JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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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
1
DS
I could never understand why hunting whales is different than hunting any other non-endangered animal. Protein is protein, whether on hoof or flying or swimming.
It also turns out that two of these nitnoys have health conerns (one has high cholesterol and another is ADHD- big surprise) and didn't bring their medication with them. They are also all apparently going to go on a hunger strike.
Not the sharpest knives in the kitchen, are they?
Source;
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/activists-on-japan-ship-have-health-fears-20120109-1pqnf.html
From the same article;
"Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has urged the Japanese government to bring the men back to Australia, but** because the incident took place in international waters,** the federal government is limited in what it can do."
Solves the argument over where the incident took place, I would say.
Posted in: Australian anti-whaling activists could face charges in Japan
4
DS
I dont see whaling as different from any other form of resource harvest/fishing. Most countries dont fish in their own waters, but in international waters. The whales killed are not endangered. I say let the free market decide whether or not there is a market for whale products.
As for the three activists, they look like they won't be missing much if the y spend a little time in the company of the fishermen. Who knows, they might learn something other than the usual propaganda that they are used to.
Posted in: Australian anti-whaling activists could face charges in Japan
-1
DS
A couple of points: first, Ueda had a "student visa", yet works as a graphic designer. Is that legal, or a violation of the visa. Second, her visa expired in July. She has been overstaying for nearly half a year. Again, a possible reason to deport.
Finally, to oginome;
Your comments regarding interracial marriage in the USA are wrong. Interracial marriages were banned in SOME states, and those laws were overturned. There really is no connection between that situation and gay marriage. Those laws were historical aberrations, and confined to one part of one country for a relatively short time.
Posted in: Deportation could split up lesbian couple
0
DS
Yabits;
First two years of power, no budgets from Obama. He had majorities in BOTH houses. Didn't need a 60 vote margin in the senate, since budgets require only a majority. He had 59-60 seats and didn'T even try. The GOP tried in congress in 2011, if didn't get past the senate majority leader. I guess HE has more power than the president....
Posted in: Obama declares victory for Americans as tax deal reached
0
DS
Yabits, I meant that he hasn't had a budget passed. The last proposal lost 97-0 in the senate. He can't even get his own party's support. Some leader...
Posted in: Obama declares victory for Americans as tax deal reached
0
DS
Laguna;
The sewage is spewed from both sides. You forget the histrionics from the far left during the Bush years?
I've had enough of both parties. Both are tools of business- just look where Wall Street puts its money. Obama gets millions, te GOP gets millions, and corporations guarantee themselves a place at the trough along side the career politicians and other leeches.
The current president had 2 years of a total majority- both houses of congress as well as the presidency, yet he did nothing that helped the economy. Like I said, he couldnt even perform the basic task of making a bufget.
Posted in: Obama declares victory for Americans as tax deal reached
0
DS
It's all political theatre. The real story is that Obama's administration hasn'even tabled a budget for the entire time he has been in office. The US has been run literally hand to mouth for three years, and counting.
He's a smart guy, but an absolute disaster as a leader. It shows that the conventional wisdom that Senators generally make poor presidents is true. They have no experience making decisions, hectoring people into line, or getting the job done on time.
Posted in: Obama declares victory for Americans as tax deal reached
-2
DS
I see "whale bacon" advertised on TV all the time, in SkyPerfect.
Posted in: U.S., Australia, NZ 'disappointed' over Japan whale hunt
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DS
I'd love to see Japan try and pay the real cost of self defense. Considering the neighbourhood and the neighbours, Japan's military budget would need to triple overnight, if not more. A good 'stimulus' for the economy, though. Plus, what happens if JSDF members replace Americans in Okinawa, and there still is crime? Kick the JSDF out too?
Personally, I have no problem with the US pulling back in a number of countries. Too much warmongering in the past 100 years, especially by Democratic presidents who want to interfere in the affairs of other countries.
Posted in: U.S. Congress cuts funds to move Marines from Okinawa to Guam
2
DS
Get him tried, convicted, and in prison among the general population. Then he will get a taste of what it feels like to be the victim. Not sure what position he played in football, but a few months among hardened convicts will surely turn him into a wide receiver.
