Hawaiʻi's Technology Community
Singapore, of all places, allows gambling, to apparent success - could Hawaii do the same?
Note the limitations and conditions. Adopting these in Hawaii might address some of the concerns about bringing gambling here. Or might not.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-singapore-casinos-20110622,0,...
Singapore transforms into a gambling hot spot
The traditionally uptight Asian city-state is poised to eclipse Las Vegas next year as the world's second largest gaming destination after lifting a decades-old ban on gambling and opening two new casinos last year. At the same time, the government has enacted regulations that make it difficult for Singaporeans to gamble.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Leighton K. Chong on
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Hi Ken:
Mahalo for raising this unpopular "local" issue again. Nobody in Hawaii likes to even consider gambling as a potential business development (job-creating!) activity, almost like it is social leprosy or some such equivalent. Yet out of a population of 1.3 million, almost 25% of Hawaii residents go to Las Vegas every year. Now that China is shaping up to be the next big tourism growth market for Hawaii, can we continue to ignore the fact that Chinese (and most Asians generally) like gaming as an entertainment activity when relaxing, like our occasionaly throwaway with Lotto or "side" betting on the UH Warriors? Or shall we in the interest of our self-proclaimed Christian puritanical purity continue to insist that Hawaii is 100% non-gaming, non-smoking, non-swimsuit optional, non-foreign-language-signage, non-gay-tolerant, non-mass-transit, non-sex-services, non-fun, non-do-anything other than come look at our beaches, ocean and sunsets? If polluting our own Hawaii residents is the concern of the puritanical crowd, whoever said allowing gaming n Hawaii should mean allowing Hawaii residents to gamble at tourism resort gaming establishments? You can always pass a law saying foreigners welcome, but Hawaii residents not allowed to gamble. See how well that goes over with the puritanical-seeming crowd!
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Permalink Reply by Ken Berkun on
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Did you see the recent article in the Star Advertiser about Bingo on the military bases? Turns out we already have gambling here, I had no idea:
http://www.staradvertiser.com/newspremium/hawaiinewspremium/2011090...
Ken
Leighton K. Chong said:Hi Ken:
Mahalo for raising this unpopular "local" issue again. Nobody in Hawaii likes to even consider gambling as a potential business development (job-creating!) activity, almost like it is social leprosy or some such equivalent. Yet out of a population of 1.3 million, almost 25% of Hawaii residents go to Las Vegas every year. Now that China is shaping up to be the next big tourism growth market for Hawaii, can we continue to ignore the fact that Chinese (and most Asians generally) like gaming as an entertainment activity when relaxing, like our occasionaly throwaway with Lotto or "side" betting on the UH Warriors? Or shall we in the interest of our self-proclaimed Christian puritanical purity continue to insist that Hawaii is 100% non-gaming, non-smoking, non-swimsuit optional, non-foreign-language-signage, non-gay-tolerant, non-mass-transit, non-sex-services, non-fun, non-do-anything other than come look at our beaches, ocean and sunsets? If polluting our own Hawaii residents is the concern of the puritanical crowd, whoever said allowing gaming n Hawaii should mean allowing Hawaii residents to gamble at tourism resort gaming establishments? You can always pass a law saying foreigners welcome, but Hawaii residents not allowed to gamble. See how well that goes over with the puritanical-seeming crowd!
ble
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Permalink Reply by Brian on
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Cool, so we can transition from a tourism economy to a gambling tourism economy. Progress! It's like we replaced pineapples with trays of poker chips.
Macao has had gambling for decades. If Singapore jumps in - good luck competing with that. Sure you'll get the "beach and baccarat" niche, but to see this as the plan for the state? Ah and just think, our daughters can grow up to be whores and strippers. Or if they're ugly, card dealers! Ah the possibilities.
The plantation mindset that lingers in Hawaii drives so many problems it's just pathetic.
