JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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1
Why do Japanese change their attitude when they communicate with foreigners?
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2
U.S. Navy investigating how parts fell off aircraft near Atsugi
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3
Confrontation
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4
California court to decide if SeaWorld whales are illegal 'slaves'
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5
Kuroki reported pregnant 2 weeks after denying relationship with Akanishi
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- Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in Kanto region
- RCS (RCSコーポレーション), Kanto
- Salary: ¥180,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month includes performance bonus
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- Assistant Language Teacher - TOKYO - late-March start
- Interac, Tokyo
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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- Assistant Language Teacher - Kanagawa Prefecture - late-March start
- Interac, Kanagawa
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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Betzee
i'm not sure if i could be any clearer about appeasement. if you want to single out GWB for his past sins go right ahead, but why stop there? Clinton's appeasement didn't work either. Both failed to contain NOKO and both are reminders that appeasing NOKO does not work.
In both cases outgoing administrations tried to "claim progress" by reaching some deal. That's a bad idea. Pyongyang knows full well the next administration may chart a different course. Yet Reagan and Thatcher were successful in negotiating with Gorbachev. As the Iron Lady said after their first meeting, "He's a man we can do business with." Many hawks disagreed. Yet they were right and it reflected an appreciation of the benefits of pursuing both tracks simultaneously rather than talking tough and then being forced to back down and negotiating out of weakness (which is what happened with GWB).
Posted in: S Korean, U.S. troops on alert after North's threats
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Betzee
Appeasement will be tried at the behest of our weak president and will fail just as other more infamous appeasement attempts have failed in the past.
Shouldn't that be put in the past tense to describe GWB's deal with North Korea last November in which Pyongyang agreed to give up its nuclear program in exchange for being removed from Washington's state sponsors of terrorism list that has now collapsed?
Posted in: S Korean, U.S. troops on alert after North's threats
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Betzee
While we don't know much about North Korea, one thing we do know is that it took Kim Il-Jong a while to acquire the military titles his father held. That would indicate he faced resistance from the military in succeeding his father. They sure ain't gonna accept his son.
Kim Jong-Il is a typical first generation communist brat who inherited his revolutionary privileges rather than earning them. I assume he served in the North Korean Army but it was no doubt an easy tour of duty. He spent quite a while in East Germany "studying," a great privilege unavailable to the ordinary person.
The North Korean Army is considered professional. Officers who've defected to the South are an impressive bunch. One measure we use in assessing the quality of the armed forces of country X is whether villagers welcome troops into their community on the assumption they are there to help or whether they lock up all the women in an undisclosed location and keep their food supply hidden. That would be the case with the soldier-pillager. There are certainly armies which are little more than thugs in uniform. That's not the case with North Korea, however.
Posted in: S Korean, U.S. troops on alert after North's threats
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Betzee
According to a credible source:
North Korea’s military, officially known as the Korean People’s Army (KPA), is one of the world’s largest. According to recent estimates, there are approximately 1.2 million active-duty members in the North Korean military, a number surpassed only by the much larger countries of China, the United States, and India. North Korea’s overall military spending may consume as much as one quarter of the nation’s GDP.
All North Korean men serve for at least 10 years of active duty in the KPA (military), with conscription beginning at age 17. After they are discharged from active duty, North Korean men are then required to carry out part-time service in the Workers and Peasants Red Guard between the ages of 40 and 60. Some North Korean women also serve in the military, although their service is not mandatory.
http://fieldsupport.lingnet.org/products/cip/korea/cip_kor/default.html
Posted in: S Korean, U.S. troops on alert after North's threats
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Betzee
As a Golden Stater, I think the court's decision, which will throw it back to the electorate, is a good thing. Prop 8, which trailed for quite a while, passed with just 52 percent of the vote. It is said proponents created a disinformation campaign scaring parents by telling them, "it will force schools to promote the gay lifestyle." A re-vote is almost certain and far preferable to a judicial ruling. Young voters overwhelmingly support same sex marriage and there are more of them every year.
