Susan Smith-Harmon
Last Missouri casino safeguard could be on its way out
Monday, 06 May 2013 03:35 Published in Local NewsIt looks like the last of the safeguards Missouri legislators had initially placed on casinos could soon be tossed out.
A bill now before the Senate would let the state’s 13 casinos issue short-term loans to gamblers, secured by the gamblers' bank accounts. The measure easily won approval in the state house last month.
Casino executives say they need to be able to provide credit in order to attract high-end gamers who don't want to carry large amounts of cash.
The measure would repeal the last of the safeguards that were in the original state law voters passed in 1992 when they legalized riverboat gambling. The rule requiring riverboat casinos to actually be on a boat on a river, and $500 loss limits have already been repealed.
New warnings are being issued to stay away from rain-swollen rivers and streams. That after three men who'd gone fishing in the Meramec River had to be rescued Sunday morning.
The Saline Valley Fire Protection District received a call around 9:30 a.m. from someone who saw the men's thrown into the water when their canoe flipped.
Saline Valley Fire Chief Bob Dunn says while crews were en route to the scene, they got a second call. This one was from one of the men in the water who told them they were approaching the Highway 21 bridge.
Chief Dunn says rescue crews dropped a line from the bridge in an effort to fish them out of the swift-moving water. "We were here with a rope and we watched them go underneath the bridge," Dunn said. "One of them was able to grab hold of the rope that we had thrown to them. The other two couldn't."
The other two men managed to grab onto some low-hanging trees. They were rescued by boat.
National "Common Core" education standards meeting local resistance
Friday, 03 May 2013 04:24 Published in Local NewsThe new Common Core education standards are meeting local resistance before they've even been implemented in Missouri.
About 150 people in the Lindbergh School District attended an informational meeting held last night. But the state education official was heckled while she tried to explain the new standards. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Maureen Clancy-May was met with calls to "tell the truth" and questions about using kids as a science experiment.
Missouri is one of 45 states that have adopted the Common Core standard, a set of national goals for reading, writing and math skills.
Many at last night's meeting wanted to know why the state Legislature wasn't involved in the decision to adopt the standard.
Legislatures in several states, including Missouri, are now debating a repeal.
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