Srilm wrote:
And the Russian mafia gets a bad rap, in my opinion. When I am "over there" I visit a few places with ties to organized crime. As a customer, you are simply that -- a customer -- and will usually be treated pretty well. They just want you to spend your money like you would anywhere else. A business competitor might be a different story, however. I'm not sure how the other casinos/hotels would react to that.
SR
I think that describes the situation perfectly. When I lived in the New York area the mafia was never a concern to the average citizen. They may have controlled any number of industries that caused prices to be higher then they would have been without their presence but that was something you never really felt or thought about.
They controlled gambling and prostitution also and the average Joe never felt their presence in that either. Get in over your head debt from gambling and yes their presence was there. I really do not see their presence in San Jose, should they be part of the scene, with this new casino would be any different than the NY mafia in their area.
I do think one thing would most likely be a sure bet. If the Russian mafia was involved in the new casino you could walk in that area without any worry of being assaulted by street thugs. Unlike the owners of the HDR they would make sure the area around their operation was very very safe any time of day or night.

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