An Open Letter

[Claimboxx]

This Open letter is making the rounds via Email. I found it well written and emulated the views of many So. Calif. racefans and people in the business. I withheld the author's name...
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This is an open letter to anyone that cares about Horseplayers and Horse Racing in California.



I am sending this out as a Horseplayer on my own behalf and I am not representing any particular group or entity. The article below in the Los Angeles Times called “Governor signs bill to help horse-racing industry” should be the final straw for any Horseplayer who plays into the pools in California. If anyone thinks a 5% increase in takeout will help the horse-racing industry in the long run then you are most certainly delusional.



It is time for one person, group, or anyone who cares to provide Horseplayers with a list of offshore entities, rebate shops, or whatever it takes to get a better deal for yourself. It’s obvious that the industry Executives in California don’t give a darn. Horseplayers didn’t destroy California racing but as usual they are the ones asked to pay for the mistakes of the past. How’s that 40 million for the synthetic surfaces doing? Who has been held accountable for the bad decisions? The answer is not one friggin person. The best example of the incompetence of leadership is the now infamous Richard Shapiro. This is the man who pushed for the $40 million synthetic mandate and other geniuses went along. This guy isn’t even being held accountable for vandalizing a car in the parking lot of Hollywood Park by the CHRB. If Racing Officials in California can’t make a judgment about that how can they be expected to make an honest judgment about anything? How many other bad decisions did this group of egomaniacal idiots of high social standing make that have led us down this path? These people remind me of a bunch of “Al Davis types” who were sharp guys 20 or 30 years ago but have degenerated into a group of incompetents.



The problem in California in my opinion is that the some of the Track Owners, Racing Executives, Racing Officials, and Politicians beholden to the Indian Casinos have absolutely ruined Horse Racing. You didn't have to be a prophet to see this coming. The Racing Media has also been absent in most (not all) cases and has contributed to the decline by choosing to ignore the tough stories.

Some Horseplayers think that the villains in all this are the Trainers who push the envelope, Whales who get to bet (or cancel bets) after the start, and the list goes on. Yes, these are significant problems but the real villains are the some of the Track Owners and Executives who think of Horseplayers as a "necessary evil". Behind the scenes some of them joke about the degenerates who are their customers. They love it when Horseplayers concentrate their ire on anyone but them. They laugh! Those who think that these people are something special are sadly mistaken in some cases. They are the sleazy and slimy ones who have ruined and are currently ruining racing in my opinion. The buck stops with them and they need to be held accountable!





Thanks for nothing,

[Lurker]

I'm a Politician elected by the people of California and one of my duties is to raise money from any and all available resources in an attempt to balance the budget the best we can.

One area under our jurisdiction is gambling and we currently have 3 mainsteams of cash coming into the state, 1) Lottery, 2) Indian Casinos and 3) Horse Racing. I personally do not participate in any of the three, but do have a decent enough working knowledge of how they operate.

While all three industries have admittedly hit some speed bumps and not all projections for cash-flow have been realized over the past 20 years (my time in politics) it is only Horse Racing that tries to have a voice complaining about the takeout percentages. Common sense tells me that the Lottery with its 50% takeout should have similar complaints but doesn't from its players. Similarly, I have no idea about the laws governing takeout at the various Indian Casino games, but whatever it is, the takeout doesn't seem to keep the players away.

Taking into consideration the relative successes of the other two forms of gambling in the state and the takeouts currently in force, can you please explain to me why it is that Horse Racing cannot absorb the proposed increase. I have heard arguments about the importance of players churning dollars and needing higher returns, so again, with emphasis on comparing Horse Racing to the other two entities I'd appreciate reading your opinion on the impact of takeout to the survival of the sport.

Thanks for your time,
A Politician willing to listen.

[Jocan16]

Will horse racing exist in.. say, 20 years?

I have never liked people fighting over my money, take a cut to fund purses and facility maint/employment. I dont think I even comprehend the magnitude of how big this is.

Take Turf Paradise for example, probably the worst racing quality and purse money that I have ever seen. They rake in a fortune on Monday and Tuesday racing. I look for a feature to play and all I see is $3k claimers. It is the pit of American racing.

However, Turf Paradise and the state cut off my ability to bet online, making it a felony to accept a wager from an Arizona resident..forcing you to wager through TuP's OTB outlets.

I have seen greed kill a lot of things.. I think the horse racing industry is probably (will be) next.

In closing, it will be about 3 years until I am 30. I have no friends, employees, friends of friends who are even remotely interested in horse racing or wagering on it. I think they are milking the cow a little too late and she has run dry.

[DegenerationX]

I must say I have never seen so many people within an industry try their best to destroy it from the inside.

[Spiketoo]

I must say I have never seen so many people within an industry try their best to destroy it from the inside.

Then you don't know where K Street is or have ever watched C-SPAN or Bill Moyers. Makes racing look like amateurs. Which they are.

[Pooch]

PA is changing the slot revenue split and horse racing is getting a smaller cut...seems state budget problems is hurting all around.

[Clockerbob]

"Dog racing or horse racing, it doesn't matter: Those who don't have slot machines, want them. And those who have them are profiting mightily." - Louise Taylor, HERALD-LEADER BUSINESS WRITER, March 22, 1999

http://www.clockerbob.com/chapter8.html

[MaryS]

This Open letter is making the rounds via Email. I found it well written and emulated the views of many So. Calif. racefans and people in the business. I withheld the author's name...
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

This is an open letter to anyone that cares about Horseplayers and Horse Racing in California.

I am sending this out as a Horseplayer on my own behalf and I am not representing any particular group or entity. The article below in the Los Angeles Times called “Governor signs bill to help horse-racing industry” should be the final straw for any Horseplayer who plays into the pools in California. If anyone thinks a 5% increase in takeout will help the horse-racing industry in the long run then you are most certainly delusional. ...

An open letter is generally signed--that's the whole "open" part of it. Who was the author of this one?

[Bob B]

Andymays posted it on paceadvantage.com

http://www.paceadvantage.com/forum/show ... hp?t=62978

[Triple Threat]

Andymays is the author????????????



Nobody should take that fool seriously ..

CA does have some serious problems, but posting a letter on an internet forum anonymously is not a way to get change..