Dice

THE UNANIMOUS vote in City Council last week to put a referendum question on the May primary ballot prohibiting the building of casinos within 1,500 feet of homes, schools, libraries and churches is not expected to hold much legal water. As such, some write it off as a cheap and empty gesture toward re-election by members of Council. The fact is, the state's power is considerable, especially on the waterfront, where both casinos are now sited: I-95, Delaware Avenue, the port, as well as the riparian rights that impact most waterfront development, are all under state control.

Dear Polly: What is the difference between "dice," "mince" and "chop," as used in recipe directions? - Arleth The difference is in the resulting cut food. "Chop" can really mean anything, but it usually refers to fairly rough cutting of vegetables, meats and other foods into smaller pieces. "Dice" means to chop the food into even, uniform pieces, perhaps 1/4- to 1/2-inch square. "Mince" means to chop very finely into uniform tiny pieces perhaps 1/8-inch square or less. Then there's "coarsely chop," "finely dice," etc. Unless you're doing something really fancy, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just do what seems best and easiest.

"Yonkers Joe" is a seedy, indie variation on "Ocean's Eleven. " The title character is a small-time con man (Chazz Palminteri) who ekes out a living using loaded dice and card tricks to scam amateur players at beef-and-beers and Lion's Club picnics. Joe barely makes enough to keep himself in a rowhouse, and so faces a crisis when he's told his Down syndrome son (Tom Guiry), while high-functioning, is too old and too unruly for the institution that has cared for him. Finding a proper facility is an expensive proposition, and Joe can't look after the boy himself and carry on with his chosen vocation, which keeps him away from home for long stretches.

YOU DON'T SEE Dice Raw with the Roots on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ," but the North Philly rapper/producer/songwriter played an integral part of the hometown hip-hop heroes' newest release, "Undun. " Dice Raw, born Karl Jenkins , sings on "Lighthouse" and "One Time," two fan favorites on "Undun," and co-wrote and sings or raps on several other songs from the record. A longtime collaborator of the Roots, Dice's contributions to "Undun" and 2010's "How I Got Over" seem to be bringing him the attention he deserves.

Pupils at Seaview Elementary School in Linwood have little in common with inmates at Trenton State Prison, but the kids and the cons both have the casino industry to thank for a small part of their lives. They get some of the refuse of gambling. The kids get dice and playing cards to use in a pilot math program, Project Prism. And the cons, like those in other prisons throughout New Jersey, get monthly supplies of playing cards. These are just two of the dozens of organizations and agencies that receive gaming's daily discards.

Let's play a game. You go first. Roll the dice. Six. Uh-oh. You just landed on St. Mike's Fair. That's too bad. Time to fork over the cash. Yes, you owe $100. Oh well, it could have been worse. You could have been stuck at the gas riots, and that would have cost you $200. Or you could be trapped in conversation, talking about the gas riots, and that would cost you hours. At least that's what the creators of "Levittown at 50: The Board Game" hope. For a very real $19.95, Levittowners and anyone else can move their tokens around a board, spend some serious play money, and reminisce about what once was. "We want families to sit around the table and talk and talk and talk about wonderful Levittown," said Jim Murphy, 48, one of two Levittown men who created the game in honor of the working-class town's forthcoming 50th anniversary.

The 19-year-old Southwest Philadelphia man got off on the wrong foot when he showed up to rob a craps game last year. Joemon Higbom, of Ridewood Street near 56th, shot himself in the right thigh, said Assistant District Attorney Max Kramer yesterday. Even though Higbom didn't have a leg to stand on, he pulled out two guns and began shooting at dice players while crouched down about 6 p.m. on Nov. 21, 1999, said Kramer. About six gamblers scattered from Salford Street near Race.

The NBA is going "all-in" with its All-Stars. The 2007 NBA All-Star Game is headed to Las Vegas, the first time a city without a franchise has been chosen to host the event. The festivities, on the weekend of Feb. 16-18, will take place just off the Strip, at the Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus. Commissioner David Stern called it "a merger between the basketball capital of the world and the entertainment capital of the world" during a news conference yesterday, while downplaying any concern about linking the image-conscious NBA with Sin City and gambling.

Norman A. Gardner is betting that some high-tech security innovations in gambling paraphernalia will turn his fledgling Bala Cynwyd company into a high-stakes player in the gaming industry. The two-year-old company, LaserLock Technologies Inc., uses laser beams to ensure that no one is able to sneak his or her own dice, chips or cards into a casino. And LaserLock's "invisible ink" aims to prevent the counterfeiting of gaming tickets used with cashless machines. When trained on authentic dice and chips or the wrapping on a new deck of cards, the company's laser beam lights up a pigment embedded in the object.

They rolled the dice - and their luck ran out. But what happened to four boys playing craps on a West Philadelphia sidewalk Wednesday night was no game. And it did not happen by chance. Police sources said an interloper with a grudge drew his gun and changed the odds forever. Now 13-year-old Cordell Erwin is dead from gunshots to the head and chest. His 15-year-old brother, Eric, is in critical condition at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, clinging to life after a bullet went through his brain.