Even since November, the ground has shifted quite a bit. The northern New England states have all legalized same-sex marriage. More libertarian than liberal, our country's "live free or die" roots were planted there. Hell, you don't even need to fly across the country, gay couples need go no further than Iowa.
My brother, a long-term resident of California, was married in Maine over two decades ago. No one has ever questioned his status. A gay couple could do the same thing. Yet it wouldn't be the same; the Federal Defense of Marriage Act prevents married gay couples from, for example, filing a joint tax return. What possible concern is it to the state whether it's a same sex couple or heterosexual?
Gay families have been profiled in the newspaper, including those where one partner is a foreign national with no basis to remain in the USA. If they were heterosexual, it'd be no problem, the other partner could sponsor him/her. Here, too, the lack of federal recognition is breaking up families.
Posted in: Calif high court upholds gay marriage ban
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Betzee
No, what we Americans have seen over the last few weeks is former Vice President, Sec. of Defense, and WH Chief of Staff Dick Cheney bringing to bear his considerable experience in matters of defense and national security and doing for America (and the free world) invaluable, long overdue work: he has magisterially schooled our arrogant rookie president.
Rookie president? You must mean GWB. He was the one who gave undue weight to the opinions of some of those with long resumes, like Donald Rumsfeld ("it could last six weeks or six months") and Dick Cheney ("we will be greeted as liberators") in an effort to go down in the history books as the president who brought democracy to the Arab Middle East.
There was another wise man, whose relevant experience trumped that of either the VP or the Secy of Defense. That would be Colin Powell, who famously observed "you break it and you own it." In some ways, the focus on the use of torture, though welcome, enables us to avoid acknowledging the 800-pound gorilla in the room, namely what have we accomplished in Afghanistan after nearly eight years? Obama will be under pressure to define the mission. And "we're fighting them over there so we don't have to face them here" isn't going to cut it.
As for torture, I think proponents take pleasure in imagining sticking it to bad guys in a painful and personal way. John McCain, incidentally, was against it before he was for it. The base let him know, gotta toe the line on this (and everything else). His personal experience counted for zilch.
I have yet to hear any professional claim torture gets worthwhile results. On the contrary, they feel it doesn't. You can get somebody to confess, whether it's truthful or not, but not fill in the details of how the organization works which is crucial to disabling it. We know it was used at Gitmo to establish a link between Saddam and Al Qaeda. You want that confirmed? No problemo....
Colin Powell's cautionary words should have been heeded. Contrary to some of the dismissive posters here, the military is very worried about the rising number of suicides. It's understandable the commanders in the field don't want the photos released which would increase the danger on troops who've already sacrificed to complete repeated deployments. Yet "national security" cannot be used to hide official wrong doing. It appears that is the case here.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
I know. But those charged were not in a position to defend themselves, officers would be.
Those abuses occurred during a period when US troop casualties were increasing, which was a political problem for an administration that claimed "we'll be greeted as liberators." The "employees" at Abu Graib were instructed to "get rough" to get intel. Not Lynndie England, but others have been charged for following orders as they understood them.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
This issue should widen, and not highlight America, it must focus on all the other torturers and human rights abusers. We can start with Japan's "confession" trial system, cross the water to the land-grab protesters of China, after traveling either through Laos or Vietnam, and pop into Burma. If we choose to head towards Bagram via N. Korea, we can...
We're hardly in a position to criticize others. I mean, Condi's "violence never solves anything" to the Chinese last year fell kinda flat, don't ya think?
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
to determine if charges are warranted and if so, how far up the chain-of-command those charges should go.
We know how far up they went under GWB, no higher than Lynndie England.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
Be a good student now.
Anyone who cannot list learning objectives has no business claiming to be an educator. The lesson here is that the the United States deviates from the Powell Doctrine, study up on it please, at it's own risk.
Afghanistan is Exhibit A of what can happen in a guerrilla war. Each year the opium harvest, which occurs in April, is bigger than the year before. That gives the Taliban, and whoever else, access to a whole lotta cash.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
Did GWB think before he rejected the assistance of our NATO allies almost eight years ago? Eight years???? Did he "flip flop" when he tried to get them to send more troops? "Oh, no, you said we would just slow you down."
