I went to it today and bought this picture for ten dollars from Peter Ring Studios, I thought it was great.
WRRB/Telegram District City Council Forum 10/18
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This forum is for all district council candidates; all candidates are here
today. Format: 14 total questions, 4 questions across districts (for all
candida...
6 months ago
10 comments:
That thing is awesome!
I bought a small print for $10 that I am going to have framed and put up in my office. At the festival the guy had a real large print, that I have already indicated would be a great C-mas present, which was pretty neat.
http://www.telegram.com/article/20070917/NEWS/709170637/1116/NEWSREWIND
Time to sell ORH!
Harry Tembenis
Worcester,MA
In case the link didn't work...
Sep 17, 2007
Patrick to back casinos
Proposals likely to ignite debate
By John J. Monahan TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
jmonahan@telegram.com
After months of study and backroom consultations, Gov. Deval L. Patrick has decided to propose licensing three major resort casinos in the state, triggering what could be the most intensive debate the state has ever seen over expanded gambling.
While voters are expected to have no direct say in the matter, legislation for the proposals — which could make Massachusetts the largest casino gambling center on the East Coast, outside of New Jersey’s Atlantic City — are expected to face the biggest resistance in the House of Representatives, which has repeatedly rejected expanded gambling proposals over the last 10 years.
Sources who have been informed of the governor’s plan told the Telegram & Gazette yesterday he will propose locating one full-scale destination resort casino in, or north of, Boston; another in Southeastern Massachusetts; and a third in Western Massachusetts. Mr. Patrick is expected to formally announce the plan as soon as today. He will cite the potential for economic expansion and job creation.
The proposal comes at a time when large private casino corporations and the state’s two federally recognized American Indian tribes are pressing for state approval of plans to build casinos, and Mr. Patrick is seeking ways to expand the economy and job base.
The recently recognized Mashpee Wampanoag tribe has secured hundreds of acres in Middleboro and municipal approval to build a large casino on undeveloped land in that town along Interstate 495, and the Gay Head Wampanoag tribe, which failed in its efforts to build a casino in Southeastern Massachusetts under then-Gov. William F. Weld are also expected to make a casino bid.
In addition, Sheldon Adelson, the head of Las Vegas Sands Corp., one of the largest casino operators in the world, has said he would like to build a multibillion-dollar casino in the Marlboro area near Interstate 495 and the Massachusetts Turnpike. Meanwhile, a New York City casino developer is proposing a casino at Suffolk Downs on the Boston-Revere line and another casino developer has put forward a plan for a full-scale resort casino in Palmer.
The Boston casino plan is also being pushed by Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino.
Senate President Therese Murray, D-Plymouth, is viewed as favoring the launch of casino gambling, but House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, D-Boston, has opposed casinos and expanded gambling in the past.
State Rep. Vincent A. Pedone, D-Worcester, a member of Mr. DiMasi’s leadership team in the House, said yesterday he expects the governor’s plans to be a tough sell in the Legislature.
He expects any legislation to authorize casino gambling would have to clear the House Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Committee which is chaired by one of the most outspoken opponents of gambling in the state, Rep. Daniel E. Bosley, D-North Adams.
Mr. Pedone said he believes the legislature should have a debate on allowing casino gambling, in light of studies that show two Connecticut casinos draw much of their customer base from Massachusetts.
But he added, “I am not 100 percent certain that casinos are the answer.”
“I still believe that we need to exhaust all options for economic develop and expansion of our tax base before we look at bringing in more gambling,” Mr. Pedone said. He said, however, opponents will have difficulty taking the high moral ground in light of the expansion of state-sponsored gambling over the last decade.
“The problem is we already have gambling in the commonwealth through a very successful lottery and it is very difficult to make any argument that gambling is wrong when we are already embracing billions of dollars in lottery revenue,” he said.
Mr. Pedone said while some recent polls have shown a majority of residents may favor having a casino in the state all the information about gaming is not readily available to the public.
“We have to look at all the pros and cons and the reality over the past decade has been that legislators believe the benefits do not outweigh the consequences,” he said. “At this point I think the administration, the legislature and the legislative committees should have a serious debate and find out exactly how much money it would generate for the commonwealth.”
