Casinos to get Vegas-style regulator under legalization plan

Does Tokyo need to hoard ALL the money?

Can't they spread the wealth around this archipelago a bit more?

The rest of the country is hurting and this would be a nice shot in the arm for them.

"To address those concerns, the draft plan calls for the creation of an agency that would have control over the issuing of licenses and the policing of gaming operations."

And that agency will be made up of former government officials who are in bed with organized crime. Nothing will change save that more money will be paid for a new agency.

"According to the draft plan, a transparent bidding process should be established so that local governments would be on an equal footing with the big cities."

SHOULD be, but won't. You would think they would make it mandatory, but this is Japan, and getting rid of bid-rigging and kickbacks is not an easy thing to do.

In any case, are they going to change gambling laws? Isn't gambling illegal in Japan? Will you have to take your chips to the 'donation booth' adjacent to the casino to cash them in?

Casinos will bring in tax revenue to the government, and heaps of money to construction companies and the companies they subcontract to, but it will crush the people.

Corporate governance is as we know a "strength" in Japan I can't see how this could possibly go wrong, unless they get some whistle blowing foreigner in?

If this help reduce Japanese debt, I'm all for it. Isn't it better than having much higher tax?

They may be able to keep out organized crime but they won't be able to keep out all the social problems that stem from compulsive gambling. (And believe me, absolutely anyone can become a compulsive gambler: doctors, nurses, lawyers, housewives, I've seen them all get hooked on the drug that gambling can become). Plus, of course, all those casino profits will come from money that would otherwise be spent in other businesses. Gamblers don't just lose "money", they lose the new fridge or telly and sometimes even the grocery money. After that, come the loans with extortionate interest rates and, in more than a few instances, financial ruin for both the rich and the not so rich. Pachinko can be bad enough, but casinos are a whole new ballgame. Why inflict these potential problems on a society with the flimsy (and arguably) false excuse of generating more tax profits and more jobs? Meanwhile the despicable vultures in Vegas are lining up to swoop.

I understand your concern about problem gambling.

If you walk into any game center you will see people of all ages (as young as junior high school students) gambling. The game centers have slot machines, poker , Mah Jong, roulette and elaborate horse racing gambling systems.

There are also takarakuji, horse, bicylcle, motorcycle and motorboat racing gambling availabe to the punter.

What I am saying is there is plenty of unregulated gambling in Japan at the moment and noboby seems to think that it is a problem. Maybe it is and maybe it is just a little time killer for the unemployed.

So I don't fell that a whole generation of people will start gambling just becuase there is a casino up the street.

As for "a flimsy or false excuse for generating more tax": anyway of collecting tax from anyone but me is fine with me.

And Casinos definately bring in the money. That's what they are for.

The policy outline, which was prepared by Japanese lawmakers who favor casinos

Let the lunatics take over the asylum

...the agency charged with policing casinos would be attached to the Cabinet and not part of any ministry. That is intended to prevent corruption and... “amakudari”

Are people really gullible enough to buy that one?

This could end up becoming a double-edged sword. I hope that the societal ills that come from gambling can be avoided.

If you walk into any game center you will see people of all ages (as young as junior high school students) gambling. The game centers have slot machines, poker , Mah Jong, roulette and elaborate horse racing gambling systems.

Yes, but this isn't real gambling, they just win medals / coins which they can use to play other games until they lose them all. They cannot exchange these medals for cash so I think this game center stuff is a quite a bit different from real pachinko parlours.

And Casinos definately bring in the money. That's what they are for.

Yes, money that won't be spent elsewhere.

There are also takarakuji, horse, bicylcle, motorcycle and motorboat racing gambling availabe to the punter.

Casinos are completely different in so many ways. People who would never dream of going to the above places, which are basically low-life hangouts, will flock to a casino with its entertainment, plush restaurants and bars (all funded of course, by losers). In addition, what a person can lose in hours at pachinko can be lost in seconds at a casino.

As for "a flimsy or false excuse for generating more tax": anyway of collecting tax from anyone but me is fine with me.

Do you honestly think you'll be paying less tax if casinos are legalized? And most of the money lost in casinos would have been taxed anyway if spent on goods and services through consumption tax.

