Think you’re going to need some quick cash? You could try the roulette wheel and let it ride on “20” twice in a row. Or you could try any of these 10 compelling long shots in 2008. We’re looking here for the best combination of long odds and an actual possibility of getting paid. They’re not necessarily the sharpest bets in the world, but each is worth investigating.

Chelsea (6-1) to win English Premiership
Arsenal or Liverpool (each 11-2) to win FA Cup
Cleveland Indians to win World Series
Rafael Nadal (6-1) to win Australian Open
Phil Mickelson (10-1) to win 2008 U.S. Masters
Sultan Ibragimov (+300) to beat Wladimir Klitschko for IBF/WBO/IBO Heavyweight titles
Vancouver Canucks to win Stanley Cup
Dale Earnhardt Jr. (6-1) to win 2008 Sprint Cup
New Orleans Hornets to win NBA title
Paul McCartney’s Dance Tonight (9-2) to win Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance

There’s no guarantee that you’ll leave a casino with more money than you came with. I guess you could walk into the casino and go up to the bank machine, make a withdrawal and walk out again. Then you would have more than you came in with. But the best way to win some money in a casino is to make a bet that gives you the best odds to win.

I would walk in and go to the roulette table and bet on black or red. That gives you near to even odds on your money. I could bet on the Bank at a baccarat table, or bet on the come and don’t come bets on the craps table.

And if you hit that first bet I suggest you walk out then and there – if you want to leave with more than you came with – because luck will change.

The Gulf Coast casino industry is often over-looked as the place for the gambling enthusiast. Not so for the professional thief. Here is a look at the Top 4 recent casino heists on the Gulf Coast.

1. Governor Edwin Edwards: The Louisiana Governor was convicted in 2000 on 17 federal racketeering and fraud counts. He was accused of selling $1.5 million off in riverboat licenses to the highest bidder. He’s now serving a 10-year sentence.

2. Slot Skimmers: 11 people conspired to scam slots at the Isle of Capri Casino in Lake Charles for three months in 2001. About $1 million dollars was stolen with only $700,000 recovered. In on the con were slot techs, surveillance officers, casino employees and a few outsiders.

3. The Washer:  Lake Charles drug king-pin Troy Marks bought $1.6 million in casino chips with drug money over a two-year period at eight different casinos. He lost more than $400,000, but was still able to report about $1.3 million to the IRS before getting caught in his money laundering scam.

4. The Honey Buns Bandit: On September 30th, 2003, Lynn Stevenson, a topless dancer, walked into the Grand Casino in Tunica County, Miss., carrying a gift-wrapped package. She found a cashier, demanded money and placed the box, which she claimed contained explosives, between them, then walked away with $60,000. No explosives were found in the box, just a bunch of honey buns.

A fool and his money are soon parted. The sports betting public is full of such fools. Don’t be shy about it; when you make a bet, you’re trying to take advantage of these people. You do it by being smarter about sports, and by being smarter about betting.

The second area is usually lost on the casual bettor. The Internet drops encyclopedias worth of sports information at our doorsteps every day. There is a huge demand for this; some Average Joes even become sports experts. But how many of them become money experts?

Every account in your name – savings, checking, credit card and betting bankroll alike – requires management. Even if you bet purely for entertainment, you presumably want to get the biggest bang for your buck. Tear yourself away from ESPN8 for a moment and acquaint yourself with the basics of risk and reward. And remember the Golden Rule: Never bet more than you can afford to lose.

Technicians over at Executive Gaming Monthly are greening the casino industry. EMG is bringing 100% eco-friendly gaming products, including casino tables and chairs to the casino market and luxury markets. They have developed and manufactured the first line of eco-friendly gaming products this industry has seen. With sustainable design they are taking the casino gaming industry to a new level of green.

They have designed products like Poker, Roulette, Blackjack and Mini-Baccarat Tables and any kind of seating a casino would need. The best part is that all of it is built with no gas or chemical runoff to cause pollutants into our air and water. They are also using recycled material for building material.

EMG also provides custom services where you can choose from a variety of environmentally conscious options. This is just one way that industries are becoming more and more progressive and changing the way they do things to flow with the changing world around us. This will lead us to a truly rich life.

If you want to make some easy money you can set up a casino in your own home. Setting up a poker game isn’t a hard thing to do. All you need is a table, cards and chips. Slot machines and video poker games can usually be purchased if they’re 20 years old or older. It depends on which State you live in as to the legalities of privately-owned slot machines.

Casino tables can be purchased for “charity functions” or rented for different time periods. A new roulette table will run you $2500, but you will earn that back in a few days. A craps table will cost about the same, but you might have a hard time finding enough people to keep it going for a profitable amount of time. Just be careful not to draw too much attention to your private casino; they are illegal in most places.