said. From 2010 to October 2014, Le was president, presiding monk and resident of the temple...

The federal government has begun nosing around in daily fantasy sports (DFS). Last year, Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, launched an investigation as to whether DFS violates federal law. This May, the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade held a hearing to “consider whether there is a federal role to play” in regulating the industry.Subcommittee Chair Rep. Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-Texas) expressed concern that, “[a] patchwork of differing and contradictory policies by the states could have negative consequences for consumers, as well as further growth and innovation.” The feds should stand...

Kanpur: Taking the example set by Yudhishthir in Mahabharata a tad too seriously, a man from Govindnagar area put his wife at stake in an IPL betting game and then proceeded to lose her. [snip] The police have registered a case. The accused is still at large. The police said that after having lost his all money at the share markets, the man put up his wife as a stake in IPL betting. [snip]