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Permalink Reply by Daniel Leuck on
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Hey Guys - I know people have strong feelings on this subject but please keep the discussion respectful. Thank you.
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No offense taken, Brian. Your comment only underscores the point I was making, since it is the image that people opposed to gambling often conjure up to make a values argument against gambling. But I wonder how relevant such images are today. It is certainly not the image I have of modern day gambling. I've been to casinos in Monte Carlo where men are dressed in tuxedos and ladies in evening dresses and drive up in chauffered limos. My wife visited the megacasinos at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and said they are very posh and ultrachic. Even the casinos in Vegas are now primarily family entertainment themed, and would not last long if they catered to johns and drunks. The old Hollywood images in Nicolas Cage and Robert deNiro movies are not what responsible people have in mind when discussing the attractiveness of world class tourism options and economic development.
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No, my points in no way support your premise. And it's not an image, it's reality.
Monaco is a tax haven. It also is a monarchy and has a land area of less than a square mile. More people live within a mile radius of me than in the entire principality. Prince Albert has been trying to kick out the high profile undesirables but to deny it is built atop offshored cash and money laundering is simply disingenuous.
And of course casinos are pretty. You're not going to attract cash without flash. How exactly does that help people in Hawaii? By sheer proximity of there being fancy casinos nearby? No doubt if we had a flash casino there would be people showing up in tuxedos and limos, but our children are going to be the ones driving them, not riding them.
Anyway, in the case of Monte Carlo, a lot of the "women in evening gowns" are on the clock too.
Singapore is actually very similar. Strong government. Small country that's easy to manage. Good location (proximate to $$$ much like Monaco.There is a very fiscal reason why there are many Russian women in Singapore at clubs. Vegas has as many hookers as ever, they've just gotten more sophisticated. The unsavory elements haven't disappeared, they've simply bought in. Why rob a bank when you can own one?
So if you consider upscale prostitution (with the really scary stuff underground), money laundering, and a boom of service jobs to be a positive direction, then casinos are a great choice for Hawaii. The reality is, a few people will get richer, and most will still be screwed.
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Oh and Ken, not sure why Singapore allowing gambling is so shocking, considering prostitution is also "tolerated" there. I think many people have a skewed view of Singapore due that brat that was caned years ago + antilittering laws, etc.
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I've spent a lot of time in Singapore (admittedly some years ago) and have more than a passing familiarity with it. They have strong moral standards, in some ways similar to Hawaii. They seem to have overcome those in the desire to make money. I am neither for nor against gambling in Hawaii, I simply thought that the article was interesting as was the one about Bingo.
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Notice that Brian reflexively conjures images of prostitution as a silent "scarecrow" against casinos but never mentions the vastly greater economic benefits (casino jobs, tourists visits, construction, economic multiplier effects) created by offering world class tourism options in a tourism destination. In the same way images of auto accidents can be used as an argument against allowing people to drive. All we learn from this discussion is that Brian has an issue with prostitution.
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Permalink Reply by Ben Ward on
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Speaking of gambling and techies, anyone interested in working on touch screen gambling machines?
I have been playing around with multitouch tables for a while. Unfortunately, I've been too slammed to go it alone.
I have a 42" inch portable podium and a 60" table.
Here is a link of me djing on the smaller one which is portable.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6010/6010682545_cfdcd91e5c.jpg
Here is an example of what I am talking about.
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/euroblock-star-roulette-table
Also popular in game centers as well.
http://applenapps.com/feature/fruit-ninja-is-now-playing-on-a-46-to...
This is a smart idea. Take hit mobile games and blow them up. Unfortunately, game centers are a dying breed.
Gambling though, that might be interesting.
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Permalink Reply by Bruce M. Bird on
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Hi, Ken.
Interesting article. A few years ago, I mentioned the possibility of Hawaii considering having a state lottery in which a significant amount of its net proceeds would go to furthering higher education in Hawaii. For the most part, the comments I received were quite negative.
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