I attempted to keep my comments within the realm of a general argument - the over all superiority of the private sector versus the public when remedying community ailments. HOWEVER, I'm useless in a more specific argument concerning this topic. I can not, with a straight face, defend any aspect of Harrah's operating procedures, especially the Grand in particular. I loathed their management and I have it on good authority that the feeling was mutual. Thus, ideologies aside, I'll bow out of this one.
But just FYI concerning the Beau (a much more enjoyable experience professionally, minus the friendships established at the Grand of course) I give them a great deal of credit with regards to post Katrina efforts. They really stepped up. First they paid us our next check out of their own pocket in the amount our last check was with tokes. Then they paid us our straight salary for 90 days out. Not a huge boone for dealers since 80% of our income is tips, but for floor supervisors, maids, cooks, et al it was a significant, much needed relief. Also they allowed massive transfers to the Las Vegas properties. I once dealt a dice crew at Treasure Island that was the same I had 2 months prior in Mississippi!! And their relief fund paid me $500 towards an automobile repair I needed. So, kudos to MGM, and in specific the Beau. And even if it was paid by MGM's insurance, they still paid the premiums and must of asked for such coverage in specific in order to protect employees in the Gulf region. If it wasn't insurance then all the better - they picked up the tab out of pocket. And either way that was certainly not mandated by the MSGC.
*****
Oh, and is it just me or did history occur tonight? When was the last time, if ever, that 8 years after being the VP nominee of his Party, that nominee gives a key note address at the convention of the opposing Party, endorsing the opposing Party's candidate? Lieberman did just that tonight.
And Thompson had a great line tonight. Palin's a hunter, in Alaska obviously, and he noted that she's the first person on a presidential ticket since Teddy Roosevelt that knows how to properly field dress a moose. He,he,he....
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Say what you will...
It is my recollection that the MSGC had the final word on when ALL casinos would close, but prior to Katrina, that was simply within 10 hours of the time that the first "hurricane warnings" went up from the NWS.
Thus, the reason why I was sitting in my home watching the first of the tropical-storm force winds hit the house less than 24 hours after I was last at work. To specifically answer Jambo's question, if you leave the time of closing up to the people running the casinos (Like one Mr. McKenzie), they will do their damn level best to ensure that they are open as long as they can be. Lest anyone forget, the table games manager at the time of Katrina told us we'd all be back to work Tuesday (the day after the storm), and he told us this on Saturday night.
If the operation provides some kind of vital service (hospitals, distribution, repairs, etc) that is a different story... but all casinos do is take people's attention from the real world and immerse it in a fantasy that doesn't end till you're in your car driving out of the parking lot. That is what they are designed to do... nothing else. Even the hotel rooms are not important enough to keep open in the event of a storm... so why wait to close?
No, this time it was done right. They closed with plenty of time to empty the hotels and let employees get home to secure their property and provide for their own safety. I wasn't there this time (obviously) but it seems to me that Gustav was a good example of how it SHOULD be managed. James may have wanted more time... but he still could have left with plenty of time to spare.
95% of the city of New Orleans was out of the danger zone 12 hours before landfall. THAT'S impressive right there. 200,000 people and more, evacuated and safe in the face of what could have been a devestating hit on the Big Easy. No riots, no looting, no panic.
I say HATS OFF to Jindal, Barbour and the local elected officials like Nagin and AJ... THEY made it work, and they did it right.
Thank God all our family and friends are safe... we mean that!
Thus, the reason why I was sitting in my home watching the first of the tropical-storm force winds hit the house less than 24 hours after I was last at work. To specifically answer Jambo's question, if you leave the time of closing up to the people running the casinos (Like one Mr. McKenzie), they will do their damn level best to ensure that they are open as long as they can be. Lest anyone forget, the table games manager at the time of Katrina told us we'd all be back to work Tuesday (the day after the storm), and he told us this on Saturday night.
