📖 ZKIZ Archives

File#621 Six癲 Going On Seven癲

原載《東Touch》1087期 (29Mar2016)
原曲＜Sixteen Going On Seventeen＞

接手新工作如walk on eggs

2016-08-01  TCW

Harry和Sally是同期考進銀行的儲備幹部，試用期間Sally發現Harry向主管John報告時特別能讓他頻頻回應。她私下向Harry討教後才明白，原來他善用「畫面感」說法吸引對方注意。如何用「畫面感」英文讓聽者連連點頭？以下試舉3例。 【情境A】自從我接下這個工作後，就一直如履薄冰。 【一般說法】I have been very careful ever since I took this job. 【畫面說法】I have been walking on eggs ever since I took this job. 解析：你對這份工作有多在意？若是猶如每天走在蛋殼上，深怕一不小心蛋就破了，這麼有「畫面感」的說法，肯定能讓聽者明瞭你的用心。 例句：Everyone walks on eggs whenever someone from the head office makes an inspection. (每當總公司派人來視察時，大家都戰戰兢兢。)[情境B]競爭很激烈，我知道我必須使出渾身解數。 [一般說法]Since competition is intense，I know I have to work very hard. [畫面說法]Since competition is intense，I know I have to try the whole bag of tricks. 解析：Work hard是老梗到不行的說法，而且通常無法讓人真正體悟到底有多辛苦，不如說成「把袋子裡的所有法寶都亮出來」清楚、有力。 例句：You'll have to try the whole bag of tricks if you want to win this job. (如果你想得到這份工作，就必須把十八般武藝全使出來。)[情境C]明天就要上台簡報了，我超焦慮！ [一般說法]I'll give a presentation tomorrow.I'm so nervous! [畫面說法]I'll give a presentation tomorrow.I'm about to pull my hair out! 解析：nervous是抽象形容詞，聽在別人耳裡，絕對比不上快把頭髮扯光的威受強烈。to pull/tear one's hair out這句慣用語表示「生氣、抓狂」，頗具情緒咸染力。 例句：My supervisor wilI tear her hair out if I don't get the project back on schedule. (如果我沒有讓案子跟上進度，主管真的要抓狂了。) 撰文者湯名潔

Fool me twice, shame on me

曾俊華最後衝刺專訪 2017/03/22 20:35

特首選舉進入最後衝刺階段，候選人曾俊華接受最後衝刺專訪，回應在司長任內較少沾手政治議題，在中央眼中會否「輸蝕左」。
特首候選人名單︰曾俊華、林鄭月娥、胡國興

其實邊個話 Hea 曾「真誠」？呢個訪問真係見哂佢啲語言偽術...
閱讀更多 »

ＡＶ狂想曲（十三）之 《雞蟲的二十一口釘（Twenty-one Staples on Whoremaster）》

「我唔理呀，你做Ｍ記，做地盤都好，總之出黎做，唔想再哂錢落你到，嘥米飯！！」
聽見平日唔會鬧我的老豆，竟然講到咁絕，我哭崩了，媽媽只好扶我入房休息。
我今年１７歲，ＤＳＥ剛放榜。雖然阿爸阿媽幫我搵左好多補習班，但我掛住玩，無心機讀書，結果只係得個位數。
我睡在床上，被角都給我的淚水沾濕了。我哭得倦了，回想起老豆的眼神...好，你要我「出來做」嘛！我便如你所願！
你不要後悔才好。
我下定決心，拿起手機，登入了相片分享網站，加入了ＰＴＧＦ的群組。１７歲，卜卜脆；我對我的身材樣貌，絕對有信心。
很快便有了回應。
那是一名叫「大隻仔」的中年男子，約了我第二天在旺角見面。
我心情好了很多，止住了眼淚，收起手機，立心要睡個好覺，明天便是我人生的新一頁。
閱讀更多 »

Boss out on bail over $61m theft charges

1 : GS(14)@2010-09-11 16:01:28

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/ne ... d=102700&con_type=1

---

2 : GS(14)@2010-09-11 16:01:56

http://realforum.zkiz.com/thread.php?tid=7933&page=0
更多資料

---

Tam poll-graft case hinges on `service'

