Play Meter

- THE LAST WORD All the news that's fit to print? ''D o you want to know the real reason the governor put video lottery on hold in West Virginia?" he asked. "Yes, yes!" I excitedly replied. My adrenal gland snapped to attention; a thin strand of drool made its way down my chin. "This is what happened: a bigwig at-wait a minute. I guess I shouldn't tell you this," he said. "Why not?" I asked, feeling as deflated as the late Dizzy Gillespie's cheeks during a break in the music. "Well, you might print it and use my name," he answered. "I could get in some real hot water." Such was my first night in Las Vegas for AMOA's Council of Affiliated States Meeting Cthe "state association meeting" for short), which took place in late January. Scenarios like that became commonplace for the next two days, as seemingly everyone who spoke would preface his or her remarks with, "Don't print this!" Another frequent device was to speak for a minute or so, watch me take notes, and then announce, "By the way, don't write that down! " Ohio's irascible Paul Corey, God love him, could stand this no longer and came to my defense: "What the hell is the kid supposed to write, for heaven's sake!" It got to be the running joke of the meeting. Actually, these calls for an empty notepad don't bother me as pmch as they used to. But I will confess that it's disconcerting for people to assume that I don't know when something is too sensitive and confidential-and therefore not for public consumption . If someone says to me, "Chris, this is off the record," I honor that request (as does everyone on the editorial staffi. I haven't betrayed anyone's trust yet and don't plan to start. But if a person waits until after he's answered a question to ask that it be off the record, he's pushing his luck. I'll almost always give in, though, since being a member of the trade press requires that you get along with people, but it still isn't fair to the writer to play these on the record/off the record games . If you don't want to answer, simply say, "No comment." There's no ambiguity in those words. Anyway, back to the state associdtion meeting. It presents a fantastic opportunity for association leaders to play verbal volleyball with problems and their possible solutions. Can't figure out how to get more members to attend the state shows? Some suggested doing away with the exhibits and making it a one- or twoday educational event. What's your state's dues structure? How's your video lottery bill shaping up? These were just some of the questions that found answers. PLAY METER 258 MARCH 1993 Speaking of video lottery, it's a shame Louisiana and Oregon didn't send a representative. Attendees were thirsting for data and war stories from these video gaming-legal states to help them plot their strategies. It is hoped that these and other nonattending states will see fit to show up next year. The attendees weren't the only one's to glean knowledge at this three-day infofest; I learned plenty. Some of the information was printable. Some was not, though it's put me onto trails I wouldn't otherwise have discovered. Some was ephemeral, but now I know of Candace Super's utter distaste for crawfish and Kim Rundle's mystery slot machine at the Las Vegas Hilton. . Finally, I learned this-and it's for print: there are a lot of very nice people in this industry, and I met plenty of them at the state association meeting. If you're a state association head, you owe it to yourself to acquire their friendship and the knowledge they can give you to make your state association a better organization. 0 Christopher Caire Features Editor