US Tidbit -- George Atiyeh, a former professional football player, has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison, a $4,000 fine and two years of probation in connection to his conviction on a variety of bookmaking-related charges. According to prosecutors, Atiyeh ran a gambling business called International Casino using telephone lines in Allentown, Pa., which took 8,000 calls per month in the mid-1990s. Atiyeh's brothers, Dennis Atiyeh and Joseph Atiyeh, were acquitted of similar charges in 2001.
News from New Zealand -- The Christchurch City Mission in New Zealand is getting complaints about its deal with Christchurch Casino. The agreement allows the casino to put its logo on all television, radio, billboard and newspaper ads that the mission runs for three years in exchange for NZ $6,000 per year. The City Mission, which works with problem gamblers, is under fire from other gaming addiction help groups who say the mission is promoting the casino.