One wonders if GWB was even aware of the Soviet's decade long occupation of Afghanistan, backing a government that had no more control than Karzai does. They went home and the empire collapsed.
Despite having used torture (and photographed victims), by the look of things in Afghanistan we can hardly claim victory is "in sight."
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
the basic premise of the lecturer was "Nuke 'em until they glow in the dark," which I thought was a rather reactionary foreign policy stance. It makes me laugh thinking about it now. Can you imagine if some politican or military commander said something like that now?
The problem is we have the ability to project "overwhelming force" which makes other states loath to tangle with us. But obviously we can't do so here and hence are stuck fighting a guerrilla war that we are ill-equipped to win. The Karzai government is hopeless. But as we learned in Vietnam the hard way, any leader who succeeds him won't be a whole lot better.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
one long, four-year 'teaching moment' for the Left.
What exactly are we supposed to be learning? Let's say the photos are released and some heinous revenge type killing of US troops in the field takes place. Of course the Right would jump in and point out, "The Libs just don't understand how heathen these hajis are, even when this happens."
We have been in Afghanistan close to eight years now. The situation there appears to be close to disastrous. Yet when we went in, the assistance of our NATO allies was rejected dismissively on the grounds "they will just slow us down."
So how is this winning? We've drained our treasury to support the "war on terror" and had to lower the standards of those inducted into the armed forces repeatedly just to get boots on the ground.
Posted in: Obama says releasing detainee abuse photos would endanger U.S. troops
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Betzee
one year of social security or medicare budget is the equalivalent of all the money the US has spent for both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan combined.
GWB didn't help when he undertook the biggest expansion of the welfare state since LBJ by expanding Medicare to include a prescription drug benefit. Where were folks like Sailwind when that happened? I was helping my parents sign up for it. I don't know any eligible senior, whatever their politics, who hasn't taken advantage of it.
I suspect the majority of posters here decrying the cost of social programs and government involvement are themselves covered by public sector insurance programs.
Posted in: U.S. recession hits Social Security and Medicare
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Betzee
terrifying Rush Limbaugh?
He's only terrifying to Republicans who want to express views contrary to the party line. That's the problem and it can't be solved by bashing liberals.
Posted in: Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell
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Betzee
Bizarre it right, though watching the Republican Party stomp its way into irrelevancy, led by none other than el Rushbo da man himself, is amusing given how oblivious many of the rank and file seem to be to the danger as they continue to mount the same old assaults on liberals.
Posted in: Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell
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Betzee
Yabits,
I really feel I've gained insight into what it must have been like to live through the Chinese Cultural Revolution in which disgraced leaders were revealed to be "capitalist roaders." Now it's ranking Republicans who are first tarred as RINOs and then "Democrats." (Colin Powell has not changed his party affiliation.)
Incidentally, the capitalist roaders, really non-ideologues, turned out to be right.
Posted in: Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell
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Betzee
When did "liberals" become so terrified of that which they could not sanction and micromanage?
The question you should be addressing is why the Republican Party is so terrified of representing a range of voices. You have to march in lockstep or you are personae non grata.
Colin Powell wouldn't waste his time criticizing Rush Limbaugh, but those who have have been forced to apologize to remain in the party's good graces. So much for recognizing the right to hold different opinions and a loyal opposition and all that.
Posted in: Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell
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Betzee
Adverts,
There's a woman in my office who reported a while back, "My uncle is a staff sargeant and he says they're now taking convicts!" I assumed she meant those with criminal records which would have disqualified them during peacetime when the military can be choosier. But perhaps she was right.....
Posted in: American soldier guns down 5 fellow troops at U.S. military base in Iraq
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Betzee
No amount of effort to make it about Jeremiah Wright will change the fact trashing Colin Powell, and dismissing his long record of accomplishment as the result of affirmative action, reflects the "better red than expert" mentality of the current Republican Party leadership.
Posted in: Cheney backs Limbaugh over Powell