1 : GS(14)@2011-02-20 12:10:27

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/ne ... d=108230&con_type=1

---

ICAC swoops on traders

1 : GS(14)@2011-04-25 16:05:29

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?art_id=110211&con_type=1

---

Citron Reports on QIHOO 360 (NASDAQ:QIHU)

1 : GS(14)@2011-11-02 22:56:27

http://www.citronresearch.com/in ... hoo-360-nasdaqqihu/
The most overvalued and misunderstood
Chinese Internet Stock:
Target Price-$5

   Recent Market Cap:  $ 2.5 Billion USD
   Last Quarter Revenue: $35.1 million
   Management: Disturbing Record of Deceit
   Outlook: Destined for Single Digits

---

2 : GS(14)@2011-11-02 22:57:26

http://news.imeigu.com/a/1320157577450.html

（i美股）北京时间11月1日，之前因“狙击”东南融通（NYSE:LFT）而名声大震的美国做空机构Citron再次出手，这次他盯上了今年3月刚上市的明星公司奇虎360。Citron在网站上发布的报告称，奇虎360是“被资本市场最为误解、价值最被高估的中概互联网股票”，给予奇虎360股票5美元的目标价。奇虎360目前的市值约为25亿美元，今年第二季度的营收为3510万美元。

Citron最后还表示将继续推出“续集内容”来追踪奇虎故事，续集将把重点放在上市公司（包括奇虎）的投行向外界所公布大量错误信息上。就像斯凯一样，我们在读许多分析师的报告感到惊讶，这些报告看起像独立分析，但却只是在重复管理层对未来的憧憬。我们期望分析师能发出“刺耳”声音，希望他们给出一些更为实实在在的数据，而不是管理层那些乐观陈述。我们建议独立投资者去寻找或者关注独立数据，尤其像那些可以证实奇虎真实营收范围的数据，不要太看重公司所宣称的未来计划，尤其是那些并没有产生营收的计划。

---

3 : GS(14)@2011-11-02 22:58:05

http://news.imeigu.com/a/1320164270679.html

（i美股）北京时间11月1日，之前因“狙击”东南融通（NYSE:LFT）而名声大震的美国做空机构Citron再次发文质疑今年3月刚上市的明星公司奇虎360；称奇虎360是“被资本市场最为误解、价值最被高估的中概互联网股票”，给予奇虎360股票5美元的目标价。奇虎360目前的市值约为25亿美元，今年第二季度的营收为3510万美元。报告发布后，奇虎股价目前下跌超过11.23%。

因做空东南融通而声名大噪的香橼研究公司（Citron）是近年来围剿中国概念股最为著名的第三方独立调查机构之一；创始人安德鲁·莱福特可能是该机构唯一调查人和报告撰写者。从2011年以来，他发表了多篇揭露中国概念股造价的报告；有的公司在他引发的质疑声中倒下了，也有被错杀的企业在股价短暂下跌后又重新回到原来的轨道。

Citron最早是针对借壳上市的公司发表质疑文章，像中国生物（PINK:CHBT）、中国高速频道（PINK:CCME）分别于2010年8月和2011年2月被质疑；最后分别于今年7月和5月退入粉单市场交易。不过让Citron成名的是成功猎杀IPO上市公司东南融通一役。

猎杀东南融通一战成名

美国东部时间4月26日上午（北京时间4月26日晚间），Citron在其网站（http://www.citronresearch.com/）发表质疑东南融通涉嫌造假，称其60%-65%的毛利率远高于文思信息（VIT）、海辉软件（HSFT）、软通动力（ISS）和柯莱特（CIS）等同行，其惊人的利润率水平值得怀疑。并指出东南融通高管背景、员工聘用关系等问题。

该文章发布后，东南融通官方也没有及时回应，表示不对质疑发表评论；高盛，德意志银行、法国巴黎银行，加拿大蒙特利尔银行等全球著名投行也纷纷发布研究报告力挺东南融通。但随后Citron又发表了两篇质疑文章，东南融通官方回应了，但回应并未能让投资者信服。随后，高盛高华宣布暂停对东南融通发布评级和目标价；德勤解除与东南融通的业务关系；CFO、独立董事也相继离职。最后，东南融通因不在符合上市要求于2011年8月17日，在停牌整三个月后正式退入粉单市场交易；股价从猎杀前的20美元上方跌至2美元。

