Slot O Mania
A viral video shows two people openly stealing from a Walgreens store in San Francisco, California last week. The clip was taken by a bystander as the couple hurriedly filled bags with merchandise then walked out of the store before anyone could stop them. The person filming connected the crime with the coronavirus pandemic, writing: 'THE LOOTING HAS BEGUN.'
The video of the flagrant theft made the rounds on Twitter this weekend after it was posted on Thursday, March 19. It showed two people wearing dark, nondescript clothes, including black sweatshirts and jackets and black sunglasses. Both stuffed shopping bags with merchandise off the Walgreens shelves and then walked briskly to the door. While employees stood by in awe, they did not intervene.
Try out the all-immersive casino Slotomania on desktop too (slotomania.com)! This game is intended for an adult audience (21+) for amusement purposes only and does not offer ‘real money’ gambling, or an opportunity to win real money or prizes based on free casino and slot machine game play. Slotomania Slots is the number one free slot machines game in the world! Exciting casino slots, seasonal albums, daily dashes, Sloto Club, slot tournaments - the fun never ends! Level new game xp (points) needed to reach this level level up bonus max bet (per line) special bonus 1 Farm Fortune 0 0 2 100 2 250 50 5 100.
@SFPD@chesaboudin@Walgreens SF GOV - PROTECT OUR LAW ABIDING CITIZENS AND BUSINESSES. THE LOOTING HAS BEGUN. Walgreens on Drumm. Suspects jumped on bus and didn’t pay right after on Market and Drumm @sfmta_munipic.twitter.com/n5T5CEeYub
— Jared William (@Jared_William) March 19, 2020The person who posted the video tagged the San Francisco Police Department, the Walgreens corporate account and a San Francisco District Attorney. They also tagged a company that manages the city's transportation systems.
'SF GOV - PROTECT OUR LAW ABIDING CITIZENS AND BUSINESSES. THE LOOTING HAS BEGUN,' they wrote. 'Walgreens on Drumm. Suspects jumped on bus and didn't pay right after on Market and Drumm.'
Many responded with incredulity, both at the thieves and at the employees who stood by and let them leave. However, most states and cities have laws that prevent retail employees from intervening in shoplifting. The suspect must be seen leaving the store with the merchandise, and even then employees cannot use any force while trying to apprehend the offender, according to an article by The Balance.
Why are so many people commenting on the employees and not the thieves???? I believe Walgreens employees aren’t allowed to do anything or they’ll lose their job. And would you actually risk your life and wellbeing?
— Ephemeral (@ephemeralair) March 20, 2020Beyond that, many responders noted that employees should not be expected to stop shoplifters, as it would put their physical safety at risk. That is more true than ever during the coronavirus pandemic, as just coming within six feet of a stranger could have ripple effects on a person's whole life.
So far, the San Francisco Police Department has not responded directly to the viral video, though they have pointed out new practices to prevent crime throughout the city. On Wednesday, one of the department's Twitter accounts posted photos showing an increased police presence at some of the stores that were still open amid California's state-wide stay-at-home order.
0comments'During times of crisis some folks take advantage. Northern Station is working with the community to try and minimize this by having officers remain visible and vigilant at local pharmacies,' they wrote.
During times of crisis some folks take advantage. Northern Station is working with the community to try and minimize this by having officers remain visible and vigilant at local pharmacies. pic.twitter.com/YyyAJlyHjs
— SFPD NorthernStation (@SFPDNorthern) March 18, 2020Visit the CDC's website for the latest on the COVID-19 pandemic and tips on staying safe and healthy.
November 25th, 2020
There are things in life that once you see them, you can’t unsee them. John Goodman’s face on a finger is one of those things.
Brought to you by the same people who received a Grammy Award nomination for directing the music video for Coldplay’s 2016 hit single “Up & Up,” (yes, it’s true), this TV commercial for Slotomania, a “free” mobile slot game, raises a number of questions, among them:
- Why?
- No, really, why?
- Seriously, do I have to worry about waking up tomorrow morning with Walter Sobchak yelling at me from one of my own extremities?
But there’s also the question of why the game’s developer, Israel-based Playtika, is advertising that Slotomania is free when, in order to keep spinning or playing after an initial batch of free coins expires, you have to spend money. The company’s terms of service state (in the middle of a long page of text):
If you exhaust your supply of Coins, you may elect to purchase additional Coins and continue to play the games through the Service or you may wait until additional free Coins are available to you.
If you’re waiting, you’re not playing. The terms don’t say how long you have to wait if you don’t purchase additional coins when the coins the game gifts you at the beginning run out. It may be a couple minutes, a couple hours, a couple days. But the terms do seem to indicate that the more often you open the app, the less time you’ll have to wait. They state (in the same section as above):
A certain number of Coins will be made available to you to collect when you log into the service at recurring time intervals.
Regardless, none of this is disclosed in the creepy ad, which promises to make “every day fun-tastic.” (Well, maybe not the days on which you’re waiting around for your coins to come in.)
What your money gets you
Not only is the game not free, the money you spend on coins for spins doesn’t keep you in the game for long before you need to purchase more coins or sit out a few rounds (or more) until coins are deposited into your account, according to a review in the Google Play Store:
I said I’d never spend money on this game but now I spend a lot but I notice that I never actually win enough to even play for awhile. As I am contemplating another purchase I ask myself what is the point?
The point isn’t to make money because, while you can put real money into the game, you cannot take real money out. Any “winnings” are virtual. This may not be obvious from the TV commercial, which features a deluge of gold coins with dollar signs on them. Only does the last line of fine print displayed at the bottom of the screen at the end of the ad disclose that:
Slotomania is not a real money app and does not offer real money gambling.
Of note, a 2018 class-action lawsuit accused Playtika of violating anti-gambling laws in Washington state. A proposed settlement would refund some of the money consumers spent on in-app purchases while playing Slotomania, among other slot machine games owned and operated by Playtika.
The bottom line? So-called “free-to-play” mobile games like Slotomania may be free to download and play for a short period of time but don’t be surprised if during gameplay the game asks you to take out your wallet to continue playing. Look out for mobile games that include “in-app purchases,” which are how developers like Playtika make a lot of their money.
Find more of our coverage on mobile games here.
How To Get Sloto Cards
