The Jaffe Briefing - December 17, 2021

ATLANTIC CITY – The talking point is that the casinos need a huge tax break, or up to four of them will go out of business, says Senate President Steve Sweeney. The state Legislature needs to act during this lame duck session as the industry hangs in the balance, etc., etc. But then state regulators changed the narrative yesterday: releasing revenue figures for November that show nearly $440 million in November, up more than 52% from a year ago. Casino moguls, with hat in hand, have been arguing for taxpayer-funded breaks based on 2019 figures, the AP reports. But with the casinos fueled by all this massive sports betting and internet gambling, it appears to be a losing argument. The $4.3 billion won so far this year is more than 34% better than the amount they won over the first 11 months of 2019. It sure is hard to keep demanding tax breaks as the cash rolls in, reported publicly each month through that pesky state Division of Gaming Enforcement.

TRENTON – It’s hard to run elections if there’s no one to run them. That basic fact is why state lawmakers are desperate to find new ways to recruit poll workers. The state has already sweetened the pot twice, raising wages in the hopes of finding more people who are willing to sit in a local gym for 12 hours or so, drink gallons of coffee and accommodate the trickle of voters. Sen. Nicholas Scutari has an idea: give college students a single credit for each full day he or she works the polls, Politico reports. Scutari has even introduced legislation to make his idea a reality, as he is escalated to senate president next year. This is a great deal for the student, who pays, for example, $394 a credit to attend Rutgers. Not so much of a great deal for RU, however.

EAST RUTHERFORD – This Sunday, when the Cowboys visit the Giants at 1 p.m., there will be plenty of tailgaters in the parking lot. And that means plenty of Bloody Marys. And that also means that many of these tailgaters should take a brief moment to toast Harry’s Bar in Paris. And why should Giants fans give a hoot? Because it was this bar, 100 years ago, that invented the vodka-tomato juice cocktail. Icons like Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald paid homage at Harry’s Bar, enjoying this new, exciting concoction that is now the perfect substitute for breakfast in a Meadowlands parking lot. The bar now serves 12,000 or so Bloody Marys a year, equivalent to what will likely be consumed in the general parking lots as fans prepare for a brutal afternoon against those hated Cowboys.

BRIEFING BREATHER

Tennis players can be fined up to $20,000 for cursing at Wimbledon. 

ASBURY PARK – It may be getting tougher for Bruce Springsteen to sing about rusting steel mills and abandoned small towns with a straight face. The iconic Jersey rocker, singing about the poor and downtrodden for five or so decades, has now sold his entire body of work to Sony for $500 million. The guy who once famously hung out on the Asbury Park boardwalk, in the hopes of a spark with Mary, Rosalita or whoever else was working the night shift, can now likely buy the entire boardwalk, with cash to spare. It is considered one of the biggest deals ever by a single musician. Yeah, Springsteen is worth it; he is Jersey royalty. But $500 million? Not bad for an aimless kid from Freehold.

IN OTHER IMPORTANT NEWS

EL PASO, TEXAS – One must wonder if Renay Mandel Corren can rest in peace after the brutal obituary her son penned that referred to her as a plus-sized Jewish redneck Texan who rolled joints, ate carbs, went bankrupt and had an affair with Larry King. She survived a double mastectomy, bad feet and a divorce from a philandering sergeant major. She claimed to have invented the business name “Sunoco” and was for a time a nationally-ranked cribbage player. We unfortunately can’t ask the bawdy, loud woman they called Rosie how much truth there is to this obituary that was published in the Fayetteville Observer and now all over. However, a very disrespectful and totally non-denominational memorial is planned for May 10, most likely at a bowling alley in Fayetteville, N.C. The family requests absolutely zero privacy. Feel free to enjoy the obit of this remarkable woman here.

ESTES PARK, CO – Imagine the door bell rings, and this is what you see on your video. Click Here.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

It was announced on this day in 2013 that KISS would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, prompting what we believe to be the best hall introduction speech ever. And, of course, we have the video, courtesy of Tom Morello.

WORD OF THE DAY

Flexuous – [ˈflekSHo͞oəs] – adjective

Definition: Full of bends and curves

Example: When I dance, my best feature is my flexuous waist.

WIT OF THE DAY

“Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.”

-James Bovard

BIDEN BLURB

“In the face of sustained and alarming challenges to democracy, universal human rights, and — all around the world, democracy needs champions.”

-Joe Biden

WEATHER IN A WORD

Sweet