Do you play the pokies? It’s an interesting question in the context of this blog. I’m aware that the majority of my readers are anti-gambling, or reformed gamblers, but I hope that there are still quite a few people finding their way here who are struggling with gambling in their lives, and that they can find something here that may help. It doesn’t even have to be something I’ve written; when it comes to dealing with gambling addiction, no one can afford to be that precious. I have links to a number of gambling help sites, and I know that they are accessed from time to time. Hopefully that makes a difference.
Tag: problem gambling
pokie detox – dates to be confirmed
Note: the Pokie Detox will no longer be held in the last two weeks of November. At this stage, I’m aiming for mid-December, to cover the lead-up to Christmas.
my pokies spending tally
Regular visitors to cyenne.com would have noticed that I occasionally move things around a little, looking for the best way to present the site and everything it contains. Sometimes I move things, or reorganise them (like my About Me pages); and sometimes I add things. One recent addition was my pokies spending tally, over there on the right in big red text.
what is pre-commitment technology?
Over the past month, since Julia Gillard and Andrew Wilkie shook hands and the prospect of a minority Labor government became that much more likely, there has been quite a lot written and spoken about pre-commitment technology for poker machines. There has been hysteria, recriminations and threats; there have been warnings of the impending collapse of Australia’s network of clubs and the end of our gambling industry… not to mention agenda-driven misdirection and outright lies. There have been nuggets of truth in amongst the morass, but the overwhelming majority of print space given to pre-commitment technology has been negative and designed to cloud the issue and smear the concept.
women helping women – website
One of the good things about belonging to Facebook group Gambling Action Group is that it brings together all sorts of people with a common interest in trying to prevent or lessen the harm that gambling addiction can cause. The GAG is where I first read about Marilyn Lancelot and her website, Women Helping Women.
sneaky bastards file – the early openers
Regular readers will know by now that I used to have a gambling problem. The pokies were my poison. This was back in the mid to late 90s, and I remember that a number of the venues I used to frequent were, at one time or another, 24-hour pokie barns.
These days, outside of the casinos there are no 24-hour gambling venues. Sure, that’s a good thing but here in Victoria we have something almost as bad: the early openers.
xenophon’s speech to the gaming executive summit
With the AFL season behind us, Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium has become available for other uses. One of these took place recently when the Gaming Executive Summit Australasia was held there, from 12-14 October. One of the key speakers was our own Sen. Nick Xenophon, and his speech was an absolute cracker.
Here is the transcript of Nick’s speech. Enjoy.
truly tragic
It doesn’t feel right, to be writing about this in a blog. But some things need to be said, whether you want to broach the subject or not.
A coroner’s report out of South Australia today identified poker machine problem gambling as the driving reason behind the suicide of Katherine Natt, single mother of two, in 2006. Katherine overdosed on paracetamol and neurofen, after racking up debts totalling $100,000 on the pokies.
clubs australia’s fingerprints are all over this
Two days on, and the media frenzy over “fingerprinting to play pokies” continues. If we ever needed proof that Clubs Australia can exert undue influence over our media outlets, this is it.
pokies? fasten your seatbelts!
The Federal election of 2010 was one of the strangest and most evenly-balanced elections in Australian history. The counting of votes dragged on, and it became apparent that neither the ALP nor the Coalition would be able to govern in their own right. Deals would need to be struck.
the pokies of whittlesea – strange things are afoot
There’s been some coverage in the media recently about the Laurimar Tavern in Doreen, in the City of Whittlesea. Essentially, the Laurimar Tavern has been approved by the VCGR for 40 poker machines, despite the objections of residents and the local council.
Gambling Action Group – Facebook group
Occasionally, I like to use these pages to make mention of other groups, websites or organisations that are taking up the fight against problem gambling and irresponsible industry practices. One such group has recently sprung up on Facebook; I’m referring to the Gambling Action Group.
nsw olgr – making the vcgr look good
I’ve written a fair bit about the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation over the past few months. No surprises there, as they continue to make bewildering and questionable decisions about poker machine gambling in Victoria, and are seen by many (least of all me) as little more than a rubber stamp for the gambling industry.
But I have a confession to make. I’ve recently come to a troubling conclusion, one that has rocked me to my core.
When it’s all said and done, the VCGR isn’t that bad. It could be a hell of a lot worse. There, I said it.
clubs australia rubbishes wilkie’s $1 push… what a surprise
Today’s Sydney Morning Herald carries a story about Clubs Australia’s response to Andrew Wilkie’s commitment to introducing a $1 “per-push” cap on poker machines. Their executive director, Anthony Ball, airs his views on the matter… and I couldn’t have hoped for a more predictable response.
wilkie vs the pokies
Take a look through the pokie-related news stories of the past few days, and one name pops up nine times out of ten. Andrew Wilkie, Independent soon-to-be Federal MP for Dennison. Wilkie has been receiving broad national coverage for his stance on a number of issues, primarily pokies reform, and his insistence that any major party wishing to deal with him will have to go a long way towards accomodating his list of priorities.
gillard, abbott and the pokies of rooty hill
Last night saw an interesting moment in the current Federal election campaign. Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott, live on stage at the Rooty Hill RSL in Sydney’s west… but not at the same time. An audience of 200 undecided voters to ask them the hard questions… although they seemed quite partial to Abbott, and saved the hardest questions for Gillard. I guess that’s inevitable, given he’s the local boy.
But for me, the event provided a telling snapshot of the political world’s attitude towards poker machines and problem gambling. Rooty Hill RSL is massive, with a bowling alley and a laser skirmish centre to complement the 800 pokies in residence. Yes, 800 machines… as a Victorian, with our venue cap of 105 machines, that figure is almost unfathomable.
