As far as paying and useful customers go, I'd give the Atlantis a D. There were a mix of nice people and jerks -- same as you’d find anywhere. But my money was good, and I was playing with entirely mediocre results, not to mention with a strong suspicion that the house was rigging the game. If the casino is desperate enough to openly encourage team play without at least threatening to hand out a decent beating, they’re not making money.

Bottom line: If you’re looking for a relatively nearby place to have an amazing time with or without your family, consider the Atlantis. If you’re looking to buy casino stocks, keep your chips pocketed.

More Consumer News

Since I started writing for Minyanville, I’ve had the opportunity to chat with some retail bigwigs. To a person, I was told that business crumbled a few weeks back after a brief rally. The phrases used to describe the decline can’t be repeated on a family site.

Let’s just say it’s gotten ugly in the malls, yet again. There are specialty-store stocks that have put in an enormous amount of space between current levels and the March lows. Did you happen to see consumer confidence levels so low they suggest that America has run out of both consumers and confidence? Did you see the same-store sales last week?

True Religion (TRLG) is 150% higher since March. In that same timeframe, Ralph Lauren (RL) is up over 50%. The Gap (GPS) has put on nearly 40%.

You get the idea. Doom and gloom is no longer in these stocks. They now trade with “guarded optimism.” They shouldn’t. Hedge ‘em, stop ‘em, flat-out sell 'em.

Whatever you do as you listen to non-retailers report this month, keep in mind sinking tides do hideous things to stocks trading on more than a hint of “hope.”

The idea here is take profits and leave a token position (say, 10% of your original investment) just to keep the names on your radar.