Malaysia Mega-Resort Opens

Georgia Launches First Coin Lottery - ATLANTIC CITY, NJ - The Georgia Lottery is going after your pocket change with their new Change Game that allows customers to bet anywhere from 25 cents to 99 cents on a ticket. And with the average American handling $600 in change per year, or about $1.65 a day, there’s plenty of potential players out there. "Coins are just something that Americans don’t know what to do with," says Rebecca Paul, president of the Georgia Lottery. Slap down some change and you'll get a computer-generated Quik Pik combination of six letters and numbers, such as A1234B. There'll be daily drawings and three daily winners. Winning combinations will be televised and published with other lottery game results. The payouts will be determined by the total wagered and the amount played on the three winning tickets. If the total pot is $50,000 and the winning tickets were purchased at 30 cents, 40 cents and 50 cents, the 30-cent ticket would get $12,500; the 40-cent ticket $16,500 and the 50-cent ticket $21,000. Tickets for Change Game - the first lottery game of its kind - went on sale Sunday. The first drawing was on Monday.

Washington Says No More Gambling - TACOMA, WA - The Lakewood City Council sent a message to gambling proprietors Monday: We don't want any more of you in our town. The council voted 4-1 to temporarily suspend the issuance of any future gambling licenses, permits and approvals for six months. Rumors of a possible fourth minicasino and a swell of public opposition to gambling, prompted the council to act Monday, instead of waiting for a public hearing planned for mid-August. The moratorium won't affect the four nonprofit charities and the 29 businesses that currently have gaming licenses in Lakewood, Washington. It also doesn't prevent the two minicasinos - Golden Nugget and Grand Central - that already applied for permits from proceeding with their building plans. Gambling opponent Clyde Brown of Lakewood said the moratorium "has no legal standing. And if challenged, the city will not be able to hold it up in court."