Mining for Terror
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Since the 9/11/2001 World Trade Center incident in the US, there have been lots of changes in the way our world works. The US has spent an increasing amount of resources to preventing terrorists from operating against this country, tracking them down, even going to war in two countries after that day.
I cannot argue whether this is justified or not, debate the morality or ethics, etc. That's for another day and another site, but it is interesting in the ways that the US has tried to track terrorists. The PATRIOT act, air travel restrictions, etc. have all be employed in trying to thwart attacks. One of the growing ways in which the US government has been looking for terrorists has been through the mining of data, an enormous amount of data, that they collect or, ah, harvest, each day from various sources.
So how do they go about mining this information? Do they visit Microsoft Research and the data mining researchers? Do they track down the very brainy statistical Phds at universities? They may be, but there's another source that they have employed, via IBM, who purchased a company.
Las Vegas
That's "Viva, Las Vegas" as in the Elvis movie, the place where dreams are made and fortunes lost. Sin City itself.
Why Las Vegas? As mentioned in Wired, Vegas is the test bed for tracking criminal activity. At least that's Vegas' definition. More it's tracking anyone that gains an advantage over the house, like the kids from MIT, but that's neither here nor there.
Jeff Jonas built a company that specialized in wading through mountains of data, looking to catch cheaters in the casinos. Since people are basically anonymous in Vegas casinos, this was an interesting challenge and one that the casinos have spent millions on. From cameras in the ceilings and catwalks for observers to facial recognition software to identify those in disguises.
Whether it works or not, it was a great idea and one of the few ways in which our government has recognized that private industry does a better job than they do.
Steve Jones
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Some might argue that privately owned gambling locations should be or is illegal; as it is in Canada. Casino's and all other forms of gambling must be not for profit and or a charity.
Based on the premise that, in gambling many of people have to lose money, moreso than win, suggest a 'pyramid' like structure, and if the gains made are not going directly back to help people then there is a crime occuring. This lack of reasonable odds of winning or the fact that it is not for some noble purpose... 'for the kids... cancer research, blind people whatever...' suggest some form of malfeasance And ther ceasation of such activities outweighs any inidividual freedoms lost.
And therefore since it is illegal in Canada and many other countries one would put forward that as in most other criminal activities that the criminals will always be ahead of the law enforcement agencies.
"For without a detective deciding there is a crime ... one might suppose that no crime has been commmited.. or at least on the road toward being proven"
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In an attempt to find and seize possible terrorist assets, I was charged to query our customer files against watch lists from the FBI, RCMP and other agencies. It was fairly challenging with many aliases, and alternate spelliings.
Added to the above challenge was the imcompetence of the partner firms charged with responsibility for the search. They only wanted me to compare new names on the monthly list. When I tried to explain that just because John Smith was not a customer last month he may be now (so I shold check the lists in a cummalitive fashion), they would have none of it. This was very frustrating.
Terry
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Actually catching cheaters in Vegas is a very different task.
1) They are looking for a very definable task. If a person is cheating, or if they're not is a clearly definable act and can be measured in dollars.
2) They are catching and prosecuting cheats that have ACTUALLY occurred, not attempting to prosecute an action that has not happened. They are not attempting to catch people who some vague profile suggests *might* cheat.
Unfortunately the government's role model is more Orwell than Vegas.
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-- FORTRAN manual for Xerox Computers --
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Naw, that would make insurance companies illegal. When I sit down to the blackjack table, I expect to pay about 100 bucks (at a $5 table) for every hour or so, that I play. With the atmosphere, free drinks, and socialising, that's the price you pay. You're paying to play a game, not for the chance of winning money and coming out ahead. Any experienced gambler knows that you have no chance of coming out ahead in the long run. We play for the fun of it, and our losses are the price we pay to do that. The idea of a business being run for some "noble purpose" is hogwash. Businesses are run to make a profit, and casinos are one of the best examples of that. Insurance companies, where many people gamble on the possibility of making a claim, and few people actually collect, are a similar type of business, just with a smaller margin. Canada is a little more Socialist than the US, which is fine, maybe even better, but I still think casinos are fun and legal, and the only losers are the ones who didn't expect to lose.
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"Businesses are run to make a profit, and casinos are one of the best examples of that."
Businesses are not only run to make a profit but to also improve society.
Selling drugs is only for profit, and only causes harm to society through the deleterious effects of consumption, that is one reason why it is illegal. But it can be called a business.
Casino's do not sell fun; they sell a way to get you to give up your money under the pretense you can live your life with 24 hours a day of excitement and that there is a good chance you can win it all, leaving richer than you started.
And by that I suggest it's implied that there is a good chance for all.
"You are a winner " bells are always ringing in the casino.
Someone is always a winner.
Since you have conceded that people who frequent 'know' that there is 'ZERO' chance of coming out ahead when, if that is a fact based upon solid proven experience, does it become a wrong thing to let people do?
If I sell a product that puts on that it can improve your life say such as a new diet pill that is cherry flavoured and I'm sure if you only ate those pills and nothing else you will lose weight and techinically that is A diet. However these will not improve your life as implied 'with the term' dieting due to all the negative effects of not practicing a healthy diet / lifestyle ... no smoking, more fibre, 8 glasses of water... etc...
Those types products are not allowed to be sold, the reason is that the marketing is putting forward false claims. The negative effects of the product outweigh the possible positive ones.
Also, I gather there is no difference between a business such as a gun manufacturer versis a company that makes insulin. Tell that to people who get shot or have diabetes.
(Sorry I had to edit myself there a little...2:32PM tues march, 2006)
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Casinos profile for cheats. Ask any pit boss or manager. Your dress, attitude, behavior at the tables, how frequently you move from game to game, how you interact with other players and dealers, whether you "tell" as a card counter, or even if you just win too consistently, will garner you the attention of the Eye in the Sky, and you may be forced to leave, whether you've actually cheated or not. At least in Nevada, it's legal for a casino to bar you for any reason or no reason at all, any time they want.
Me? Card counter? No way!
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"Casino's (sic) do not sell fun; they sell a way to get you to give up your money under the pretense you can live your life with 24 hours a day of excitement and that there is a good chance you can win it all, leaving richer than you started."
Aw, please. Just stay out of casinos, OK? Problem solved. Besides, with an attitude like yours, you'll only be spoiling the fun for the rest of us.
But to answer your question directly: by your own reasoning, the business becomes a wrong thing to do when people are deceived regarding the long-term outcome or potential benefit of the commodity sold. You in your message concede that the casino is deceiving no one regarding possible outcomes or benefits of gambling (at least no more -- and a lot less -- than any other advertised commodity). Frankly, you'd have to be pretty dang stupid to gamble for any reason other than entertainment. Are you suggesting that we let the behavior of the dumbest among us determine what choices we can and cannot make?
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No, what i'm suggesting is that if you are going to gamble or allow for, the proceeds would best suit society if they were put back into the 'pot', for social issues.
And we do as is true in all democracies provision for the simplest people, just as I'm as courteous to you despite the fact you misread my missives.
You know the writing on the sides of shampoo that suggest it is 'not for internal use' or the 'do not inhale' on the side of a pack of cigarettes.
But hey even someone who can hit the keys on a keyboard and the post reply can't be trusted to necessarily know what they are talking about.
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But hey even someone who can hit the keys on a keyboard and the post reply can't be trusted to necessarily know what they are talking about.
Ahhhh, the beauty of mail lists... It always warms the cockles of my heart!
Gavin Baumanis
Smith and Wesson. The original point and click device.
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