In one of my very first posts here on HA, way back before pretty much anyone was reading me, I called out bowling alley operators for their ridiculous claims in support of Tim Eyman’s Initiative 892, which would have put tens of thousands of slot machines in bars, restaurants and bowling alleys, scattered throughout nearly every community in the state.
Support from bowling alleys comprised the heart of Eyman’s claim that his was a battle for equal treatment for mom-and-pop businesses versus a powerful “tribal monopoly,” and throughout the campaign a handful of bowling alley owners routinely made the rounds of talk radio and editorial boards, arguing just that point. I wasn’t convinced.
I remember one particular phone call from a woman who pleaded for slot machines on behalf of the bowling alley that had been in her family for three generations. She claimed she just couldn’t compete against the tribal casinos anymore, and if I-892 didn’t pass, she would probably shutter the family business.
Now, at the risk of sounding unsympathetic, I’d like to impart a bit of wisdom from one small businessperson to another:
YOU’RE RUNNING A FUCKING BOWLING ALLEY!!!
And perhaps, instead of trying to compete with the tribal casinos, you should spend a little time and effort promoting… gee, I don’t know… bowling?!
Saying that bowling alleys need slot machines to compete with tribal casinos is like saying Chuck E. Cheese’s needs a liquor license and strippers to compete with the Deja Vu.
The point is, if you can’t make ends meet enticing people to chuck balls at pins, then perhaps you’re in the wrong business. Or sadly, perhaps bowling just isn’t a viable industry anymore.
Well, apparently bowling still is a viable industry, with a brand new Lucky Strike Lanes set to open one floor below a trendy billiards parlor in downtown Bellevue.
Sure, it’s not the beer stained, smoke filled “family” bowling alley of my youth, but then, I don’t remember slot machines vying for space with the Charlie’s Angels pinball machine either. And surprise: all it took to compete for entertainment dollars was some good, old fashioned innovation.
Hmm. Bowling alley owners capturing new business by catering to bowlers? Who’d a thunk?
Goldy, Goldy, Goldy,
Those slots a easy money, man. You don’t have to rent those smelly shoes, finish the lanes, get the pinsetters repaired, deal with those people interacting with one another.
Much easier to deal with those drunks in front of slots, pulling the handles, alone. Better ROI, too.
Bowling, schmoling, get those kiddies dropping coins after school.
When will we see your take on I-960 (or did I miss it?)
Harry @2,
I did an hour on I-960 on my show Sunday.
I’ll surely take it on, but it’s hard to get excited about something that is so blatantly unconstitutional.
EXCELLENT analogy….chuck e cheese and deja vu…that is my laugh of the day…
The Democrat leaders in this state are in the bag of the tribes and their hold on the casino industry..
The no on I-892 was funded almost exclusively by the tribes.
It had nothing to do with keeping slots out of bowling alleys and everything to do with maintining the monopoly on gaming by the tribes. Thank you Gov. Gregoire for expanding slots to the tribes….
It is laughable, the hypocrisy of the state and the Democrat leaders who endorse state sponsored gaming (lottery), and to pass laws that limit private enterprise from gaming, yet let the tribes expand gaming….
All tax free to the tribes of course…..
A simple review of the PDC website validates my previos post.
The largest contributors to the I-892 campaign were private card room owners….. not bowling alleys. It is true, some bowling alleys did contribute, those who have card rooms in their establishments, but the bulk of the money came from licensed card room businesses….
http://www.pdc.wa.gov/servlet/InitCont2004Servlet
re 5: So, now you are “anti-monopoly” and for the “little guy”?
Puhleeese!
Right Stuff @6,
The bulk of the money financing I-892 came from the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation and its various US subsidiaries. They had designs on dominating the commercial gaming industry in WA state the same way the dominate the industry in BC.
What kind of people does Tim Eyman pal around with? Check out the loansharking, drug dealing, pimping mobsters at Great Canadian.
Hey Goldy
Looking at the pdc disclosures, the Great Canadian Gaming Corp and it’s subs contributed $100,100.00 out of a total of $816,600.00
Now compare that to what the tribes contributed and tell me who IS dominating the commercial gaming industry in WA.
I see the contributions by GCGC on the pdc report under Great American Casino, Evergreen Entertainment Corp, Grand Central Casino, and Great American Gaming Corp. I don’t know if there are other subsidiaries but 1/8th total contribution is hardly “the bulk”. I admit that I base my conclusions based on the PDC report and the Great Canadian Gaming Corp invesment information found at http://www.greatcanadiancasino.....index.html.
Goldy Cont
Your link sites contributions of $210,000 by the GCGC, I’ll take that as valid, still constitutes a 1/4 share of the total contributions to the initiative.
Some tribes gave 5 times that amount……
Now don’t get me wrong, my point is NOT to support GCGC, but to unlock the hold that tribes hold on commercial gaming in this state, which they bought and paid for thru our elected officials…
This exchange between me and Proud Leftist is so good, I am going to post it in every thread on HA from now on. It destroys the Publicans’ stupid talking points – period.
“I’m working really hard to understand how President Bill Clinton’s actions act as justifcation for the righties. Read this fuckwads.
If your lame ass argument is that Bill Clinton was a bad President – which is what you say – and if your argument now is that the AWOL coward GW Bush is in someway comparable to Bill Clinton, what you are actually saying is that GW Bush is NO BETTER THAN CLINTON.
Does it hurt to be that stupid? I really want to know.
proud leftist says:
RES @ 18
You’ve hit it on the nose. The rightwing fringefucks consider Clinton to be the personification of evil–indeed, he is the devil incarnate in their twisted little minds. Nonetheless, their justification for all of the Bushites’ sins is, always, “well, Clinton did it, too.” Methinks they never studied logic.”
And what’s better, is that the rightie traitor keeps pointing out that this is true. Thanks MTR. Please keep proving my point for me.
re 11: So, you are against Native Americans and their cultural tradition of gambling?
I’ll bet Kemper Freeman thinks his hipster/family bowling alley will be good clean suburban fun. I’ve been to Lucky Strike lanes in Miami and LA. It’s amazing the amount of designer drugs the young & the rich consume these days…
Especially the young rich Republicans….
I thought being on drugs PRODUCES republicans….