What do you think about the Japanese photojournalist who wants to go to Syria and Iraq?

If he insists on going, have him, his family, and three witnesses sign a waiver absolving the government of any responsibility for his safety.

It's easy to say 'make him sign a waiver', but then they'd have to start making everyone who leaves the country sign a waiver. There is danger everywhere.

I say let him go without a waiver, and publicly state that anyone who chooses to go to any areas that the government recommends not visiting take their safety into their own hands, and that the government will not be able to negotiate for their release if they are kidnapped. They can even pass out pamphlets as people pass through immigration.

Let him GO! Its his job he has been doing it for a while now!! This is ridiculous these restrictions!!

Hey Japan how the hell are you going to get the news if you don't go there & report on it??? What are you going to do force everyone to learn English s o we don't need J-Tv?? Hey I may be onto something there!!!

People say the government should just make him sign a contract. The problem with that is these people's families never are willing to just say, "oh, well he signed a contract" when they end up in the hands of the child molesters, ISIS. People are always p***ing and moaning about how the government didn't send in the troops for little Timmy.

"they'd have to start making everyone who leaves the country sign a waiver" - Not everybody, just the people who want to go to an active war zone, where kidnappings have been known to occur, and take pictures of the 'sh@t hitting the fan' as it were.

He can do whatever he likes, just don't expect me to pay for it.

This is a nation of "little kiddies"... when BIG Daddy says NO he means it...

For heaven's sakes ! He's only trying to do his job and even if his "passport" officially belongs to the government, his life certainly does NOT, it belongs to HIM and HIM alone...

Let him go! However, he shouldn't expect any sympathy when he gets caught and is paraded in an orange jumpsuit.

If ISIS actually actually did kidnap/kill him, it would be big news in Japan and possibly internationally too. It wouldn't matter if a waiver was signed or if the government said they wouldn't negotiate, it could become a large-scale international incident, just like the recent case with Goto and the 'contractor'.

The issue is bigger than just the photojournalist's desire to exercise his 'rights'.