经济学人下载:"小赌怡情" 日本或放开博彩业限制(2)

Some politicians want to deter locals from visiting casinos by imposing an entry tax.
一些政治家们想通过征收入场税来阻止当地居民进入赌场。

Pachinko's seedy reputation is one reason.
其中之一就是因为柏青哥是出了名的乌烟瘴气。

Though the industry has shrunk by about 40% from its peak 20 years ago, there are still about 11,000 pachinko parlours—and thousands of addicts.
尽管柏青哥的发展和20年前的顶峰时期相比，下降了40%，但现在依然有一万多片柏青哥游戏厅以及数以千计的上瘾者。

Public hostility recently forced the mayor of Yokohama, one of three proposed sites for the resorts, to begin back-pedalling on her support.
横滨是三个计划将建设赌场区的城市之一，但是由于公众的强烈抵制，市长为了自己的支持率不得不做出让步。

Investors fear outbreaks of NIMBYism elsewhere, too.
投资方也害怕各地兴起邻避主义。

In a recent survey 75% of Japanese said they would not like a casino to be built near their homes.
最近的一项调查显示75%的受访者不愿意政府在自己家附近建赌场。

Officials in Osaka have come up with a way around this problem: they want to build a resort on an artificial island in Osaka Bay.
大阪官员们就这个问题想到了一个方法，就是在大阪湾附近的人工岛上建赌场区。

Well-heeled tourists, mainly from China, are expected to be the main punters, says Susumu Hamamura, a Komeito politician.
日本公明党政治家千叶进步表示，大部分来自中国的富豪游客将成为赌场区的顾客。

About 20m people visited Japan last year.
去年，来日本游玩的游客数量约有两千万。

The government wants to double this by 2020, along with the roughly ￥3.5trn that tourists spend annually.
政府希望到2020年，这个数字能够翻一番，同时游客在日本的开销能够达到每年3.5万亿日元。

Even if the casinos get off the ground, Japan faces stiff regional competition from Macau, Malaysia and Singapore.
就算日本的赌场业能够发展起来，也要同澳门、马来西亚、新加坡等地进行激烈的竞争。

What will give the country an edge, predicts Mr.Yonekawa, is Japanese culture.
千叶进步表示，能够让日本博彩业胜出一筹的将是日本的文化。

The proposed sites for another mooted resort, in Hokkaido, Japan's northernmost island, are onsen (hot spring) retreats, he points out. “Japanese cuisine and hospitality will win many customers.”
他指出，还有一个悬而未决的待开发地区是日本最北部的岛屿--北海道的温泉聚集区，日本的美食和服务将会吸引不少顾客。

Mr.Hamamura agrees.
千叶进步是同意建设赌场的。

He voted for the casino bill despite opposition from his own party boss because he believes it will be good for Japan.
尽管与自己所在政党的意见相左，他还是支持自己认为有益日本发展的产业。

“Over 140 countries have legal casinos; why should we be left out?” he asks.
他问道：“世界上有超过140个国家有赌场，为什么我们不能有？”

Even he accepts, however, that most Japanese are “emotionally” against casinos and will need to be convinced.
即便是他本人也承认，大部分日本人还是从情感上抵触赌场。

He plans to win them over, he says, by explaining one of the overlooked benefits of the resorts: they will give foreigners something to do at night.
千叶进步打算说服这些民众，他本人表示，我要告诉他们赌博区存在被忽略的好处之一就是能够让外国人在晚上有事可做。