Make AC Great Again?

[DaBurglar]

Things may have bottomed in AC and will start getting slowly better. Just my opinion based on my weekly visits. Docks Oyster House, an AC icon for many years just completed a massive expansion and they are doing well. Know one of the hostesses there who says they are very busy and on weekend evenings are doing over 500 dinners. Is it just a summer thing or will it continue? Revel to reopen soon. I thimk things will be really good for the rest of the summer, then we'll see if it sticks.Thanks for this great post......I had forgotten all about Docks Oyster Hse!    That is good to hear.....I also saw a few encouraging signs during my 8 day stay last week.....of course, it had been so long since I saw ANYTHING positive that I caution I may be "overwhelmed", I think this SUMMER will be a good one in general.....The TAJ Mahal's ownership group, led by Mr Icahn, seems to be making at least a modest effort to reinvigorate the casino's gaming environment and offers, which is good.....it remains to be seen, though, if he sets about revamping the whole property with sorely needed renovations;  I believe he is still waiting on the New jersey Government to see if they really go forward with their idiotic plan to open a couple Casinos in Northern jersey, across the river from Manhattan!    I personally hope this desperate and stupid plan gets defeated and New Jersey re-focuses on making AC better and better......

[Minn. Fatz]

I don't seem to remember anyone on Wall St. being forced to buy up mortgages they knew would default, repackage them four, six, eight times into securities and derivatives, get the raters to call them triple-A investment quality and market them to their customers while taking the short position against them in their proprietary accounts. Everyone in the financial industry I talk to is astonished no one is in jail for that.

[notes1]

I don't seem to remember anyone on Wall St. being forced to buy up mortgages they knew would default, repackage them four, six, eight times into securities and derivatives, get the raters to call them triple-A investment quality and market them to their customers while taking the short position against them in their proprietary accounts. Everyone in the financial industry I talk to is astonished no one is in jail for that.

I agree with the majority of your statement.

now, you might try admitting when you were wrong/inaccurate, it isn't that hard.

the problem with your last line is that much of what bothers you, was/is not against the law.

simple example, a customer wants to buy XYZ stock, a broker fulfils their request. that same broker/firm does not believe XYZ stock will go higher and 'shorts' it. is that a crime? are you saying every broker or firm must take the same position as every client?

the majority of folks that bought these complex products were not folks like you and me, that were sophisticated pension managers. they wanted these investments, some asked for them.

[notes1]

marketing, interesting!

are all marketing campaigns 100% accurate? is there ever an effort to mislead the end user? do they ever try to entice someone to spend money on something they really do not need?

I am not allowed, not going to and nobody is interested in me posting my resume here. I only mentioned my experience, because your comments indicate only you understand the complexities of the financial system.

is it possible that someone who has been the beneficiary of government programs, may be biased about them?

there are plenty of taxpayers, who even if the could get into Harvard, could not afford it. and, there are even more, who cannot afford to take multiple extended vacations to gamble.

[DaBurglar]

the majority of folks that bought these complex products were not folks like you and me, that were sophisticated pension managers. they wanted these investments, some asked for them.
Mortgage backed securities in and of themselves are NOT the issue, nor are they "BAD"....if they are based upon and involve solid, legitimate mortgages where proper standards of lending are adhered to, then they can be a good investment.    What happened was there was a massive, MASSIVE intentional and conscious effort to package and sell MBS's that were based upon ridiculously bad, loose, improper (use any adjective you like) mortgages.    People buying such things have a right to expect that standards will be adhered to, but that did not happen?   Why?  Because Since the time of my favorite President, Ronald Reagan, Wall Street and the financial industry has been able to coax politicians (of BOTH parties, but sadly the Republicans actually make it out to be one of their VIRTUES) to play games with regulations, oversight etc.   Hence, the Federal government (and others) was NOT doing what it should have done, which is to prevent things like this from exploding into HUGE massive problems instead of containing them and preventing it from happening......

[DaBurglar]

marketing, interesting!

are all marketing campaigns 100% accurate? is there ever an effort to mislead the end user? do they ever try to entice someone to spend money on something they really do not need?

