"He immigrated six years ago from Beijing, where he worked as a calligraphy teacher, but is now unemployed, he said. He rides the bus [to the casino] weekly from his home in south Brooklyn to play baccarat and other games. He pulled out his platinum Resorts World card, saying he was prepared to stop gambling once he played enough to obtain a black card, the highest status. 'If only I could win a little bit every time I came,' Mr. Zhang said in Mandarin. 'How great would that be?'"
The article isn't entirely about the vulnerability of "older Asian gamblers" to gambling problems. Some of them are riding the bus to socialize with other people who speak their language, and others make money by selling the $45 gambling voucher they receive for taking the $20 bus ride.
By the way, why didn't "Older Asian Gamblers" receive some enlightened editing? I thought it was frowned upon to refer to immigrants as if they were still domiciled in their country of origin and had not become Americans. Shouldn't it be "Asian Americans"? And I think "gamblers" is quite offensive. It's taking one thing that these human beings do and making that the sort of person that they are. When do people who spend some of their time gambling become "gamblers"?
Of course, the casino industry would like journalists to say "gaming" and not "gambling" at all.
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Older Asian gamblers says what you need to know concisely. No euphemism required, like "youths" for "blacks."
“and had not become Americans.“ That’s the James Baldwin problem. To the Left, a person never leaves the Tribe. Mr. Zhang will always be an Asian and characterized by that. That being said, statistically it’s true that Asians love to gamble. Check out the numbers in Macau.
In Omaha, our first casino opens in 2024. It is projected that losers will lose $150m in the first year with $30m going to the government.
It’s a moral abomination that the government doesn’t teach children statistics and then encourages them to lose their money gambling.
I’m sorry. If you gamble, you’re a fucking idiot. You can’t win and you’re a fool to think you can.
People of Asian descent are thought to be good at math, how do they get sucked into casino gambling?
The article had a dire tone, but isn't it a feel-good story? Older folks of Asian descent take comfort in going on gambling junkets, and the gaming industry has responded by structuring the experience to suit their customers. Everybody wins.
The only thing I don't get is why the casino doesn't have lockers so their customers don't have to squirrel away their lunches in hedgerows.
Of course New York will approve the license. There is too much revenue to pass up. Albany would license child prostitution if the was enough projected revenue for the state.
the vulnerability of "older Asian gamblers" to gambling problems.
Some forms of racism are Still Aokay, right?
Would we see articles about...
the vulnerability of "native americans" to drinking problems?
the vulnerability of "younger blacks" to robbing/stealing/murdering/raping problems?
People care about the victimization of these OAG’s.
Can you imagine a story like this about OWG’s? There would be no sympathy for them whatsoever. No one would feel righteous outrage or that justice was being fought for by the gambling authorities. Why is that?
It is projected that losers will lose $150m in the first year with $30m going to the government.
And the justification is that the $30m will ease the burden of the taxpayers. But that is a lie. The social and actual costs will overwhelm that paltry $30m. And the weak and vulnerable as usual will carry most of the burdens. Those who own the casino will live well on the riches. But they’ll do so on the backs of the children who are evicted from their homes because their weak parents gambled and lost the house payment.
In our social dialogue of late, we (or many) fancy ourselves to be a society sensitive to oppression and injury and we try to move heaven and earth to help the weak and oppressed. But we ignore the true systemic oppressions - things like drug addiction, broken families, alcoholism, and the bitter fruit of gambling. (“Hey, I can gamble within my means and know when and how to stop. What’s wrong with you? That’s your problem.”
According to assertions of history that I’ve read, Rampant gambling has been one sign of a society on the verge of collapse. I hope it isn’t true, because play by play sports betting just arrived in the past years on your phone.
Las Vegas has long catered to the gambling habits of those coming out of Asia- all parts of Asia. If NY is working on the residential 'older Asian crowd' it's probably NY looking to use Las Vegas's strategy with what they have on hand. You're not going to get planeloads of wealthy Asians flying in from China (and Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, bypassing Las Vegas to gamble in some smaller dumpy casinos in NY State. But you might get some locals on busses heading to those local casinos.
Older Chinamen gamblers are among the most joyless at crap tables. Followed by Arab men of all ages.
"Addiction by Design" by Natasha Shull profiles need-to-lose gamblers like Mr. Zhang. The real horror happens after he has a good night at the tables.
Until this weekend, I haven't watch much of the NFL in a while. I was really surprised to see that much of the game coverage, and commercials, are now related to sports gambling, followed by public service announcements about gambling addiction.
I'm not naive enough to be shocked that sports gambling exists, but gambling has definitely become a real pandemic in our culture - whether it's lotteries, casinos or sports book. It's not healthy.