Posted in: Sandusky waives hearing in child sex abuse case
1
DS
900 whales is nothing compared to the overall population. Allow hunting within mutually agreed numbers and then get out of the way. The only reason the J-govt gets all stroppish about it is the outside pressure. The world presses, and Japan presses back. It becomes a matter of pride. If nations could agree on how many whales could be hunted without species loss it would be a much better long term solution. At that time, the J-gov't could step back and see if whaling could survive as part of the overall commercial fishing industry.
If it can't, it will die a natural death. If it can survive, it will provide a renewable source of food to a willing consumer base.
Remember when you were a kid? As soon as someone said, "you CAN'T.....", you wanted to do it. Even if you had little interest, or it would cost you money/time. It's a natural human reaction to pressure. Remove the pressure, and then we can know whether or not whaling is truly viable.
Posted in: U.S., Australia, NZ 'disappointed' over Japan whale hunt
0
DS
I think it is the height of hypocrisy for stores and malls to benefit so much from Christmas shopping, but refuse to acknowledge the holiday that the season represents. They take the money from Christmas shoppers and can't say "Merry Christmas"...
Posted in: Christmas tree or holiday tree?
3
DS
Of course it's commercial. Why not admit it and get on with it? Commercial whaling, commercial fishing, commercial crabbing, what's the difference? As long as they are done with regard to endangerment, they are the same.
Posted in: Japan using quake disaster budget for whaling aid
5
DS
Considering the federally mandated holiday is called "christmas", it is stupid to call it anything else. The naming of the tree is a joke. Everyone KNOWS it's a christmas tree, why try to pretend otherwise
As for the term "happy holidays", it's offensive to everyone. A weak, PC infested phrase that assumes that everyone is so thin-skinned as to be offended by a simple greeting. Plus, the athiests among us may be offended by the word "holiday", which is an abbreviation of "holy day". Wishing a non-religious person to have a great religious day is terrible, isn't it?
I wonder if Thanksgiving and Easter bring equal squaling from those with nothing better to do...
Posted in: Christmas tree or holiday tree?
1
DS
Virtuoso, I was talking about the US, not Japan. It was an example of how the knee-jerk reaction that guns equal crime is not necessarily accurate. The US has a special, and dare I say "unique" relationship with firearms. I wouldn't advocate other countries adapting their solutions. However, simply allowing people to keep firearms, especially when there is a demonstrated need, is only common sense.
Posted in: Police oppose proposals to liberalize Japan's gun laws
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DS
..... and WHY does Japan need to spend this money? To protect its citizens, who are conducting a legal activity in international waters, from lawbreaking scumbags. If you want to level blame, look to the CAUSE of the problem, not the effect. If Sea Shephard confined itself to legal activities, it wouldnt be necessary.
Look, we all know that "research whaling" is a farce. Nobody really knows if whaling is a commercially viable activity or not, due to the artificial restrictions and the whole song and dance everyone does. Why not treat whales like any other sea creature? Allow hunting within sustainable levels and see what happens. A whale is a crab is a squid is a fish. All are renewable sources of protein.
Posted in: Japan using quake disaster budget for whaling aid
-1
DS
You may want to do a bit of research, anglo. In many areas which loosened requirements and allowed people to carry weapons freely, crime went down.
Posted in: Police oppose proposals to liberalize Japan's gun laws
-1
DS
The free marketplace hasnt decided because the whole charade of "research whaling" and government interference makes it impossible. Actually, I wouldn't mind one way or another. If whalers can't support their businesses on their own, they should find other work. Unfortuantely, agriculture/food industries of all kinds are heavily subsidized here, so it's a difficult solution to envision. I say, let them whale and let the cards fall where they may.
BW, you are still making an argument based on emotion. "Big animals should never be touched". If you want to argue for species conservation, I will agree with you. If you argue for "magnificence", I won't.
Posted in: Australia refuses to protect Japanese whalers
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DS
My son was in elementary school, and ate whale. No big deal..
If it is as terrible as you say, then the general public, given the free choice, will soundly reject and ignore whale products. The marketplace will determine if your position is tenable or not. Are you willing to accept that judgement?
Blue whales are irrelevant as they would be protected in any commercial whaling venture. Size doesnt mean anything.
Posted in: Australia refuses to protect Japanese whalers
0
DS
The "thin edge of the wedge" has always been a poor argument. Japan lacks the cultural/social atmosphere and history that surround firearms the way the US does. Plus, gun laws in the US are largely left up to the individual states and not the federal government. So there aren't many "American" standards or laws regarding weapons.
Posted in: Police oppose proposals to liberalize Japan's gun laws