GentingM:The Racino Caper

The Malaysian firm that runs the largest casino in the world is in a one-horse race to become the operator of Aqueduct race track's slot machine casino near Kennedy Airport.

Until now, Genting Malaysia Berhad has had only a behind-the-scenes presence in U.S. gaming as an investor, including providing seed money for the Foxwoods casino in Connecticut.

But last week, the state Lottery Division disqualified two other bidders, making Genting the only contender left standing. If lottery officials and legislative leaders ultimately approve Genting's bid, the company will for the first time take on an upfront role in North America.

Earlier this year, state leaders had a deal with Aqueduct Entertainment Group - which boasted the politically connected Rev. Floyd Flake as one of its partners - but AEG was found to be unlicensable by lottery officials.

Details of what a Genting-run Aqueduct would look like began to emerge over the weekend when the company disclosed some plans for the antiquated site.

In addition to 4,500 slot machines, there would be a two-story, 450-seat food court, a 34,000-square-foot meeting site for corporate and community events, an entertainment center, a 2,200-car garage, shuttle buses to JFK, valet parking and an outdoor terrace that could accommodate 10,000.

And of course, a 75-foot waterfall.

"It's going to look like a first-class casino," Jay Walker, Genting's spokesman, said.

Genting will outline its plans in more detail Thursday night for Community Board10, which was stunned last week when lottery officials said the other two bidders, SL Green and Penn National Gaming, had been disqualified.

Those firms inserted too many protections for themselves into their proposals, officials said, including provisions that would shield them if Nassau County manages to get the Shinnecock tribe to build a rival casino at the Nassau Coliseum.

Genting has already generated some controversy in New York.

Last year, Joseph Bernstein, the former CEO of Empire Resorts, which runs Monticello's race track, complained to state racing authorities that he was pushed out of office by Genting, which has a $55 million investment in Empire.

Bernstein charged that Genting's representatives, Michael Brown and Colin Au, were trying to make a side deal with the St. Regis Mohawk tribe to sell the tribe some of Empire's land for a casino - a deal that Bernstein said would hurt Empire's investors.

He later withdrew his complaint after getting a $1.5 million severance package, but the state Racing and Wagering Board is continuing to investigate all the same, an agency spokesman said.

Genting is known for lending money to Native American tribes at a hefty interest rate of 30%; members of the Seneca Nation have complained that more profits from their casinos went to Malaysia than to upstate New York.

GenM: Now it is a Buy?

Genting Malaysia Bhd, the country’s sole casino operator, rose the most in three weeks in Kuala Lumpur trading after Morgan Stanley initiated coverage of the stock with an “overweight” call and RM3.05 share forecast.

The stock rose 1.1 per cent to RM2.69 at 9:05 a.m. local time, set for its biggest gain since June 18.

I think we should retire all these fund managers and hire someone we can truly trust- Paul, the Octopus!

Pig Trotters: Collagen,Chondrotin,Glucosamine

Yes, this is a rave in London. Get the real thing that gives give the required collagen, chondroitin and glucosamine.

Malaysian Everest Conquerors: Recognition at Last

N. Mohanadas and M. Magendran made Malaysians proud when they reached the summit of Mount Everest on May 23, 1997. Thirteen years later, both stand here today bearing state honours that carry the honorific “Datuk”.

The Penang state government conferred both with the Darjah Setia Pangkuan Negeri (DSPN) at the Governor’s 72nd birthday ceremony here today.

When contacted, 48-year-old Mohanadas said an award after 13 years has given him the sense that the two were “remembered and valued”.

The avid mountaineer also said that when he was picked for the expedition, rewards and recognition were not a priority for him.

“When selected for the mission, there was an obligation to fulfil for my country and my community,” he said.

Both were part of the Telekom Malaysia Mount Everest Project 1997 that started out on March 1 that year, which braved unpredictable weather and freezing temperatures to conquer the 8,848m “Goddess Mother of the World”, as Everest is known in Tibetan.

“We did not do it for awards. We did it to inspire others and I think we have succeeded,” the father of three boys added.

Mohanadas, who is still an active climber, is leading a group from a corporate organisation on an expedition to climb the 4,095m Mount Kinabalu on Aug 31.

The Shell Malaysia employee said he keeps himself fit by running and participating in marathons.

Mohanadas explained that the Penang state government had also approached him and Magendran to discuss the possibility of exposing youths from Penang to the sport.

He said although they did not have a structured plan as yet, discussions have been held with Deputy Chief Minister Prof P. Ramasamy.

“Penang has world-class [athletes] like (Datuk) Nicole David and (Datuk) Lee Chong Wei. They want to produce more of these people but in different fields,” said Mohanadas, who is also the chairman of Malaysian Outward Bound Youth Association and vice president of Malaysian Mountaineering Organisation.

What an Octopussy!

 

In a World Cup of droning vuvuzelas, dodgy balls and substandard favourites, nothing has fascinated the public as much as the octopus named Paul.

So far, the seemingly precognitive Paul has correctly predicted the results of all German matches during the tournament, even their losses to Serbia and Spain.

Tomorrow, according to his handlers, Paul will predict the winner of the 2010 Fifa World Cup. If he is not tired.

