Beelzebub said...

Beelzebub at 03:50 PM JST - 4th August

It's a ripoff of the Ricoh GR Digital II, right down to the viewfinder and pop-up flash. I guess the company is determined to live up to its reputation for being known as "Maneshia." (Maneru* is Japanese for "to imitate".)

Posted in New Lumix digital cameras at 03:50 PM JST - 4th August
Beelzebub at 11:01 AM JST - 4th August

A sociologist at UCLA concluded that if you attend a Japanese primary school for six years and you'll be "emotionally" Japanese, regardless of your DNA. That's what free public education does.

Posted in 1 out of 30 babies born in Japan had non-Japanese parent in 2006 at 11:01 AM JST - 4th August
Beelzebub at 07:01 PM JST - 3rd August

The Japanese Red Army sowed a lot of havoc back in the 1970s, and I doubt if anyone could argue they helped make the world a better place. I remember when Okamoto Kozo and his two buddies shot up the Lod Airport arrival terminal in 1972. The Israelis didn't execute…

Posted in Japanese man held by Israeli authorities at 07:01 PM JST - 3rd August
Beelzebub at 01:46 PM JST - 3rd August

War remembrance in Japan seems too closely tied to the first two weeks of August, and particularly August 15, which happens to coincide with O-bon. This is convenient for NHK and the other TV broadcasters (who know viewers will be on vacation and don't have to worry too much about…

Posted in Do you get tired of all the news coverage of the A-bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki at this time each year? at 01:46 PM JST - 3rd August
Beelzebub at 11:39 AM JST - 3rd August

I guess the answer won't be known one way or the other until the results of the athletes' urine tests are announced. I just read that they're still disqualifying gold medal winners from the games in 2000!

Posted in Do you think the Olympic Games will be a success? at 11:39 AM JST - 3rd August
Beelzebub at 11:06 AM JST - 2nd August

*Hatoyama authorized the executions of 13 inmates, a record high for any justice minister, during the 10 months he was in office. *

This could not possibly be correct -- Japan had 47 executions in 1990 and averaged over 70 a year back in the 1960s so it should read…

Posted in Yasuoka supports death penalty at 11:06 AM JST - 2nd August
Beelzebub at 09:49 AM JST - 1st August

If they're going to hold the matches in a circus tent, they should wrestle against wild beasts. Now that would be interesting!

Posted in Battle over sumo event in Mongolia at 09:49 AM JST - 1st August
Beelzebub at 08:59 PM JST - 31st July

This turf war's been going on for two or three years now. What is it with these hoods in Kyushu? And what's down there that's worth killing each other over?

Posted in Ex-gangster shot to death in Fukuoka at 08:59 PM JST - 31st July
Beelzebub at 05:11 PM JST - 31st July

If they can have nonsmoking restaurants and train stations, they ought to have nonsmoking carriers. All violators should be keelhauled -- lengthwise.

Posted in Smoking blamed for fire on U.S. aircraft carrier; captain fired at 05:11 PM JST - 31st July
Beelzebub at 03:55 PM JST - 31st July

Here's an insightful excerpt from "The Nobility of Failure: Tragic Heroes in the History of Japan" by Ivan Morris, which I think really clarifies the cause and effect of the kamikaze strategy.

> Far from accomplishing its objective the Special Attack strategy may well have contributed to one of the…

Posted in Museum provides English translation of letters left by kamikaze pilots at 03:55 PM JST - 31st July