错杀斯凯、泰富电气 被称不了解中国

当然，Citron也并非白发百中。今年5月，他就发表文章质疑刚刚上市的斯凯；称不可能形成手机社交网络，因为中国的功能手机只能进行文字聊天，在小屏幕上玩简单的游戏；并对斯凯披露的活跃用户数表示怀疑。

因为斯凯当时还处于静默期不能对质疑进行回应，股价连续两个交易日暴跌超过20%。不过随后一些分析师和斯凯的CFO接受采访时都向外界表示，Citron并不完全了解中国的情况；是信息不对称导致的一些疑问。到现在斯凯并没有因为Citron的质疑而倒下。类似的情况还有中国阀门（NASDAQ：CVVT）。

在最近的一次质疑中，Citron的枪口指向的是准备私有化的泰富电气。今年4月，泰富电气CEO公布以每股24美元/股收购在外流通股的私有化方案后，Citron于6月撰文质疑泰富电气的私有化“子虚乌有”，认为该公司股票仅值7美元或者更低，建议投资者抛开私有化收购要约来对该公司进行估值。泰富电气股价因此大跌50%。Citron随后又接连发了4篇文章连续质疑泰富私有化说法和CEO筹资能力等；但随着国开行的背书以及公司CEO的声明；Citron的报告就不再对股价有大的影响了。泰富电气也于2011年10月31日成功通过了股东投票；即将成功私有化退市。

（i美股 Peter Wu 整理）

---

4 : GS(14)@2011-11-02 22:58:42

http://news.imeigu.com/a/1320185963429.html

【搜狐IT消息】北京时间11月2日消息，奇虎360今天早上回应了Citron Research的报告，全文如下：

奇虎360相信报告包涵许多数据错误，与事实不符，且有许多猜测，没有依据。公司指出一些事实上的关键错处，如下：

用户基础与网络流量

奇虎360拥有3.7亿活跃用户，主要是通过互联网安全产品获得的。产品主要是桌面应用。在使用奇虎安全解决方案时，用户并不要求访问360.cn。因此，用360.cn网络流量来估计奇虎360的总用户基数并不明智。

Alex排名

Alex主要通过浏览器的工具条插件追踪网络流量。360.cn的用户主要是通过奇虎360安全浏览器、360安全产品接入网站的，安全产品有一个特点：它会封杀不必要的插件，因为这些插件影响用户的在线体验。我们用户的电脑中只有极少数装有Alexa插件。因此Alexa低估了360.cn的流量。

DoubleClick数据

奇虎360与Google合作，主要是在搜索方面，即在奇虎360安全浏览器中整合搜索条，直接将搜索流量导向Google。360.cn并没有提供Doubleclick横幅广告（banner ads），也没有AdSense链接。Doubleclick Adplanner主要追踪横幅广告，而AdSense也无法准确评估360.cn的网络流量。

移动安全

奇虎360在2009年推出移动安全解决方案——360手机卫士，现今拥有超过2000万活跃智能手机用户。在中国，根据第三方数据，其移动安全活跃用户基数相当大，数据在SEC文件中已经有所引用。2011年8月和11月，奇虎360推出针对iPad、Android设备的移动浏览器，推出针对Android应用的移动程序商店，这进一步扩大了公司在中国移动互联网市场的达到率。

在Citron的报告中存在误导性陈述，上述事实只是其中的一些。报告作者未能探知究竟，也未与奇虎360管理层进行沟通。公司相信，文章的作者对中国互联网产业缺乏了解，对奇虎360尤其缺乏了解。

奇虎360致力于对股东的承诺和透明的沟通。（Riddle）

---

5 : GS(14)@2011-11-02 22:59:15

http://news.imeigu.com/a/1320211833904.html

（i美股讯）北京时间11月2日消息，今天中午，奇虎360公司董事长周鸿祎在微博上点评Citron对360公司的报告，“呵呵,二是不分国界的,在美国上市其实也要经历各种风风雨雨,也是成长必经的磨练。感觉国内行业恶性竞争的套路现在改出口转内销,他们不是不懂或不专业而是揣着明白装糊涂,精心把一堆错误的概念和数据包装,对免费安全及浏览器模式的歪曲和用莫须有罪名搞人身攻击的春秋笔法更像国内作品”。