While that debate will include concerns that three large casinos would draw millions of dollars away from existing tourism businesses, Mr. Pedone said “if done correctly” the argument may be made that casinos would in fact draw more tourists to the state, benefiting the troubled tourism industry as a whole.
Mr. Bosley said yesterday he found reports of the governor’s plan very discouraging.
“My initial reaction is I am just profoundly disappointed in this governor. I thought he would take a harder look at this. It is clear the political concerns over being able to point to additional revenue outweigh the reality of whether that revenue is real or not,” Mr. Bosley said.
Mr. Bosely complained that information from a major study of gambling impacts undertaken by the governor earlier this year has not been publicly disclosed by the governor. Mr. Patrick said he studied the inches thick report of gambling impacts in other state over the summer before making his decision on expanded gambling.
“What we have heard is the bumper sticker slogans of a lot of revenue and that a lot people want to do this and we are sending our money to Connecticut,” Mr. Bosley said of arguments to open the state to casinos. He said those increased revenues may not offset the costs.
“You have to look at how much money we would get from casinos and have to ask where that revenue comes from and what does it cost us to get that revenue,” he said. “Any new revenues from casinos are illusory. It costs you more than you would recapture from outside the state.”
If the governor says we are going to make $500 million on this, $250 million of that is money that is already spent in the state,” Mr. Bosley said, adding the state is already a major tourism draw and casinos may not boost the number of people coming to the state for entertainment and leisure activities.
Casino revenues to the state may also be offset by the cost of supervising expanded gambling, increased public safety cost, loss of spending on the state lottery, and the cost of social impacts such as increased mortgage foreclosures and bankruptcies, as well as higher state outlays for healthcare, housing and welfare for residents who lose money gambling.
Mr. Bosley said a 1999 federal study showed compulsive gambling doubles within 50 miles of new casinos. He said other states have also been unable to control further expansion of casino gambling once it opens the door to allow casinos.
“The governor will be trying to do something no one else in the country has been able to do,” he said.
State Sen. Harriette L. Chandler, D-Worcester, said she has opposed casino gambling in past years, but will reconsider whether to support casinos in light of serious revenue problems hitting the state and filtering down to local government.
She said the city of Worcester will be facing an $18 million deficit in its school budget next year, as fixed costs continue to rise rapidly while the state has been limited in its ability to increase local aid.
Harry Tembenis
Worcester, MA
PS
Nice pic, Bill...
Harry:
You have said this how many times--100? It is simply too late. Our airport administration and commission have been asleep at the switch for way too long and the deal with MassPort is a done deal.
Instead of wasting one year on two RFP's for a parcel of land that is still not sold, but under an option to lease the next six months, they should have been condusting RFP for the entire airport the past three years to companies like National Express and the casinos. I hope I am wrong, but I doubt it.
Harry:
By the way I meant that above as a compliment.
Bill
I also saw the "Fly Worcester" print at Start on The Street and I thought of your blog for a second.
Great that you picked one up!
I am curious..... .who makes these print/picture
this is a link to the blog (Peter Ring Studios). Send him an e-mail (and a check) and he will gladly send you a picture. Getting mine framed as we blog.
Hello,
I appreciate you taking the time to post my print of "Smiles over Worcester". I as well as you have a strong believe in what can make ORH
strong again. This is the very reason that I painted this 737-800 all jazzed up in what I call Worcester's "House Colors". What is missing from our airport is plain old education. That's right EDUCATION of Aviation, Airlines,Weather,Economics,and last and not least Politics. For starters our Tax paying Citizens have an understanding that when it gets foggy out our service to Worcester stops, wrong. When we had Delta flying for example this was true, at the time and that's what people will remember about the airport. Since those days however the airport has been updated quite a bit for bad weather operations (I can get the facts for you later). But if you don't have a regular scheduled service working out Worcester, then you have nothing to gauge this by. Fact is, I have a lot of knowledge in Aviation and would love to share this with our Citizens. We need to EDUCATE our Citizens about the Roads, Noise, Parking and Tax's. I can elaborate more if you would like me to do so later.
Thanks again
Peter Ring
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