DenTok2009's past comments

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    DenTok2009

    Does anyone know what will happen to the three boys? They're arrested but for how long?

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @cleo You go, girl!

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @Sylvester Haynes "what has happen to japan?" I have noticed a change from the 80's Japan vs 21st century Japan. During the bubble era, on one hand, you've got the helpful and polite Japanese who go out of their way to make sure you (fellow Japanese and gaijins) are all right then on the other hand, you've got the arrogant Japanese who hated gaijins ("Shoo! Shoo! Don't even LOOK at my ads! We don't rent to gaijins!"). Back then, people on the trains/buses gave up their seats to oji-chan/oba-chans quick as can be. Now, it's the norm not to be neighborly. I've traveled to quite a few prefectures in the last several months and what an eye opener! Bubble era Japan was so much more better. I remember around the late 80's, there was an instance of "ijime" that made the news. I was on the train and there were some boys who were starting to fight. Commuters were not turning a blind eye. Everyone seemed ready to intervene. A monk stepped in and separated the two with strong arms holding the boys apart and reprimanded them. I think everyone was thinking of the bullying incident that had taken place recently. There was a collective sigh of release and everyone was thankful for the monk.

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @kazetsukai "Why can't THEY do something about all this?" Do you recall the dog video that went viral after the tsunami? A two man camera crew went out to a tsunami devastated area and found a dog staying beside his injured buddy? They hoped somebody else would take care of those poor dogs. It didn't occur to them to try to get those dogs to a vet or contact someone who could help. (They didn't say "I will alert a rescue organization so they could take care of those poor things.")

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @BertieWooster " I like Stephen Fry when he has a script to read." That's exactly how I feel about David Duchovny!

    "they only accepted teachers with "standard" American accents." Oh dear! That calls to mind how some Japanese (students not the owners or perhaps the owners too) preferred New York accents. My friends and I cracked up! I think it's the image. NYC>Big Apple>Big City Oooh! Or Boston. (Have you ever heard JFK speak? Not an actor portraying him but JFK? <- I ask those who fell over themselves in their rush to be taught by a teacher from Beantown.)

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @bicultural Thanks for the extra bit of information. So the goons not only wanted the girls to see them commit murder but also wanted to share with everyone else who couldn't come.

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @Yubaru People get involved much more often than not outside of Japan. Sure, some people just can't be bothered or are afraid of getting involved but it seems in Japan the chance of a Japanese stepping in to help is zilch.

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @Dog I don't know about the Japanese you speak with but the Japanese I've come across don't tell me they want to learn British English because "...British English can be quite clearly systemised with an IPA chart and British English has an accepted 'correct' form of pronunciation..." I wasn't debating the teaching of British English versus American English rather the Japanese preference for one or the other. I've yet to meet a Japanese individual who reasoned that studying British English is better for the reasons you state. And no, they don't have to give me a reason. It just so happens that nearly all the Japanese I've come across, feel the need to to tell me British English (or as a few have said, "Queen's English") is the English to study. I got the impression they are going more for the accent and if pressed for what particular accent, they flail around and settle on the queen. I dislike discussing/debating the English language with the Japanese so I try to steer the conversation to something else as quickly as I can.

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @Disillusioned Who says the Japanese need to speak perfect English? They just want to sound "American" or "British". Have you ever perused Craigslist>Tokyo>Jobs? Check it out. There's one in particular I get a kick out of every time he posts. A headhunter who really needs to have someone else look over his ads. I think he uses Google translate or some other freebie translator because it's so agonizing to read.

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @zabutonsenbei I realized SS didn't write the list but he did provide commentary. " (because who actually uses ‘pardon’ like that in everyday conversation?)" " If the answer is not according to the textbook or materials, it is sometimes marked as incorrect." My friend's mother went back to school and I helped her with some of her English lessons. She told me the teacher (Japanese) shook his head and said, "That's not correct." So I got her to get him on the phone and I gave him a grammar lesson which he was able to follow. However, he stuck to his guns about what was the correct answer. He was going by the answer key! I told him to contact the publisher. (Back in college, my teachers were all in agreement over a particular book's convoluted theory was wrong. They wrote to the publisher and we were told "This is what the book says and it's wrong because...") The Japanese teacher was reluctant to do that. I was flabbergasted that he understood the principles of grammar but stuck to the answer key!