Legalizing casino gambling is a great step. The next step is to convert Okinawa to the Vegas of Asia. It is a win, win, win situation. USA military - out of Okinawa (no more bad boy problems; Japanese airlines and hotel chains provide transportation and hotels/restaurants; small businesses benefit from the Asian tourist industry (little plastic Sky Towers, etc.)

Having a truly "independent" body with power runs counter to the Japanese way. Just look what Abe did to the BoJ.

@billyshears

Your concern about the potential social problems is admirable, so would you propose a new form of prohibition for the 21st century? Let's ban alcohol, smoking, pachinko, horse racing and all the other evils that strangely, for the majority of people, provide some pleasure. I don't gamble, ever, doesn't mean I want to prevent others from doing so. It's all about choice.

mrs. Adelson who is also has Phd and wife of LV Sands ownere Shelon Adleson created a facilty to help Alcoholics and gamble addicted people. ...... Gaming Control Bard in Nevada === very powerful. Once it put your name on its blackbook, you can't get in any casino. You can;t even use their bath room,. ..... Minor gambling prohibition, When I moved to Lasvegas from Newport Beach, I went Har rock to compute probablity of different video poker machines. I am not tall like American ladies. An attendent tapped my shoulder and told me a minor can not gamble. I had to show my IXD card. Table games and roulettes are for gamblers. There is no pachinko machines. There is no state tax or sales tax in Nevada. Casinos pay enough to enable state can operate. Gaming control commissioners get salary as State employees - not much. Harry Reid of US Senate top was a gminig Control member. He took casino license away from Chicago mob agents who owned casinos or worked in casinos that one day, his wife found a bomb in their car. They only had one car. it is safer now for commissioners. Reid;s political careers started after that. I don't know what is Melco. .......... MGM, LV Sands, and Wynn have mega resort in SE Asia and also many places bin other east side USA, Table Games, tourists play, Locals, itf they play,video Games. Slots, tourists love. Nevada;s unemployment rate is very high because many people move in. Casinos give emplyment openiing interviews . We don;t have Japan Inc in Nevada.

Pandora's Box will soon be open and once it is open we will have a thought for people who will lose their life because of gambling.

Let's ban alcohol, smoking, pachinko, horse racing and all the other evils that strangely, for the majority of people, provide some pleasure.

Your argument doesn't make sense. Why create a new social problem that at present doesn't exist? And for "the majority of people" gambling doesn't provide "some pleasure", it provides an adrenalin rush with a high possibility of addiction, like a drug. As you don't ever gamble, you obviously don't understand the sensation and therefore its possible consequences. However, if a member of your family became a compulsive gambler in a casino in Japan, you'd rue the day these places ever became legalized. Compulsive gamblers have as much chance of a stable family life as an alcoholic or drug addict.

Why create a new social problem that at present doesn't exist?

Gambling exists in Japan already, in many places, just casinos are outlawed. Is gambling at a casino any different to gambling at the horse races? At pachinko? At the boat races? No it isn't. I've heard stories in the UK of people getting so obsessed with the national lottery that they become mentally ill. Should we ban that too? I assume you have seen the lines outside the local pachinko hall at 8.30 every morning...

And for "the majority of people" gambling doesn't provide "some pleasure", it provides an adrenalin rush with a high

Very true, it's called entertainment to some people, like jumping out of planes, motor racing...... oohh lets ban that too. I have no figures but I'd say the VAST majority of people who enjoy a flutter will not become addicted, and unless it can be proved otherwise, then let people make the choice themselves.

@ Speed I don't think a Casino in the middle of Mie would attract many visitors

The more yakuza-run pachinko parlours (ie. all of them) this puts out of business, the better...

So the Yaks will be regulating the casinos?

So the Yaks will be regulating the casinos?

Already regulate the government don't they? :-)

Is gambling at a casino any different to gambling at the horse races? At pachinko? At the boat races? No it isn't.

Yes, it is. Very, very different. Casinos attract people who would never normally gamble and who definitely would never go into a pachinko parlor or go to the boat races. It would, without a shadow of a doubt, open up a whole new section of society to gambling.

