Posts by Rich of Observationz
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I came close to shedding a tear when I had to help destroy a (huge) shipment of illegally imported whiskey, vodka & gin that customs had seized.
Don't they auction that kind of thing? Why not - seems like a big waste of money?
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The only way the Casino can lose is if not enough punters come in
Actually I think I took a few $$ off a big casino/hotel in Reno the week after Burning Man - by the simple expedient of staying in one of their USD45 hotel rooms and not gambling a single cent. The place was actually cheaper than Motel 6.
Kyle: I meant that the revenues from pokies should be forced down to match those from a pool table, not the other way. As in 81stcolumn's mums pub.
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I agree with Ben that people always object to others vices.
Which I'm trying not to do. Personally, like I said, I think pokies suck. Because a large proportion of NZ pubs are pokie parlours, that cuts down on the number of places I might want to go for a drink, apart from anything else.
But I want to be allowed booze, drugs, loud music, fast cars, etc. So I think it behooves me not to stamp on other peoples vices.
I'm all for sensible harm reduction measures - making a pokie machine less profitable per square foot than a pool table would seem to be reasonable. Teaching kids that they will always lose from gambling might be another.
I'm sure there are personality traits that make some people prone to gambling addiction - but there is a reason why there are a lot more pokie bars in Makukau than Grey Lynn. People who feel their life's going somewhere aren't inclined to spend hours feeding coins into a lot - people with crap lives will. So making peoples lives less crap will reduce gambling and other problem behaviours. In the long run, this is going to work better than prohibition.
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Well, as InternationalObserver points out, as of yesterday morning, and I haven't checked further, the majority of reported firework accidents were at public displays and the remainder were all due to product failure.
I analysed the incidents reported in a typically biased Herald article here. The only obvious dumbass accident was people fooling with petrol, not fireworks. I'm assuming no ban on petrol is planned, although it would make NZ a safer place and reduce global warming.
It also occurs to me that it's possible that the reduced sale time for fireworks has had a negative effect on product quality, and the increased number of public displays has impacted operator competence.
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Mind you I did do Stats 101. Plus if I did want to gamble, I'd use the financial futures markets, where the odds are a damn site better than any casino offers.
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Sure. Call me when you're done with that ...
I'm not saying it's quick or easy, but it's the only lasting solution.
The US prohibits gambliing in most states - organised crime fills the gaps (as it did in the UK before off course horserace betting was legalised).
What percentage of the NZ population gamble at all frequently? I don't believe that myself and most of my friends are part of some freak statistical outlier that hardly ever gamble? So what makes us different - it isn't randomness - I think it just comes back to the self-respect thing.
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James: So why have I never touched one since I was a 17 year old in the pub in England? I think a majority of the NZ population would be the same.
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I've actually got no objection to regulating things that have a community detriment. It's demanding a community benefit that I disagree with.
I think UK pubs are/were allowed one or two pokies (or fruit machines as they call them) with a fairly small stake/win (coins, not notes). That would seem a good compromise to me. The pub gets a few quid but it doesn't lose their core concept of being somewhere to socialise over beer/food.
However, the real solution to all these problems of gambling/substance abuse is not to try and patch over the symptoms, but to build a society where people have a better level of self-respect and personal resilience. Which is a much better idea than taking away everyone's freedoms to protect the vulnerable.
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It's teh dopamine.
Yes, dopamine's bad. It should be confiscated from anyone in possesion of any.
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They banned bonfires? I thought people just didn't have them coz it's too warm in an NZ November to want to stand around a fire?
I come from near Chiddingfold, Surrey, UK. When the cops tried to stop a bonfire celebration there in 1929, they nearly got thrown on it. (It was the last reading of the Riot Act in the UK).