I work at a company where people bet on video games and can make a living at it. Even if he is as terrible as some posters say the economic downturn hasnt helped anyone. I know our company has seen gaming customers decline over the last few months.

Robert - you are so right on the NASCAR point. The divisive nature of so many small groups in the industry is messing it up for all. The degree of bickering is amazing. Group A decides it isn’t getting enough of revenue stream B, so decides to cut off simulcast C’s feed on line, but one can still play that track if they go to physical location D. Does anyone in the game understand economics 101 anymore? Was there no one in group A that figured that a part of something is better than all of nothing? Hello purse shrinkage!

To continue on Robert’s point briefly - the industry in CA was at the end of a magical time when I left it in the early 80’s. CA had a great growth and future potential in racing and breeding. I was shocked back then as to how poorly it was being managed. Fast forward a quarter of a century (it’s in the blood - can’t stay away) and to my dismay, the same people who were making imbecilic decisions when I left are still in charge!

Wesley - you need to take a look at industry numbers before stating that it is not in shambles. What do you base this off of? Handles are down, sales prices are down, mares bred are down (which may be OK in the long run), and I broke in the middle of this writing to take a call from a pal in AZ that reported that the last ATBA sale had a rough 60% buy back/no bid level. Is this what you call healthy?

Frank - what can I say? Am a very frustrated shareholder. Do I think that the stock is better than it appears - yes. Do I think Frank (who is partial to dirt tracks) capitulates at times - yes. Do I think that the CHRB is absolutely capricious in mandating synthetic tracks in CA before any investigation and due diligence - yes. Did Frank capitulate to keep racing dates - probably. One never knows how long it may be before we see the return of sandy loam (where DID it all go?) after finding that the kneejerk reaction to a surface`change by the CHRB was all for naught. Anyone checking on the mortality rates not being significantly different? Congrats to CA on being a great state that will no longer see the likes of great horses that will only run on dirt. If running on shredded trash was a good idea - I’m sure that Whittingham would have come up with it. decades ago.

Back to CA racing for a closing point - as I could go on forever. Let’s talk gambling. The industry that we dearly love is - in it’’s heart - gambling. I was one of the odballs way back when that thought that bringing the lottery to CA was a huge mistake. One of the reasons that the track had better numbers then was that the gamblers were there - not horse lovers, or handicappers, or horsemen. We had the gamblers captive. Once lotteries and racinos proliferated - the ponies were bound to lose. Many more than not wanted to gamble - not handicap.The fact that slots and lotteries are popular show that most gamblers do not enjoy the thinking process - which is what the game of handicapping is about. How sad is it that failing tracks get saved in some instances by slots? Many misunderstand the audience if they think that the fans of the horse.brought these tracks back. Check your coincidence meter.

OK - I’ll relinquish the soapbox for now, and appreciate the bandwidth for venting. First time here and the article struck a nerve - Thanks!

The industry is hardly in shambles. Maybe a few of these tracks closing will wind up being a good thing in the long run. Blame the industry for the Stronach experience? That is a good one.

Is there not some blame to be placed on industry that is in itself in shambles?