Up & Coming Weekly

STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman bbowman@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHERS Janice Burton Joy Kirkpatrick editor@upandcomingweekly.com STAFF WRITER Stephanie Crider stephanie@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING/SALES Steve Rogers Steve@upandcomingweekly.com Mary Beth Leiby Marybeth@upandcomingweekly.com OFFICE MANAGER Suzy Patterson suzy@upandcomingweekly.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Alicia Miller art@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Soni Martin, D.G. Mar tin, Pitt Dick ey, Margaret Dickson, John Hood, Shanessa Fenner, Erinn Crider, Karen Poppele, Renee Gibbs, Heather Griffi ths –––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan Street, P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: (910) 484-6200 FAX: (910) 484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a “Quality of Life” publication with local features, news and infor- mation on what’s happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly welcomes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publication consideration, but assumes no responsibility for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per per- son. Subscriptions can be purchased for $30 for six months or $60 for 12 months, delivered weekly by first class mail. ©2007 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. INSIDE PUBLISHER’S PEN by BILL BOWMAN Sure, I like to gamble and Las Vegas is one of my favorite destinations. Maybe I’ll visit the casino in Cherokee, North Carolina or the casino boat in Little River, South Carolina, but surely never a 900 square foot room hidden in a dark corner of a strip mall with two dozen eerie computer screens staring back at me. I have played all the table games, slot machines, and lottery games and, under the right circumstances, gambling actually is a form of entertainment. I must admit that having a drink at my favorite bar and playing a sweepstakes machine with my friends has been both fun and sometimes fi nancially rewarding. Though, obviously, it is no way to make a steady living. With the unregulated and epidemic proliferation of these businesses the sweepstakes industry should be deterred. For most, December 1 can come none to soon. I agree with Governor Perdue, North Carolina lawmakers and our local law enforcement agencies when they say nothing good can come from this uncontrolled growth of sweepstakes gaming parlors that are sprouting up like bad weeds in every vacant building and strip mall big enough to hold a dozen chairs. Many low budget operations tout only makeshift vinyl banners for signage and operate under the guise of being a “business center.” What? Faxes, copies, lose your paycheck??? These dubious operations make it way too convenient to separate people from their money while providing a haven for numerous illegal activities. In these tough economic times the lure of winning big and collecting easy money is extremely hard to resist. After all, those beautiful Fayetteville’s Weather Forecast Fayetteville’s Weather Forecast Thursday July 15 Friday July 16 Saturday July 17 Forecast available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. High 86° Low 75° Scattered Thunderstorms 4 UCW JULY 14-20, 2010 High 91° Low 74° Isolated Thunderstorms High 91° Low 76° Scattered Thunderstorms High 94° Low 76° Isolated Thunderstorms High 93º Low 76º Scattered Thunderstorms High 93º Low 76 Partly Cloudy WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM and elaborate Las Vegas casinos were not built by the winners. In a true game of chance, the player must have a “chance.” At best, non regulated sweepstakes gambling is a “sucker’s bet.” I also found it Place your bets. Sweepstakes vendors have vowed to challenge the NC ban on video sweepstakes machines which goes into effect Dec. 1. interesting, and somewhat disappointing, that the city — with its ongoing concerns about the health, welfare and quality of life of it’s poor, under served and homeless population — would publicly bemoan the loss of tax revenue that would have been generated from licensing fees of these questionable gaming parlors. Scary. No one was even cognizant of what these operations were or how they impacted our residents? If they were, then the issue was ignored. That in itself is amazing to me since during the same time they were planning the city’s annual budget the sweepstakes legislation was being presented and debated in the North Carolina Senate and House. What were they thinking? Or, were they thinking at all? One last thought: from my life experiences, anytime the word “sweepstakes” appears in an offer someone is going to lose ... you. Remember the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes? Have you ever known anyone who has ever won? Thanks for reading and let us hear from you soon — and don’t forget to vote for the Best of Fayetteville. It’s a good bet! BILL BOWMAN, Publisher. COMMENTS? Bill@upandcomingweekly.com. Call 910.354.1679 Call 910.354.1679 Sunday July 18 Monday July 19 Tuesday July 20 Internet Directory ............................ 12 Calendar ........................................... 14 Concert Connection ........................ 19 Movie Review ..................................20 Cumberland Matters ....................... 21 TV ..................................................... 22 Free Wheelin’ Feelin’ ....................... 22 News of the Weird ........................... 23 Horoscopes/Advice Goddess ......... 23 Classifieds ........................................ 24 Games .............................................. 26 Best of Fayetteville Ballot ................ 27 Sweepstakes Gambling ... Don’t Bet On It 24 24 / 7

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