周鸿祎是在转发@360安全卫士 官方账号发布的【Citron对中国互联网缺乏认知】这一微博时做出上述点评的。

---

Vegas Bet on Chinese VIPs Raises Red Flags With Feds

1 : GS(14)@2012-12-08 21:43:22

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB ... 48160626366488.html
AS VEGAS—It could easily be mistaken for Chinese territory. On the
36th floor of the Venetian hotel and casino sits the "Paiza," a unique
gambling salon and suites for high rollers from Asia, adorned with
traditional serene Chinese paintings and a karaoke room. Gambling tables
accommodate as few as one player, for patrons who prefer more privacy.
        


  
    
    
    
    

  
  
  

Las Vegas is on a winning streak with rich
Chinese gamblers, but the WSJ's Kate O'Keeffe explains why big bets are
raising red flags with the U.S. authorities.
        
      
The area is
named after a passport given centuries ago to important Chinese
officials and guests. And the importance of the guests is certainly not
in question: These "whales" of gambling are betting anywhere from
$10,000 to $400,000—per hand.
For Las Vegas Sands Corp.,
LVS -0.43%
owner of the Venetian, and a handful of other casino companies in Las
Vegas, this select niche has become a godsend for an industry stuck in a
financial losing streak for much of the past four years. Jumping on a
business that is virtually invisible to most casino goers, industry
giants like Sands, MGM Resorts International
MGM -0.36%
and Wynn Resorts Ltd.,
WYNN -1.07%
are rolling out the red carpet for an elite group of gamblers, and scoring some remarkable jackpots.
        
        
          
Enlarge Image


          
          
          
          
          
        
        
            
              Triad Story: Connection Seen to Las Vegas Operators
            
          
            
              Sands Probed in Money Moves
             8/4/2012
            
              China Gains Foothold in U.S. Energy
             3/6/2012
            
              In the Heart of the Rust Belt, Chinese Funds Provide the Grease
             2/11/12
        
      
In a single night during the Lunar New Year
last year, Wynn's Las Vegas resort won $16 million in table gambling,
the biggest tables-game night in its history. Asked at an investor
conference about the Chinese business in Las Vegas, Sands' CEO Sheldon Adelson described gambling as a "linchpin" of the Chinese culture. "In my second life, I'm coming back as Chinese," he said.
But while this Asian connection is a potential gold mine, it is
quietly attracting a related and controversial business that has drawn
the attention of federal authorities. China allows residents to take
only $50,000 in currency abroad a year, so some high rollers rely on
foreign tour operators, known as "junkets," to provide access to far
greater sums. Based in the Chinese gambling mecca of Macau, it is an
industry U.S. law enforcement officials and diplomats have long
suspected of money laundering and organized crime.
Now as the big U.S. companies are
upping the ante on their Chinese business, the U.S. Treasury enforcement
arm is focusing on whether some junket operators are importing a new
layer of money laundering to Las Vegas by obscuring the source of their
funding, the method for transferring it to high rollers and the
identities of the gamblers themselves. As part of that focus, the
Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network last month issued a web
alert to casinos advising them to monitor junket operations and junket
patrons and report "all available information" on any suspicious
activity.
        

        
      
