STATESIDESTATESIDE


Stateside


Sharon Harris asks what can be learned from recent events in Las Vegas


Sharon Harris looks forward to G2E and asks: what makes a great company?


BI


Wynn called Las Vegas a “target rich” environment in November 2015 and recruited top law enforcement and military


consultants to formulate a security plan


y the time you read this column, G2E may be over. I’ll be curious about attendance and exhibit totals in this “year of the return.” I will know more data for next month. I wanted to go from New Jersey and our


Datateam group wanted to go from the home office in London. None of us did. I wouldn’t go alone. Without specific testing, vaccination or quarantining provisions, existing US restrictions prohibited my colleagues – and many others – from entering the US from the UK. I wonder how many potential European visitors stayed home since several UK cities could be their international departure airport into Las Vegas. Attending would take some travel creativity and maneuvering.


large group probably stayed at the Mandalay Bay. How does one react or prepare for this type of nightmare?


Over time, we have learned this mass shooter, who


killed himself rather than be caught, methodically planned every detail of the carnage. A rich, heavy gambler, he did not fit any “standard“ profile.


Ironically, my


Casino International article in September‘s G2E issue specifically focused on casino crimes. Ex-FBI agent Tom Raftery, one quoted source, warned that many within the gaming industry have not adequately addressed possible onsite terrorism.


Tragically, the


Mandalay Bay learned otherwise and has now hired a


Image: Fannyes/Adobe Stock 8 OCTOBER 2017


t was unimaginable that on the very week our global gaming industry converged on Las Vegas for G2E, the unthinkable could happen. As many had already arrived, or were arriving, a madman shattered the Las Vegas allure on October 1.


While 22,000 were enjoying an outdoor concert


at the chic Mandalay Bay, shots peppered the crowd from the 32nd floor. Within minutes, dozens lay dead and hundreds were wounded, some with lifetime injuries.


With tens of thousands of G2E attendees in town, a ateside The US government will lift many of these prohibitions


in November, probably because of enormous pressure from the airline and hospitality industries. Documentation will still be required, but at least it will be feasible to travel. I am angry, so please indulge me a bit. The prevailing


New York crisis management public relations firm. The lawsuits against them are just beginning to determine possible negligence by security personnel.


“vaccination and political winds” of the week influence Covid-19 management across America. The health implications of the vaccinated versus the


It is long overdue for casinos to incorporate


unvaccinated are obvious, but the political inconsistency and conditions infuriate me. We have all seen the photos and film footage. As soon as some official mandates masks or threatens closures, many of these same unmasked people attend parties, awards dinners or travel without a


terrorism preparedness into employee training. This killer brought guns into his hotel suite and installed cameras that monitored his room and the hallway. He then used heavy-duty hammers to smash the windows and take aim. Not that guests’ luggage or drawers be searched, but dozens of weapons take up a lot of space.


Many question the relative ease in getting such an


arsenal to his suite. Conditions will certainly change since the bar altering our very behavior keeps shifting. So far, gaming has pretty much escaped these events, which is amazing considering these 24- hour businesses have dozens of open doors and entry points that never close.


8 OCTOBER 2021


cherryandbees/Adobe Stock


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