There may be some symmetry because the largest demographic of people working the crap and black jack tables are Asian women.
others make money by selling the $45 gambling voucher they receive for taking the $20 bus ride
How much will that get you?
I suppose you might be able to kill some time and buy a meal and a snack or two out of the proceeds.
Riding the gambling bus doesn't seem like the way to riches.
Math is Hard
There is a superb documentary, The Donut King. It tells the story of an Asian immigrant who built an empire of local donut shops in SoCal. He pissed his fortune away, being a degenerate gambler, making frequent trips to Vegas. In this doc, you will see a fascinating political clip of Governor Jerry Brown. He sounds like a conservative, ranting against immigrants taking the jobs of Americans. It's worth watching the doc just for that clip.
"... he lost $70,000 gambling last year, prompting him to play more in hopes of winning it back."
I think that italicized phrase is what makes this individual a "gambler" rather than gambling just being something that he does.
>ndspinelli said...
Older Chinamen gamblers are among the most joyless at crap tables.<
Word. When I walked into my first casino in Macau, I felt as if I had entered a funeral parlor. Large rooms full of blackjack, craps, pai gow tables, and slots -- and none of the yelling, cheering, ding ding dinging that you hear in any American casino. Just hundreds of Chinese men intently staring at their games and not uttering a peep. Very weird scene.
Here in California, where there are Indian casinos everywhere, our tax dollars pay for a state agency that offers help to gambling addicts. They even advertize it on the radio. Amazing. They have state sponsered gambling (the lottery) that advertizes constantly on TV and radio and they take money from the gambling companies to fund couselors for the addicted.
It's like taxing drug dealers to fund drug couselors. I can think of a better way to cut down on gambling addiction. Don't allow legal gambling.
After my dad lost his high paying job (to quote my mother "money was no longer a concern") he lost about $30,000 gambling. My mother found out and issued a stern ultimatum.
Dave is right. Gambling is idiocy, pure and simple.
The entire gambling industry depends on people of Asian descent......and mostly Chinese. They even decorate the hotels in red, and gold. The colors of prosperity, and good fortune.
Changing the subject.......the Emerald Queen Casino on I-5 in Tacoma includes a sign easily visible from the freeway. The sign states that the Casino is run by the "Puyallup Tribe of Indians". The casino was built within the last 5 years.
I thought Indians was a slur left over from Columbus, and that Native Americans was the appropriate designation.
Feather not dot!!
$70,000? If only he'd invested that in FTX, he'd be.... Never mind.
An acquaintance of mine was a very wealthy crude oil producer. NW PA has quite a few of them, me not included. The Seneca Indian tribe built a casino nearby across the border in NY. This man became addicted. After he suddenly passed away, I found out a few things. One, he was a high-roller who had been assigned his own personal parking spot. His favorite one-armed bandit was shrouded in black cloth by the casino upon his demise. His estate was bankrupt due to gambling "loans".
Diversity is biology, color judgments, and class-based bigotry.
When do people who spend some of their time gambling become "gamblers"?
When do people who spend some of their time blogging become "bloggers"? The first time you hit that "publish" button.
Speaking of insensitive portrayals of Asian gamblers, The Deer Hunter.
How does an unemployed calligraphy teacher have seventy grand to lose?
Gambling is a tax on people who can't do math.
Gamblers are fools. And, a fool and his money are soon parted.
I worked in Thailand for a year, and they were extremely susceptible to gambling, young girl school teachers would get hooked on gambling and have to go into prostitution because of debt. In Asia they love gambling but if you loose you become a disgraced outcast. In the US you just get your fingers cut off, according to the movies.
Hey, I did that hopeful continuing to bet thing with stocks!
"Gambling is a tax on people who can't do math."
True. But for those who can, it's an entertainment expense which sometimes ends up not being an expense. How many people leave a Vegas show with more money in their wallet than when they arrived?
madAsHell,
I drive by that place all the time.
You should have actually highlighted two words: "Puyallup Tribe of Indians", as the former is just as problematic to residents of Wokestan. Never mind that both words are part of the Puyallups' self designation.
There's also an organization that the Puyallup belong to called the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians: https://atnitribes.org/
@Mason G
I understand that many can enjoy it in moderation and for entertainment. I've played in some relatively high stakes (for me) Texas Hold-em tournaments out of social obligations, and I was lucky or better than I thought, and came out ahead in the long run. But it was not enjoyable. It was stressful.
Human nature is undefeated.
"Mr. Zhang, 56, said he lost $70,000 gambling last year, prompting him to play more in the hopes of winning it back."
Somewhat needs to explain to Mr Zhang what the concept of Sunk Cost Fallacy means.
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