Finally a home-made solution for the Yakuza to launder black money from prostitution and drugs. Their politicians are well worth the money spent on them.

Casinos attract people who would never normally gamble

Yes, people like me, who don't like tea ceremonies, temples, origami, endless Buddhist chanting etc. As in other places like Las Vegas, there will be other attractions. And I still won't gamble. Why not improve the tourism potential?

My comment was deleted so this time, I write that these 4 organizations created mega-resort hotels in Macau which replaced No 1. legalized casino-hotels area in the world. Their customers are mainly wealthy Chinese from China.

Tourist potential? LOL. I know the casino industry very well. They call those who don't gamble "maggots". This is an article about casinos in the US will give you an idea of what Japan can expect.

The "dark side" of gambling legislation. Notwithstanding benefits for education and employment, gambling's proliferation will inherently spread the addiction—at rates some experts predict will devastate millions of Americans. "All this government backing makes gambling sound harmless," says Fong, "but there is a dark side that many state governments are downplaying."

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/gambling-addicts-seduced-growing-casino-accessibility-article-1.1301339

In related news, a coalition from the alcohol and tobacco industries will partner with representatives from high school baseball teams to formulate ways to better distribute these products.

There's no reason the first casinos need to be in the big metropolitan areas. Tokyo would be guaranteed to get one because of the Olympics, but many casinos outside of Vegas have revived employment in areas of depressed economy. Casinos are big money-makers for Indian Reservations in the United States.

As for the risk of organized crime, there's no way to eliminate that risk because organized crime will ALWAYS go where the money is. That said, even a casino completely owned by organized crime is basically going to be a "legit" enterprise because odds have been standardized across the globe. There's no need to "fleece" the customers because the house odds guarantee the casino always takes in more than they pay out. Where organized crime made a killing (pardon the pun) in gambling is with illegal gambling because they could set whatever odds they wanted.

Gambling addiction is a very real problem and the major casino centers in America are trying to caution their guests about it. If Japanese casinos followed a similar plan such as the one in the following link, then that would go a long way towards addressing the problem: http://www.caesars.com/corporate/about-us-responsible-gaming.html

If Japanese casinos followed a similar plan such as the one in the following link, then that would go a long way towards addressing the problem: http://www.caesars.com/corporate/about-us-responsible-gaming.html

It would go nowhere near towards addressing "the problem" because Japan's problem would be that thousands upon thousands of people (no exaggeration; in the US the figure is now in the millions, see link above) who, at present have no interest in gambling, are going to become addicted. "Revived employment" is basically an over-hyped myth spread by guess who? When New Jersey allowed casinos into Atlantic City back in 1977, casino advocates promised that gambling would revive the town's fading economy. The casinos did create jobs as promised. But merchants who expected foot traffic to return to the city's main street, Atlantic Avenue, were sorely disappointed. The money that comes to the casinos, stays in the casinos. Liquor stores and cash-for-gold outlets now line the city's once-premier retail strip. The impact of casinos on local property values is "unambiguously" negative, according to the National Association of Realtors. Casinos do not revive local economies. They act as parasites upon them. Communities located within 10 miles of a casino exhibit double the rate of problem gambling. Unsurprisingly, such communities also suffer higher rates of home foreclosure and other forms of economic distress and domestic violence. http://www.krcrtv.com/news/Frum-The-harm-that-casinos-do/-/14286064/22091066/-/4n4r8e/-/index.html

Ha. That "report" was based entirely on something that came out of the "Institute for American Values". If the name sounds suspicious, it should. They ALSO criticize the concept of divorce. I guess to them it's much better to remain in an abusive/loveless relationship than to break from it. A Holy Roller by any other name, still smells just as foul. (with apologies to Shakespeare)

Yakuza Organizations; made-man (oyabuns and aniki-buns) must be mad at this new movements. their illegal gambling arena will lose their customers, reducing theiir tera-sen kasegi (earnings) in their niwaba (territories) in tnawa-baris. Especially Anegasaki Ikka, Sumiyoshi-kai and Kyokuto Ikka in Tokyo.