One of the wealthiest pit-bosses in the world is casino executive Sheldon Adelson; he holds the personal viewpoint that young people should not gamble. While he is right that underage people should not gamble; he may be wrong about the fact that technology in online gambling has not advanced sufficiently to prevent the under-aged from accessing casino websites. He is in opposition to online gambling as he believes it could allow young people to gamble.
Adelson is at the head of the land casino industry’s biggest publicly traded company – Las Vegas Sands Corporation. He is also 78 years old, ranked in Forbes as the world’s 16th richest man, and believes that when he dies, if his body is cryogenically frozen, he can be re-animated when a cure for old-age is found! If that is not narcissistic, then we don’t know what is? So, while Caesars Entertainment Corp, MGM Resorts International, and others are now backing the online industry, and even giving it push for legalization, he comes out with this controversial ideology.
While this is very much a personal stance; “a personal observation regarding technology”, it does not bode well for the online gambling industry in the USA. Adelson has told the head of the American Gaming Association that he will oppose legislation. The Board of Las Vegas Sands Corporation has re-iterated that this is not a formal strategy on the part of the company. However, it goes without saying that a man with the wealth and leverage of Adelson, could put some cats amongst the pigeons.
The land casino industry in the USA has hummed and ha-ad regarding whether they wanted the online industry legalized or not; but now they are actively pursing the legal route. Whether Adelson will ‘rout’ these plans or not, we suppose now remains to be seen?
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