Awww those poor casinos. I'll get my little violin out and play it for them.dinghy wrote: ↑Sun Apr 14, 2024 7:48 amThe casinos didn't do anything to deserve it. Forcibly shutting down a business is akin to imprisoning an individual. (Which was also done, via lockdowns.)applepear86 wrote: ↑Sun Apr 14, 2024 6:54 amAre we supposed to feel any sympathy for casinos? Because I don't. Glad they got screwed during covid.
Karl is right though, they're obviously greedy and anti-consumer. Especially in regional markets. And as the wall street casino cartels consolidate property ownership, so are the formerly competitive casino resort markets like LV.
What else is different about regional markets that could explain the apparent greed? How about tax rates? 50% in some markets, compared to around 10% in Nevada iirc. The greediest players in the game are the politicians and voters.
If you want pro-consumer conditions, you need the freest markets possible. Many regional markets have caps on licenses, and big political payoffs are required to obtain one. Even Vegas has major barriers to entry.
It doesn't make sense to claim that an entire industry is enjoying irresponsible greed, and yet no other operators invade to capture some of the profits. It suggests a flawed analysis.
Casino stocks have been poor performers. There's a gaming ETF, ticker symbol BJK. Since 2008 inception, total return is +40%. S&P 500 same period is +430%.
I do agree though that it should be deregulated. All those cartels, whether tribal or wall street, would collapse if there was absolutely no licensing and someone could throw some machines up in a strip mall anywhere in the country.