I am not allowed, not going to and nobody is interested in me posting my resume here. I only mentioned my experience, because your comments indicate only you understand the complexities of the financial system.

is it possible that someone who has been the beneficiary of government programs, may be biased about them?

there are plenty of taxpayers, who even if the could get into Harvard, could not afford it. and, there are even more, who cannot afford to take multiple extended vacations to gamble.
I had originally typed out a LONG, angry (very angry) reply to this unfortunate post/reply, but I have since changed my mind:   I will content myself with this abbreviated reply.You really did not need to "go there" Notes1, nor should you have.   You went too far with this......I know how easy it is to do so given the format and nature of this forum and the discussions/debates we get into. but I really think the personal undertones in this post are too much and go too far.    I do not presume to know anything about YOU other than what you divulge here, and I try to maintain a level of mutual respect.   I was sincerely interested in your background, there was no nefarious motive, no intent behind my honest question regarding your background.  I was NOT asking for a RESUME (seriously notes1???  unreal.)The simple fact is, outside of having an opinion, you are totally UNQUALIFIED to judge anyone or what they need or what type of "help" they do or do not DESERVE, least of all someone like myself.   And I have never ever said I am the only one who knows or understands "what's what" about whatever topic we happen to be debating.....that is YOU and your own insecurity and frustration or whatever talking......and is usually the type of cheap shot that people who are outclassed resort to.......And only a complete "tool" would lob potshots at people about gambling and spending time in casinos etc on a fourm dedicated to casinos and gambling etc.Oh and by the way, you are 100% incorrect in your understanding of what it takes, or how it works, when it comes to applying, attending and FINANCING a Harvard education.  It has a NEED BLIND admissions policy (many other schools have this too, but far FAR more do NOT have such a policy.)   This simply means, money never enters the picture:  If a student is accepted to Harvard, they receive ALL the financial help they need to attend....ALWAYS, 100%, ALL THE TIME.

[notes1]

if your assertion that no one accepted at Harvard does not attend, due to cost, I stand corrected.

everyone has a bias, I obviously defend some of the financial industry. why are you immune from having those same influences on your opinions?

you have made your feelings known about how casinos are run, yet you have likely never worked a day in the industry. aren't you unqualified to do so?

you have found fault with lending institutions enticing borrowers. is it not a goal of a marketing campaign to persuade, suggest, entice, nudge someone into doing something? nothing misleading in your industry.

whether it be spending time in a casino, going on vacations, going out to dinner, the point was that I, along with many other taxpayers, want to keep more of our money, to spend as we see fit.

I stated in another post, the federal government now consumes 22% of our country's total GDP. this does not count the impact of all the other taxes that are paid. I and every taxpayer have the right and responsibility to demand accountability. whether it be in the area of defense or social benefits, the answer cannot always be, to just spend more.

on more than one occasion, I have commended you for what you have done in life, while dealing with a handicap. but, this does not make you immune from criticism, if I find fault with your opinions.

[DaBurglar]

great, as I read this, none of what you just wrote is what I have an issue with or is relevant .....I'm all for accountability, keeping more of my earnings and paying as little taxes as possible, nailing fraudsters wasters and abusers etc etc.   I never said the answer is to SPEND SPEND and then SPEND MORE (any more than I asked for your "RESUME" earlier when i inquired about your background!!!)   I dont understand where the problem is but you seem to excel at misinterpreting or mislabeling what I actually argue.....and of course I am not exempt from criticism (no clue how "immune" fits here so I assume you mean exempt).....with you I EXPECT to be criticized when discussing these issues of politics and society.It just seemed you were actually criticizing how much time & money I spend in casinos, etc and making a link to other aspects of my life......obviously, if that was not your intent, then i may have misinterpreted what you meant.   FYI, as I may have mentioned before, HARVARD is one of MANy schools with such a policy towards admissions, so there is absolutely nothing special or unique about that......but what is important is that MANY MANY MORE schools do NOT have such a policy towards its students and that is why so many people today are saddled with absurd, and PERMANENT, levels of DEBT related to higher education (its estimated in the trillions!)   Of course it does not help that COST of Higher education have, along with health care, totally outpaced other aspects of economic life in today's society, to the point where one cannot help but wonder why this actually is the way it is!!?!?!

[Tedlark]

DaBurglar why is it that you always accuse people of misinterpreting your posts when their opinion or outlook differs from yours?

[Minn. Fatz]

For a fiduciary to market an investment to a customer that the fiduciary knows is suboptimal -- never mind takes the short side of in its own accounts -- is very, very much illegal. The difficulty is trying to prove intent to defraud against the legal and financial resources of a Goldman or a Chase. The answer is regulation that makes such conduct illegal regardless of intent. If a VP machine is rigged to give a lower payout than the pay table indicates no one has to prove that the casino intended it to be that way. Cue "O Canada..."