If the operation provides some kind of vital service (hospitals, distribution, repairs, etc) that is a different story... but all casinos do is take people's attention from the real world and immerse it in a fantasy that doesn't end till you're in your car driving out of the parking lot. That is what they are designed to do... nothing else. Even the hotel rooms are not important enough to keep open in the event of a storm... so why wait to close?
No, this time it was done right. They closed with plenty of time to empty the hotels and let employees get home to secure their property and provide for their own safety. I wasn't there this time (obviously) but it seems to me that Gustav was a good example of how it SHOULD be managed. James may have wanted more time... but he still could have left with plenty of time to spare.
95% of the city of New Orleans was out of the danger zone 12 hours before landfall. THAT'S impressive right there. 200,000 people and more, evacuated and safe in the face of what could have been a devestating hit on the Big Easy. No riots, no looting, no panic.
I say HATS OFF to Jindal, Barbour and the local elected officials like Nagin and AJ... THEY made it work, and they did it right.
Thank God all our family and friends are safe... we mean that!
Hostages, cheese, and not so fresh produce...
Well, far be it from me to hold my tongue as those whom I consider family brace for God's wrath. ...
I liked the "Locutus" reference. Few no that Picard went south with the Borg for a bit. Didn't really think you'd get that one by me did you?
At any rate, regarding your "Labor Day Rap", I would like to point out that (as far as I remember) the MS Gaming Commission gives the actual "word" on whether the "boats" (what we used to call the casinos) shut down or not. It's the MSGC that controls such "commands", an arm of government no less. The private "hostage takers" would see their resolve vanish quite rapidly were they to defy an order from such a place in which your gaming card picture is taken by a man with a loaded side arm .... I assure you. So, were private business (especially in a post-Katrina world) afforded the latitude to "write" their own rules at it were regarding shut-downs and evacuations, I would throw my lot in with those whom have to answer to public perception and share holders ... rather then faceless bureaucrats with sub-par hair cuts .... but that's me.
Oh .... and the subject line? How I would describe the smell on September 15th, 2005, 2 miles outside of Gulfport on HWY 49 as I attempted to reclaim my land from the elements .... windows down.
I liked the "Locutus" reference. Few no that Picard went south with the Borg for a bit. Didn't really think you'd get that one by me did you?
At any rate, regarding your "Labor Day Rap", I would like to point out that (as far as I remember) the MS Gaming Commission gives the actual "word" on whether the "boats" (what we used to call the casinos) shut down or not. It's the MSGC that controls such "commands", an arm of government no less. The private "hostage takers" would see their resolve vanish quite rapidly were they to defy an order from such a place in which your gaming card picture is taken by a man with a loaded side arm .... I assure you. So, were private business (especially in a post-Katrina world) afforded the latitude to "write" their own rules at it were regarding shut-downs and evacuations, I would throw my lot in with those whom have to answer to public perception and share holders ... rather then faceless bureaucrats with sub-par hair cuts .... but that's me.
Oh .... and the subject line? How I would describe the smell on September 15th, 2005, 2 miles outside of Gulfport on HWY 49 as I attempted to reclaim my land from the elements .... windows down.
Monday, September 1, 2008
I am Locutus of Borg. Resistance is futile.
What a day. Didn't think an apartment could shake like that. I don't think we ever saw a gust over 70, MAYBE sustained at 55, but these windows rattled like the inside of a snare drum. Needless to say they leaked from wind driven rain, so now my place smells like wet dry wall. Not as bad as Titus remembers, but I'm sure enough to bring out the hives and drain energy levels to below lethargic.
NO one wants to do the Labor Day Rapp? Come on. Big business holding a population hostage. That statement alone I thought would have sent Ryan through the roof. But anyway, now that the stress and worry has abated somewhat, is it big business or government's responsibility to shut down?
