Alcohol in Japanese Society

The teenage boy walks down the street with a few yen in his pockets towards a large, softly glowing vending machine outside of a local grocery store. He's thirsty and pulls the coins from his pockets and slides them within a machine. He leans down pressing a button, selecting his beverage, and it plops down into the bin. The cold, metal can of Kirin beer is picked up, popped open, and drank from as the boy walks back down the street from where he came from. How is it possible that there are no ID checks, security, or control over the beverage?
In Japan, it is quite legal for alcohol to be sold to the common public without any kind of lawful control over it. In fact, in restaurants and bars in Japan, it's legally not required to check IDs.
In Japan, whether business or social gatherings it's quite common for alcohol to be the main drink ordered. In fact, many business meetings take place while both parties are inebriated and rare parties, if any, are without a large supply of Japanese beer, wine, or sake.
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