Russians Curb Slot Machine Gambling

Speaker Boris Gryzlov has announced that with President Vladimir Putin’s bill limiting slot machines and gambling in Russia, that the State Duma is set to consider the first reading of it. It is expected that the Duma will approve the slot machine measure, with the third and final reading in November.

Putin is planning on re-imposing state regulations over slot machine gambling, and to get rid of the smaller casinos and slot machines once and for all. All of the larger slot machine casinos would basically have to relocate. He wants to move them to four regional gaming colonies: one in Siberia, one in the Far East, and two in European Russia. The slot machine changes would start to take place immediately with completion by 2009.

There would be a smaller slot machine gaming zone that would allow slot machine gambling centers – albeit very small ones – under restricted conditions within certain regions. Since slot machines are literally seen everywhere you go, it will make a huge change to the landscape of Russia when they are all removed. If Putin’s law is signed it will go into effect immediately, with the slot machines to be removed completely within the year.

Some say that he is just trying to use the slot machines as leverage against Georgia, but some say that he is using it to his advantage. That he had wanted this all along, and with the growing anti-slot machine gambling movement going on his changes could very well sweep him right into office.

 

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