Residing in the Oberhausen Sea Life Aquarium in Germany, the two-year-old cephalopod “predicts” the results of matches by picking one of two clear boxes bearing the flags of the competing countries. The boxes are arranged according to Fifa’s arrangement of flags for each match, and filled with food like mussels or oysters.

Previously, he has correctly predicted five out of six results from Germany’s campaign in Euro 2008.

After predicting Germany’s exit at the hands of Spain in the semi-final, Paul has since received death threats from many Germans who wish to see him served on their dinner tables.

Some punters and booking agencies have made money from following his advice, while animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) is urging for his release from his “imprisonment”.

Paul might be the first octopus to have done so, but he is surely not the first animal to tell fortunes or read minds. In 1927, a horse in Virginia, US named Lady Wonder was claimed to possess psychic powers and extra-sensory perception (ESP), and communicated by pushing toy letter blocks.

For the price of a dollar, one could ask the horse three questions, and over 150,000 people had taken up the offer. The horse also supposedly predicted the result of a boxing match, discovered oil, and solved a missing person case.

Another horse in 1900 in Germany, Clever Hans, was shown as having the ability to solve arithmetical and intellectual problems. Having a multi-talented owner who was a mathematics teacher, amateur horse trainer and phrenologist bestowed Hans with various abilities such as telling time, differentiating musical tones and understanding German.

In the 1980s, a dog called Harass II was purported by its handler, John Prestons, to be psychic. Harass II could supposedly find cold trails and human scent — even months or years later. He could also track underwater and after hurricanes, using his psychic powers.

Historically, humans have relied on observing animals for divination since thousands of years ago. Alectryomancy, practised by Etruscans in ancient Italy 2,400 years ago, enables people to tell fortunes by seeing roosters pecking at scattered grains.

The ancient Romans practised augury, divination by studying the flight of birds: whether any noise was made, whether they flew alone, their directions, etc. These duties were held by a special order of priests whose role was interpreting the gods’ messages.

This divination by observation extends to various other animals such as cats (felidomancy), horse (hippomancy), fish (ichthyomancy), spider and snakes (ophiomancy).

In the cases of Lady Wonder, Clever Hans and Harass II, it has been proven that the animals were unconsciously or unintentionally cued by their owners. In fact, this observer effect has been called the “Clever Hans Effect” and has been used to debunk many “intelligent” or “talented” pets over the years.

As for Paul, it is still not proven if he reacts to his trainer Oliver Walenciak’s cues or the expectant German fans. Although he has predicted 11 out of 12 matches correctly so far, it is noted that Paul chose Germany nine times out of 12. Considering Germany was the favourites in those nine matches, Paul had consequently better odds to be correct.

Being a common octopus (Octopus vulgaris), it has also been suggested that Paul has a preference for flags with bright horizontal stripes like Germany and Spain, instead of England or Argentina, despite not being able to see in colour.

The species is naturally found in shallow tropical and semi-tropical seas around the world and can grow up to 25cm, with tentacles up to a metre.

What an octopussy!

The Submarine Which Won't Dive again.........

 

This is really bad, don't you think so?

The first Malaysian submarine apparently cannot dive once more and is at the moment docked somewhere in a naval base in Sabah.

 

The Royal Malaysian Navy procured the two submarines for RM3.4 billion in 2002 from French/Spanish shipbuilders, DCNS and Navantia.

Genting: Another Racino Bid Write-up

In a stunning move, the State Lottery has disqualified two of the three bidders for the ill-fated Aqueduct “racino” project.

SL Green and Penn National Gaming were rejected only seven days after submitting their applications in the latest round of bidding for the long-delayed project.

That leaves just Genting New York in the running.

Genting “appears to conform with all requirements of the bid submission process and will continue to be evaluated,” the Lottery said in a statement.

If Genting ultimately is not approved for the Aqueduct project, the bidding process will have to start again. A recommendation from Lottery is due to Gov. Paterson and legislative leaders by Aug. 3.

Lottery officials said Penn National and SL Green, which was partnering with Hard Rock International and Clairvest Group, did not conform with the set criteria. Both failed to submit signed copies of the mandatory bid requirements.

Instead, the two bidders offered “altered versions” containing numerous changes they wanted.

Once believed to be a front-runner, SL Green, for example, wanted their minimum $300 million upfront fee to be held in escrow until their conditions were met by the state.

The group also wanted the right to make ownership changes without the state’s consent, a cap

on any increase in local property taxes at 3%, and a complete exemption of state and local

sales taxes for the construction of the racino.

Penn National, meanwhile, wanted to be able to terminate its Aqueduct video lottery license

any time it decides the casino has not been profitable for four straight quarters.
The group also wanted a guarantee that no other gaming facility would open within 50 miles

of Aqeuduct, despite those who are eying Belmont in the future.

Most of the changes sought by both groups were raised with Lottery before the bids were due.

“It was made clear that non-conforming bids would be disqualified,” Lottery said.

It would do us good to look at the issues raised by the other two bidders. Caveat emptor!

From what transpired recently where GenM was made into the 'monkey and donkey' to take over red ink of Genting UK from Genting S, be very careful of this rogue parent company, minority shareholders!

They are capable of cannibalism!