User profile: harske

Give me a pliers and 5 minutes with this animal... he won't harm anyone ever again.

My sincerest thoughts and prayers to the family of the deceased. Another innocent victim. While it doesn't help any, I'm sure your loved one is truly in a better place.

If I were a betting man, I would wager that if there were legalized and regulated online sports betting allowed through brick and mortar licensed businesses based in Las Vegas, that you would see that 1% jump several percent, maybe quite a bit more. If I have $500 extra money lying around, that's not enough for a trip to Vegas to play, but I could open an online account and wager with it. And how many other people are in the same boat? I would think that every legal gambling joint owner would be wasting no time whatsoever in trying to make it happen. Of course, I also thought the latest batch of expansion was a really bad idea at the time... and smarter minds than mine went ahead with it all anyway, so what do I know.

Regarding Stations, I really don't think the Fertittas have done anything other than make bad business decisions. Given the scrutiny they went under when they went private, and the audits they went through for these latest proceedings, I would have a hard time believing that they're that dumb. A touch greedy, maybe overly egocentric yes, but not enough to try to pull anything illegal. But remember, in business in a capitalistic society... there are all kinds of things that are just this side of illegal that people do every day. I'm sure the Fertittas are no different than most of the guys on Wall Street who got away with all kinds of stuff that's acceptable in business.

And regarding the other companies you named... none of them are in very good shape. LVS is only still around as we know it because Sheldon dipped into his own pocket to keep things running. He's still talking expansion worldwide, so I really don't think he's quite learned yet... so I wouldn't trust that company just yet. MGM has been in a financial decline for the last few years and may not make it through. Don't forget, they managed to lose $212 million in the second quarter this year. Not many companys have that just laying around. We'll see how their management "rearrangement" goes over the short term. Harrah's is in probably the best shape, but they have their own challenges. If you take away the huge one-time gain they were able to take in the second quarter this year, their numbers are right in line with everyone else.

All the companies in town are in the same boat. Losses are starting to pile up. I don't care who you are... you can only endure losses for so many quarters before they become real.

neiman... Glad to see that in this world of ever changing things, we can count on at least one constant. The good news for you is that if you keep saying the same thing long enough you increase your chances of it being relevant and making sense.

chazbean... I'm sure that makes sense in your head, but how on earth is Boris not coming here helping our economy? The whole Vegas thing revolves around people coming here, and face it... they're not. You cemented Boris' point perfectly about not knowing how to treat the out-of-town guests.

The writing on the wall has been around for quite some time. Stations fell right in line with everyone else who thought everything would be up, up, up forever. I'd love to see if there was even one bean counter over the last ten years in this entire town who had the actual thought... "Hmmmm, maybe we should put some of this obscene profit away for slower times instead of continuing to spend like it's burning a hole in our account."

Bottom line is, this town is in trouble. It's worse than people want to believe, and it will likely last longer than people want. But it's no different than most other metropolitan areas in the country. Sure, unemployment is higher, but that's consistent with the industry that drives this place. Nevada is and will be for quite some time one of the leaders in foreclosures. But what do you expect when 4 out of every 5 homes sold from 2001 to 2006 were sold to people who couldn't afford it or were speculators with no vested interest?

Las Vegas is a product of it's environment. It's transient, it's superficial, it's low on natural resources, and it's based on recreation and luxury that most people can live without. Vegas had it's chance to keep people coming, but chose to rape them instead with tight slots and low payouts, reduced middle class amenities, and exhorbitant prices for the privelege of staying here.

Sadly, Stations is reaping the negative rewards of what it's sown for the last few years. Used to be cool, but then it tried to be something it's not and shot for a larger piece of an industry segement it has no business being in. The decisions made by the Fertitta's are directly responsible for the position that they're in. In my humble opinion, the lenders that forced this latest development are due some blame too. Instead of taking a relatively small piece of something, they're probably going to end up with a smaller piece of something smaller, if much at all. It really tells you all you need to know about this organization when instead of hiring local attorneys to represent them here, they hire out-of-towners to represent them. And they're hoping this whole thing happens in Reno! The friggin nerve of these guys!

Stations should have taken Boyd up on the offer they made. You watch... Stations as we know it will not look anything like it does now in 3 years. And that may be the only chance the good people at Stations have at righting the ship.

Even an Applebee's is dicey right now...

Best wishes to all these guys. Someone has to make it!