It is part of Philadelphia sports lore, the time Andy Reid told Allen Iverson he didn't think the temperamental 76ers star could play for him. Iverson countered that, having played football in high school, he knew the NFL was different from the NBA, and he'd be different, too. Football coaches aren't just talkin' 'bout practice; it's the cornerstone of everything they do. A decade later, Reid is living out a high-stakes version of that...

KEVIN DESANCTIS may have supervised the creation of a tall building, but he can't leap it in a single bound. Nor does he wear blue leotards and a red cape with a giant yellow "S" on it. Nonetheless, there are those in Atlantic City who view the low-key, 59-year-old gaming-industry vet as Superman. For just like Clark Kent's superhero alter ego, DeSanctis is, they conclude, the savior of his adopted hometown. DeSanctis is CEO of Revel Entertainment Group LLC, the corporate entity that on Monday opens its $2.4 billion Revel megaresort on the eastern end of the Boardwalk next to Showboat Atlantic City.

Dharun Ravi, a promising college student and computer whiz kid, gambled his future on a Middlesex County jury. It appears he lost. The 20-year-old Plainsboro, N.J., resident was convicted of all 15 counts Friday in the Rutgers University webcam spying case, which generated international attention and became a rallying point for gay-rights advocates concerned about the bullying and harassment of gay teens. Ravi was found guilty of invasion of privacy and bias-intimidation charges for using his laptop webcam to spy on his roommate in an intimate encounter with another man on Sept.

MIAMI - In this glamorous gateway city overlooking Biscayne Bay, a debate is being waged: whether to allow up to three lavish casino resorts in South Florida. The debate has split state lawmakers, residents and the business community. And its outcome, some gaming-industry analysts say, could influence where players of slots or table games in states such as New Jersey and Pennsylvania take their gambling dollars when the weather turns cold. "We believe Florida casino development could lead to modest revenue cannibalization in both Atlantic City and Las Vegas in the winter months," said analyst Dennis Farrell, of Wells Fargo Securities L.L.C.

GOV. CORBETT, an avowed advocate of transparency, is offering a state budget more than transparent in terms of its politics and political goals. It reflects a philosophy that the best government is that which governs least. As such, it offers little help to Philly schools or the city's poor; both can look for less from the state. Republican Corbett, elected in 2010 after promising no new taxes and big spending cuts, delivered his second straight no-tax budget; and his $27.1 billion plan calls for $20 million less spending than last year.

YOU DON'T SEE Dice Raw with the Roots on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ," but the North Philly rapper/producer/songwriter played an integral part of the hometown hip-hop heroes' newest release, "Undun. " Dice Raw, born Karl Jenkins , sings on "Lighthouse" and "One Time," two fan favorites on "Undun," and co-wrote and sings or raps on several other songs from the record. A longtime collaborator of the Roots, Dice's contributions to "Undun" and 2010's "How I Got Over" seem to be bringing him the attention he deserves.

The Oakland Raiders made the off-field equivalent of a Hail Mary pass on Tuesday, sending a first-round draft pick to Cincinnati for holdout quarterback Carson Palmer in a bold move to replace injured starter Jason Campbell. The Bengals had been adamant that they would not trade Palmer, who was holding out to force a deal. But owner Mike Brown reversed course when the Raiders offered a 2012 first-round pick and a conditional pick in the 2013 draft - one that might become another first rounder - for Palmer.

The $103 million investment the Boston Red Sox made in Daisuke Matsuzaka took another hit yesterday when manager Terry Francona said the righthander probably will need elbow surgery. The team transferred Matsuzaka from the 15-day to the 60-day disabled list amid reports he has decided to have reconstructive surgery that could sideline him for at least 12 months. "It's looking more and more that he's going to need to have the surgery," Francona said before last night's game against the Oakland A's. "He is very driven to come back and help us next year.

In the same week that Civil War reenactors marked the first shots fired at Fort Sumter 150 years ago, it was a welcome coincidence that Pennsylvania gambling regulators sounded the death knell for a casino near Gettysburg. The decision Thursday by the state Gaming Control Board to grant a casino license to a Pittsburgh-area resort - rather than one proposed a half-mile from Gettysburg National Military Park - was the second time a Gettysburg-area casino was rejected. It should be the last.

DETROIT - The Texas Rangers are making all the right moves. Alexi Ogando outpitched Justin Verlander before leaving with a finger problem, and Texas won with a bold strategy, beating the Detroit Tigers, 2-0, Monday. Rangers manager Ron Washington chose to have closer Neftali Feliz intentionally walk slugger Miguel Cabrera, putting two on with two out in the ninth inning, to bring four-time all-star Victor Martinez to the plate as the potential winning run. Martinez grounded out on a 2-0 pitch to end it, validating the decision.