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @BertieWooster Loved Wodehouse (teared up over Sunset at Blandings) and thought the Fry/Laurie series was excellent!

    In reference to your query on "I'm not so familiar with "American English," but I wonder what they think "British English is?" They want to** sound** like the royal family. Since the Japanese are so anal over pronunciation and the superiority of British English (I often hear "America is only a couple of hundred years old." So to the discerning Japanese, British English is the accent to have!), I am guessing they think British English is refined and the grammar/vocabulary is not considered. Or when grammar/vocabulary difference is considered, it's to point out, "My British teacher ...." blah, blah, blah then "Your English is American/Canadian/whatever so it's not proper."

    BW, did you catch Fry's Planet World? I caught a couple of episodes. One episode touched on regional accents.

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    ha, ha, ha! thumbs up, Ben Jack!

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @Stephen Jez & gaijinfo thumbs up. This is Japan. No one wants to get involved. They will film and share on the Internet but call 110? Nope.

    Posted in: Three 17-year-old boys arrested for nearly drowning student in river

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    DenTok2009

    @BertieWooster (love Wodehouse, btw! loved MT hosted by Alistair Cooke!) A few months ago, I met a Japanese man, middle aged around his 50's, who spoke English well. I don't know if that was because my friend taught him well or he was a good student. He didn't make the grammar mistakes the Japanese usually do. (Thanks to a TESOL course, I found out the problems common to Japanese/Koreans/Chinese.) He didn't have to use English at work. He was a security guard at a private school before being laid off. I agree with you about having the students concentrate on reading and writing. But the Japanese are so hung up on pronunciation (American accent, British accent...) and wanting to sound like a native speaker without putting in the effort to actually learning the language that chances that change will take place will be at a snail's pace. ("We'll have to form a committee to see whether we need to form a committee to make changes!" ala TEPCO!)

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    17... Instead of being self-conscious, students ought to concentrate on getting to practice. Since English is not an elective, they can't enjoy learning it.

    26 I met a teenager who spent a year or two in Australia because her father's work took the family there and she could understand when I spoke to her in English but responded in Japanese. She wailed, "eigo tsukaenaku natchata!"

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @Steven Simonitch You've never used "Pardon?" I was raised to say pardon/excuse me so I find "what" to be rather jarring. Instead of saying "What?", I say, "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that." or "Come again?"

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    Ha, ha, ha! Especially in reference to "Oh mai ga!". This one girl in a factory in Tochigi used that every other second. I thought she got that through the Filipinos she always hung around with. (The factory employed a large number of Filipinos, Chinese, Peruvians and Brazilians and a few Thais, Burmese and Russians.) One Japanese co-worker was an English teacher who was laid off for a few months. I spoke to her in English and she responded in Japanese "un... un..." She stated that she loves British English, visits the U.K. whenever she can and ALTs really don't do much.

    Posted in: Junior high school English in Japan from the perspective of students

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    DenTok2009

    @cadmium31680 He's Japanese! Removing his shoes is not just thoughtful, it's ingrained in his DNA! I would've been surprised if he left his shoes on. @TrouserEnthusiast ditto!

    Posted in: Bus nap

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    DenTok2009

    @Geoff Gillespie ha, ha! @CrazyJoe the last line says it all. ("...increased in both economic and military might.") Though I do wonder at the military bit. Have more of the Chinese youth really signed up?

    Posted in: Japan recalls Beijing envoy

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    DenTok2009

    thumbs up, Cos! (your 10:39pm post) hee, hee! oh! I remember when I was a child hearing about a boy in another school got his eye poked when his classmate threw a pencil his way.

    Posted in: Customs officials say pens need weapons import license

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