Say no to casinos in Long Island

Politicians in Nassau, Long Island (N.Y.) are advocating for the building of casinos to generate tax revenue. A good idea? I think not.

Let me use The Bahamas as an example. In the Bahamas, citizens are not allowed to frequent the casinos. Why? Because they would spend all their hard-earned money there. The whole point of a casino is to drive increased revenue -- notice I said "increased."

What do you think would happen if Bahamians all spent their weekly paychecks at the casino? The money would just go in a circle and there would be no growth.

That's the same thing that would happen in Long Island. We have plenty of casinos. We don't need anymore. Here's a better idea: Incentivize people to come up with their own ideas, to improve on ideas that already exist and to start businesses -- to build small factories, to build anything!

If New York approves the casinos in Long Island, we're just digging ourselves deeper in the "we don't make anything anymore" business model, and the money will just go in a circle in and out and there won't be any growth.

Instead of going in a circle, let's move the economy forward! Let's support people who come up with new ideas and stick with the casinos we've already got. We don't need anymore.

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.

A tip for effective proofreading

I like to describe proofreading in piano terms: when you read in "legato" format - that's smooth and steady - you can easily miss things. It's better to read in "staccato" - where you stop after ever word; so in your mind, that last part of my sentence would sound like: "where. you. stop. after. every. word." 

It doesn't have to be very slow. A half-second pause is enough. 

I find that's the best way to catch mistakes. Especially if you're a fast reader, you have to remember to slow down when you're proofreading, and reading staccato really helps.

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.

Happy National Customer Service Week

October 7th to 13th is National Customer Service week. On this the 21st anniversary of the event, I just want to take a moment to thank all of the customer service reps who put up with people's tempers, impatience and aggravation every day.

And for all those who have solved my problems, helped me figure things out, corrected my bills, and answered my questions, here's to you.

Thanks for all your compassion, dedication to your craft and kindness. It's a job I've never felt I could do so, your talent is greatly appreciated.

Here's to you.

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.

Deer in Your Headlights, Literally

According to the State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, more deer-car collisions occur during the fall than any other time, so be aware, folks.

Altogether, they report that there are more than 1 million deer and car collisions a year. The state with the most deer-car collisions? Hawaii. Strange. Didn't know they had deer in Hawaii. Wonder how they got there. 

The states with the least? Montana, at 2, and Wyoming, with 13. You would think with all that land there would be more deer. There probably are, but then there are probably fewer cars running into them, I suppose.

What are your chances of having a collision with a deer? One in 174. Much much greater than your chances of winning the lottery.

For more information on deer-car collisions, check out the Insurance Information Institute.

Please check out my novel, In Fashion's Web on Amazon.