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The Forum > General Discussion > Poker Machines - Blessing or Curse

Poker Machines - Blessing or Curse

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People make a strong argument in favour of poker machine players winning more frequently and losing less often by winnings being limited to $200 and thus requiring less losses to fund them. Should players' decisions be influenced by alcohol? Surely machines should not be rigged against players, but be as capable of losing as winning.Can we have good clubs, cheap meals and children’s sport, without taking the family housekeeping or mortgage repayments from the families of addicted players? Should gambling gains be taxed just like our pay packets and capital gains are with gambling losses only deductible against gambling gains? Do you think gambling losses are really good for society?
What do you think?
Posted by Voterland, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 3:40:53 PM
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Welcome, and thanks for the thread.
We have visited it before and it generates many views.
Not every one knows what clubs existed and what services they had before the once one armed bandits.
I have no doubt they fund better clubs and services.
And without them we would have fewer clubs, and very smaller ones.
But remain convinced we would be better without them.
Built in to all gambling is the fact owner of the game never faces loss.
A percentage to be retained is set before the first bet.
Any winner on these machines wins other players cash.
And far too many are hooked just as surely as any addict, to play them.
Curse is my answer.
In NSW pubs and Polly's acted like criminals , not in the public interests in this area.
Posted by Belly, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 4:59:53 PM
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nothing is all good
nuthin is all bad

too much of anything..can hurt
we know..the machine is rigged
yuet in usa..they vote by machine
and wonder why their guy dont get up

heck computers can be made to do
anything they like...

[no doudt with facial recognition
they soon will taylor...our plays and wins..
INDIVIDUALLY..according to our google search footprint..and my space..'favourites'..or other phycological annalisis..

indeed push the right buttons
we can all get adicted...cause our lives are just so empty

i gamble with food
comfort food...yes i know its killing me
but thats my own business..not govts

if you gamble...its not chance..your calling up
its about revenue raising..with state govt kickbacks
that tell police..to go police some other thing

[but not gambling/prostution...
cause they..*are on our side]..give them plenty of cash

its about revenue raising
so limits must be put on the addicts
not to spend more than they earn...or police will investigate fully

legislate facial recognition
ohhh..nope..they will know who you are
push your own buttons..dont gamble..or pay for sex

what is getting the curse
but cure spelt wrong
Posted by one under god, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 5:09:24 PM
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Owners of poker machines should give players a fair go. Machines should be un-rigged so the players can win all the money, just as they can lose it. Jackpots should be kept small to allow maximum fun for minimum loss. If pollies are to blame then maybe we should unelect those who support big losses by players.
Posted by FairGO4voters, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 5:37:57 PM
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I find all this talk about "rigging" and "unrigging" very odd.

>>Machines should be un-rigged so the players can win all the money, just as they can lose it.<<

A poker machine is designed - not rigged, designed - to deliver a specific return on the amount of money put into it. If you designed a machine where the odds were evens, i.e. where the punters would over time get all their money back, what would be the point of anyone installing one in the first place?

The science - or art, if you like - of putting one of these machines together is simply to keep the punter sufficiently interested that they actually imagine they may have a chance of beating the system, and therefore continue to play. And continue to lose.

I grew up in an age where these things were mechanical, rather than computer-driven. The design was purely mathematical, based upon the probabilities with which each winning line could physically appear. But the principle was precisely the same. You put money in. You got 90% back. You put that back in, and are left with 81%. You put that back in and have 72.9% left... and so on, until you run out.

Personally, I think that a poker machines is one of the most potent and revealing symptoms of how people today are losing touch with reality.

The reality is, the machine always wins.

It is designed to.

That is its purpose, it has no other.

It has no personality, no feelings, and cannot react to pleading, cajoling or weeping.

One of the most disheartening sights, in terms of hopes for a brighter future for mankind, is the row upon row of these machines you see in a club, with their flashing, tawdry lights and their incessant, tinny cacophony.

By definition, people who actually put money into these things are mathematically challenged, to the point where it should really be described as a profound disability.
Posted by Pericles, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 10:53:19 PM
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Excellent post, Pericles.

The disheartening thing is that those eastern states clubs have become reliant on these machines to stay afloat (it seems), so that people seem to think they're an indispensable feature of a club's social amenities.

For a West Aussie, this seems odd....I've mentioned before that there's a long standing ban on their introduction in WA (except for Burswood Casino)

In light of the problems engendered by them and the moronic debasing behaviour they induce, they should be outlawed.
Posted by Poirot, Tuesday, 14 February 2012 11:11:38 PM
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