The alert isn't the only headache Las
Vegas may face from the world of junkets. According to documents
reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, at least two alleged Chinese
organized crime figures are operating in Las Vegas through Macau-based
junkets; both have been members of Sands' high roller "Chairman's Club."
Law enforcement authorities say they are concerned about casinos
transferring junket deposits across international borders for patron
gambling; without the same scrutiny banks provide, those fund movements
carry a high risk of money laundering, they say.
People close to the junket industry also
provided the Journal with names of four operators who have been
registered to do business in Nevada—but who were found unsuitable last
year by outside investigators for Singapore's gambling authority. Three
of the four are still registered in Nevada, including one who
investigators said had hundreds of millions of dollars in unaccounted
for cash and assets, the people said. Nevada and Singapore gambling
officials declined to comment.
Spokesmen for Sands, MGM and Wynn declined to discuss the specifics
of their junket partnerships, but casino officials say they have been
able to limit junket presence in Las Vegas by working directly with
Chinese patrons. Indeed, while their ranks are growing, the number of
VIP gamblers from the mainland who are making the trip to Las Vegas is
still a relatively small group. The casinos also said their operations
comply with all laws and that their junket partners haven't been charged
with any serious crimes. "We can't be held to account for something
that legal authorities have yet to resolve," said Alan Feldman, a
spokesman for MGM.
Las Vegas' interest in the Chinese
sector is the latest example of U.S. companies noticing—and trying to
capitalize on—increasing flows of assets leaving mainland China. Of
course, that interest by Las Vegas isn't entirely new, dating back to at
least the 1980s, when Caesars Palace famously placed a Buddhist shrine
in front of its casino. Lunar New Year has long been a big event in
town, and some casino hotels avoid rooms with the number "4," considered
unlucky by some Chinese. Still, attracting travelers from mainland
China was rare, since travel was limited and casino companies had few
inroads into the complex gambling scene in Macau, the heart of Chinese
gambling.
        
Enlarge Image


        
        
        
        
        
        Associated Press
        
The Lunar New Year display inside the conservatory at MGM's Bellagio hotel and casino in Las Vegas.
      
In recent years, though, MGM, Wynn and
Sands have opened casinos in Macau, which has catapulted into the
world's largest gambling center, with a remarkable $34 billion in
gambling revenue last year, more than five times the size of the Vegas
Strip. The success the companies have had there—Wynn relied on Macau for
72% of its revenue last year—has given them a new incentive to create a
home-away-from-home for Chinese mainlanders. Sands alone poured $25
million into upgrading just one "Paiza" gambling center in Las Vegas,
while other casinos have been similarly generous, creating ultra luxury
gambling salons with Chinese TV and Chinese food delicacies.
"Guests can have anything they want anytime," Greg Shulman, a vice
president for marketing for MGM's Bellagio hotel, said on a tour earlier
this year of that casino's salon, decorated with gold and red hues and
private spaces. He called the adjacent dim sum and noodle joint "one of
the most important restaurants in the entire building."
In all, the number of mainland Chinese and Hong Kong tourists to Las
Vegas has shot up almost 80% over five years, to 188,000 last year. But
for casinos, the most important payout has come at its baccarat tables,
the game favored by Chinese high rollers. Revenue from that game rose
49% through July this year, compared with the same time period five
years ago, even as overall gambling revenue on the Strip fell almost
10%. Because of baccarat's growth, the game has jumped to more than one
fifth of all Vegas Strip gambling revenues, up from 13%.
"The baccarat growth is entirely driven by mainland Chinese
travelers," said Ben Lee, a casino consultant who has written
extensively about the junket market. "What you have is a small number of
people making a big impact."
        Red Flags
        
View Interactive
          


        
        
      
A good part of
that growth, insiders say, wouldn't have been possible without the
junket industry. Entrenched in Macau casinos since the 1980s, junkets
are essential to many Chinese high rollers because China has tight
restrictions on how much currency residents can carry abroad in a year.
The country doesn't recognize gambling debt either.
To assist high-rollers, junkets give players extensive credit lines
to gamble and then collect debts when the losses pile up. Some allow
high rollers to merely sign IOUs before they go abroad—but exactly how
junkets get around Chinese regulations is shrouded in mystery,
regulators say. "I still to this day have not had anyone be able to show
me how the money leaves mainland China and ends up in Macau," said Mark
Lipparelli, the outgoing chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board,
which has sweeping authority over Nevada casinos and their partners. "I
have yet to have anyone explain this to me in a coherent manner."
Analysts estimate there are as many as 10,000 people working in some
capacity for the junket industry, which runs from single-man shops to
formal firms. Many are tied to so-called "super junkets," conglomerates
that operate a wide range of junket activity and in some cases, end up
with quirky assets from years of debt collecting. According to one
former junket employee, Steve Karoul, a Mystic, Conn., casino consultant
who now advises investors on the industry, the parking lot of one
junket he worked for in the 1990s looked like a used car dealership,
because it had seized so many cars from gamblers unable to pay debts.
The company also seized real-estate assets, including a 400-room hotel.
"It's all gray market," he said.
        