NO one wants to do the Labor Day Rapp? Come on. Big business holding a population hostage. That statement alone I thought would have sent Ryan through the roof. But anyway, now that the stress and worry has abated somewhat, is it big business or government's responsibility to shut down?
1200 update
Well it's noon and we lost power for an hour or so around 9am. The wind is gusting to around 40mph but everything is holding up well. My brother is reporting from Hwy 90 for the radio station and 90 is under water right now but nothing like Katrina. I guess my satellite dish is in the sweet spot because I still get tv so The Weater Channel is back on.
I haven't heard from Jambo yet but I'm getting ready to give him a call and see how he is doing.
Just an update
I haven't heard from Jambo yet but I'm getting ready to give him a call and see how he is doing.
Just an update
WHEW!!!!!
It's 0730 at Casa De Badboy and I only have a couple of branches down and a neurotic Dachsund. I call that a successful storm story. I haven't been called in to work or released from the evacuation even though I actually never left. I lost internet for a little but no power or telephone. We are still getting some pretty stiff gusts but that's about it.
I would like to thank everyone who prayed for us or had us in their thoughts, it seems they worked.
Well other than a day or 2 of rain I expect I will be back to work tomorrow sewing up all of those fools that are going to try and kill themselves taking their boards down.
I would like to thank everyone who prayed for us or had us in their thoughts, it seems they worked.
Well other than a day or 2 of rain I expect I will be back to work tomorrow sewing up all of those fools that are going to try and kill themselves taking their boards down.
It's roughly 3:30 your time ...
.... as I write this. MAN! Am I getting goose bumps, even from afar, reliving all of this. I can only imagine Titus is ten fold given he suffered the worst of what the Old Testament threw at him this date in 05' (all that was missing was the locusts). I rode that whore named Katrina out 2 hours North of the beach, he rode it out 2 feet North of the beach (but Jambo was right Titus, you should of taken your ass AT LEAST North of Pass Rd and Jambo's steep lawn). Equally surreal is my constant self prompted updates on the storm, 2000 miles away. It occurred to me why: this is the first time in my LIFE that I've not needed to consider evacuation routes, supplies, cash on hand, etc during an approaching Gulf storm. I've lived there since I was 8 years old!
Jambo buddy, let me know where you're at after your brother and folks. The track has it looking like the Central Gulf Coast of Louisiana at a Cat 3, 50 miles or so West of New Orleans, so you should be fine anywhere North of the tracks - a brief aside for anyone whom doesn't know: the "tracks"we speak of are noticeably steep railroad tracks that cut through the Gulf Coast, and during Katrina meant the difference between life and death (save Titus) and whether you came back to just a slab or "half" of your home.
McCain popped into MS to lend his support and announce, basically, that the type of partisan politics on display at a Party convention are not permissible during a natural disaster, thus he has suspended Monday night outside of the most basic (legally binding) nominating tasks.
If you run into Geraldo tell him not to worry about Capone's safe, he'll bounce back. Otherwise, stear clear of Anderson Coopers boyfriend - Andy will be busy the next few days, leaving the lad lonely as hell ....
Jambo buddy, let me know where you're at after your brother and folks. The track has it looking like the Central Gulf Coast of Louisiana at a Cat 3, 50 miles or so West of New Orleans, so you should be fine anywhere North of the tracks - a brief aside for anyone whom doesn't know: the "tracks"we speak of are noticeably steep railroad tracks that cut through the Gulf Coast, and during Katrina meant the difference between life and death (save Titus) and whether you came back to just a slab or "half" of your home.
McCain popped into MS to lend his support and announce, basically, that the type of partisan politics on display at a Party convention are not permissible during a natural disaster, thus he has suspended Monday night outside of the most basic (legally binding) nominating tasks.
If you run into Geraldo tell him not to worry about Capone's safe, he'll bounce back. Otherwise, stear clear of Anderson Coopers boyfriend - Andy will be busy the next few days, leaving the lad lonely as hell ....
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