Think you want to win the Mega Millions? Well, we’ve all heard the horror stories of lotto winners quickly going off the rails. So should you throw away your ticket? Let’s take a look at the medical literature. Attention all Powerball players waiting to win your first billion in Tuesday night’s epic Mega Millions drawing: Stop before it’s too late! Winning may kill you! Or it might make you unhappy. Or it might make you overspend on cars and helicopters and lead you to early, penniless death. That’s the well-turned schadenfreude narrative regarding the dismal life of lottery winners—that they…

This Week in Gambling – J Todd speaks with the Fremont Street Experience about what’s happening in Las Vegas this December! Talk includes the Great Santa Run with over 10,000 Santas! Plus, no place on earth celebrates New Years Eve like Las Vegas! According to the website Opportunity Village, the Las Vegas Great Santa Run has become a ‘must’ for visitors, a community involvement activity for local businesses and a holiday tradition for families. Attractive up to 10,000 participants who don their Santa Suits in support of Opportunity Village and individuals with disabilities in our community. With your help, we…

Card Player – A casino gaming bill has been filed by Sen. Louise Lucas in the state of Virginia for the 2014 General Assembly session. Senate Bill 19 would create the Virginia Casino Gaming Commission and establish guidelines for creating and awarding casino licenses in the state. Lucas has tried to get such a bill passed before with very little support. However, now that nearby Maryland has expanded their table games offerings and is expected to take nearly $350 million from the Virginia economy in the coming years, Lucas is hoping the bill gets more traction this time around. Virginia…

Reuters – Sri Lanka has approved Australian Crown Resorts Ltd’s $400 million complex along with two similar projects, but without any explicit permission to operate casinos at them, the island’s junior investment minister said on Tuesday. However, Crown’s chief, gambling tycoon James Packer, would still be able to operate a casino in his mixed-development project through his local partner, the minister said. The government’s decision to alter the deal’s terms came after opposition politicians said Packer was getting concessions not given to local entrepreneurs and Buddhist leaders said the casino could be detrimental to Sri Lanka’s culture. Faizer Mustapha, the…

CBC – A development permit has been issued with conditions to Paragon Gaming to build an urban resort in downtown Vancouver. The $535-million project includes two hotel towers, a conference centre, restaurants and a new and expanded location for the existing Edgewater Casino, with twice the floor space of the existing facility at the Plaza of Nations. Opponents of the plan voiced their concern over gambling addiction in light of Provincial Health Officer Perry Kendall’s report on the health effects of gaming. Two years ago, the city rejected any expansion of gambling at the proposed site next to BC Place Stadium….

Las Vegas Review-Journal – The biggest gaming story of 2014 might be a 2016 or a 2017 event. Malaysia-based Genting Group is expected to begin construction sometime in 2014 on the $2 billion-to-$7 billion Resorts World Las Vegas, returning construction activity to the 87-acre Echelon site that has sat dormant for almost five years. It will take at least two to three years to complete the 3,500-room Resorts World, which would become the Strip’s first new megaresort opening since the 2010 unveiling of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. It’s unclear, however, when work might begin. Since the company’s over-the-top project…