        
        
        
        
        
        
        Alexandra Berzon
        
Baccarat table in the 'Paiza'
gambling lounge for Asian high-rollers on the 50th floor of Sands'
Palazzo hotel and casino in Las Vegas.
      
One
operator who talked to the Journal said the industry has been trying to
change its reputation, and now has some firms listed on foreign stock
exchanges. "Junkets are becoming more corporate," said Hoffman Ma,
deputy chairman of Success Universe Group Ltd., which has been in the
junket business since the 1990s. He said some Macau junkets still have
links with organized crime in China, but described that activity as
lessening, with junkets trying to make "more loans legitimate" and
realizing that "violence isn't going to work in Macau anymore."
Mr. Lipparelli, at the Nevada gaming board, said that while those
links may occur in Macau, his office has found no evidence of junkets
introducing organized crime to Las Vegas. "There's nothing that would
indicate that," he said. Still, according to two people knowledgeable
about junkets in Asia, private investigators working for the Casino
Regulatory Authority of Singapore reviewed the application of a junket
operator registered in Nevada—and recommended he not be approved because
he failed to disclose ties to a suspected organized crime figure. The
same investigators found another Nevada-approved operator, Chan Ting
Lai, unsuitable because he listed more than $250 million in cash and
assets he couldn't account for, according to the two people.
Reached in Hong Kong, Mr. Chan, owner of a large interior design firm
who has occasionally appeared at local entertainment industry events,
said he was still waiting for news on his application from the
regulatory authority in Singapore.
        
Enlarge Image


      
Nevada and Singapore regulators
typically share information, but a spokesman for the Nevada Gaming
Control Board wouldn't comment on whether the agency knew about the
outside investigators' report for Singapore. Agency officials say that
with hundreds of casino partnerships to monitor, it doesn't typically do
extensive reviews on applications for smaller operators. The gaming
board did recently increase registration fees, from $750 to $2,000, to
fund more thorough checks, but critics say it still needs to step up
scrutiny of Macau-based operators. "Macau is a real potential source of
embarrassment and difficulty for the Nevada regulators," said Bill
Eadington, a professor at the University of Nevada Reno who has studied
Macau junkets.
On the federal level, fund transfers between Macau and Las Vegas that
casinos handle for junkets have attracted the attention of the Treasury
Department. Chip Poncy, head of a Treasury Department policy office,
said such transfers are "a vulnerability we've seen for quite some time"
and that authorities are working with casinos and regulators to address
"the specific exploitation of it." Such transfers have long been a
concern for regulators internationally. "You've got these layers of
anonymity building up and building up so the player can hide between
quite a few layers of transactions," said Rachael Horton, a former New
Zealand casino regulator who wrote a 2009 report for the Financial
Action Task Force, an anti-money-laundering group based in Paris.
Casino officials for Sands, MGM and
Wynn say they comply with all federal requirements and have policies
guarding against money laundering; gamblers, they say, aren't allowed to
cash transferred funds in Las Vegas, just the winnings they make from
them. "Our company has a detailed compliance program that is submitted
to regulators," said Ron Reese, a Sands spokesman.
        

        
        
        
        Reuters
        
Charles Heung was identified as
a high-ranking triad figure in a 1992 U.S. Senate subcommittee report
on Asian organized crime. He has publicly denied being involved in
organized crime.
      
Details on the movement of funds for
Chinese high rollers into Las Vegas—and some of the more controversial
figures who may be involved—have also emerged since a high-profile,
wrongful-termination suit was filed in 2010 by Steve Jacobs, the former
head of Macau operations for Sands. In the suit, Mr. Jacobs filed copies
of a Sands ledger showing intracompany transactions between Macau and
Las Vegas with junket and individual names blocked out; the Journal has
now seen the names. Two people with past alleged ties to Chinese
organized crime groups known as triads are either listed in the
ledger—or are business partners of junkets on the document.
The two men—Cheung Chi Tai and Charles Heung—have each been
identified as high-ranking triad figures in a 1992 U.S. Senate
subcommittee report on Asian organized crime; the report, which followed
a series of triad-related arrests by the FBI, drew its findings from
law enforcement authorities and informants. More recently, a Hong Kong
appeals court judgment in March 2011 said Mr. Cheung was a "triad
leader" who ordered the death of a casino dealer. He wasn't charged in
the case, but a subordinate was sentenced for conspiracy to commit
murder.
        
Enlarge Image


        
        
        
        
        
        Las Vegas Sands Corp.
        
'Paiza' dining room.
      
Neither
Mr. Cheung nor Mr. Heung has been convicted of triad activity, and Mr.
Heung has publicly denied being involved in organized crime; when
contacted, representatives of the two men declined to comment. According
to people with knowledge of the company, both have also been members of
Sands' "Chairman's Club." The club is a select group of high-rollers
given exclusive access to Sands' most luxurious suites, six-figure
monthly expense accounts and extensive credit lines, according to a
court filing by Mr. Jacobs, who, through his attorney, has declined to
discuss his case.
For their part, Treasury and other law enforcement authorities who
have seen or are familiar with the Sands ledger say they are alarmed by
the size of some of the activity. Although the reasons for the fund
movements aren't known, the Journal found more than two dozen junket
operators on the ledger transferring a total of about $28 million from
2006 to 2010. One junket operator alone transferred $3.6 million in two
days between Macau and Las Vegas in 2009; another transferred $2.4
million in one day, according to the ledger.
        

        
      
Asked about the ledger, which was an
accounting document at Sands, Ron Reese, a company spokesman, wouldn't
comment on the money transfers, the company's use of junkets or any
people identified as moving money through casinos. "We believe the
company has acted properly and we will continue to cooperate with all
our regulators," he said. "But we will not compromise the privacy rights
of our customers."
In the end, some followers of the junket arrival in Las Vegas say the
biggest mystery may be the size of this new industry. In Macau, junkets
accounted for nearly three-fourths of the island's gambling revenues
last year, according to local regulators. Here in Las Vegas, casino
executives say the junket industry is much smaller, accounting for no
more than 20% of their mainland China VIP business. But some consultants
say that number is higher.
One problem: it is hard to track junket revenues because some junkets
don't use formal contracts—part of what Mr. Lee, the expert in the
Chinese gambling market, calls the "shadow junket" industry.
"Getting money over to America is even harder than getting money to
Macau," he said. "That's why the junkets have a big role in Vegas."
—Daniel Lippman, Chester Yung and Chun Han Wong contributed to this article.
        Write to         Alexandra Berzon at [url=mailto:[email protected]][email protected][/url], Kate O'Keeffe at         [url=mailto:[email protected]][email protected][/url] and James Grimaldi at         [url=mailto:[email protected]][email protected][/url]

---

爽視彈：衝上雲霄On Call 朱國亮

1 : GS(14)@2013-03-30 23:06:00

http://www.sharpdaily.hk/article/entertain/20130227/177781
吳鎮宇惡搞說《衝上雲霄II》未能在今年播出的確叫粉絲擔心，幸好只是無聊玩笑。在現今無綫劇撞演員撞角色的當兒，《衝II》確是叫觀眾期待的劇集。馬德鐘陳慧珊換上張智霖陳法拉，卡士未有跌watt，俊男美女加上影帝級鎮宇齊齊制服誘惑，據知已在做後期製作，今年一定有得睇。另一齣拍好了的《金枝慾孽（貳）》，是鄧萃雯、監製戚其義及編審周旭明離開前的最後作品，還未有聲氣，無綫別玩小氣把劇雪藏。
都是續集還有齣《On Call 36小時II》，吳啟華再穿醫生袍，變相成了「妙手Special」，馬國明要靠邊站，之前叫好的「一件頭」面對經典「程至美」，如能勢均力敵馬明肯定「升呢」！
反而黎耀祥再拍《巾幗梟雄3之諜血長天》，「巾幗」鄧萃雯變了胡杏兒，吸引力大大打折扣，無晒興趣。
朱國亮
逢一、三、五

---