Wednesday February 15, 2012

JeffLee's past comments

  • 0

    JeffLee

    Just abolish the requirement that little kids MUST own one of these very expensive items, simply to fit in. They cost 30,000 yen and more, which is ridiculous, given the meager conditions up in devastated regions. Allow the families/kids to chose their own, and spend the $$$ on better things, like housing and infrastructure.

    Having one's own type of distinct bag would also foster greater individuality, which Japan's education system is aiming for anyway.

    Posted in: 150 children in Rikuzentakata receive rucksacks

  • -13

    JeffLee

    Firebox lost my bookmarks several times, Google won't play embedded video. The only browser that doesn't screw up is Explorer, in my case.

    Posted in: Google's Chrome web browser challenging Firefox

  • -3

    JeffLee

    Half the reviewers are Japanese, which explains why Japanese food is so overrated in those guides. Japanese children are brainwashed in believing their food is world's best. Period. Tokyo's pretty good, but I much prefer Bangkok.

    Posted in: Tokyo beats Paris again as world food capital

  • -1

    JeffLee

    I tried to go there once, but all the air tickets from Tokyo were sold out well in advance, due to Sapporo's snow festival, which comes exactly at the height of ski season. With better and cheaper transportation access, I'd go. Otherwise, it'll be Thailand for winter hols, where transportation is more reasonable, flexible and plentiful.

    Posted in: Celebrate Christmas at Hilton Niseko Village

  • -2

    JeffLee

    "In Japan, such a move is unusual"

    That's an odd statement. Covering food in plastic is a national obsession in Japan. Bento, instant noodles, grocery products, etc. nearly all are sealed in plastic, styrofoam, cling-film, etc., much more so than in other countries, where natural materials like paper are common.

    Posted in: Sushi favorite hides full menu undercover

  • -1

    JeffLee

    Bribery takes two to tango. Why is the Indonesian culprit played up while the three Japanese culprits given such scant mention?

    Posted in: Ex-Indonesian official guilty of improperly procuring 60 used trains from Japanese firm

  • -1

    JeffLee

    or half day on android phones

    Is this a joke? Please have a clue before commenting. My low-priced Android handset gets a couple of days, and the battery is about a year old.

    somebody...copying and stealing ideas from other manufacturers.

    Somebody who actually develops and supplies the original technology?

    The Apple brain trust is out in force today, it seems.

    Posted in: Samsung targets 2 mil sales of new Galaxy device

  • -1

    JeffLee

    @Mojado

    Please check the facts. The high interest rates were part of a policy of the Federal Reserve, operating independently of the White House. That policy eventually squeezed out the double-digit inflation of the 1970s.

    Posted in: Failure looms for U.S. debt talks

  • -1

    JeffLee

    @Mojado

    .but it is not what you explained...

    So Christmas ISN'T about spending time with family and friends?!? Err... Well, maybe for you it isn't.

    As for your "history lesson," yeah right. No one knows for certain the specific dates in Jesus's life. Late December was a convenient time to mark his birth, because the Christians could simply graft the celebration over top the already-existing winter solstice celebrations of the pagans.

    Posted in: Golden tree

  • 2

    JeffLee

    Rape or murder? Which is a more serious crime? I ask because posters here object when people get the death penalty for murder, but enthusiastically support the same penalty for a rapist. I always assumed that killing another human was the worst crime of all, but maybe social mores are changing....

    Posted in: China executes man for raping 14 schoolgirls

  • -2

    JeffLee

    "Crap" -- Because....?

    Posted in: HP TouchPad top-selling tablet in U.S. after iPad: study

  • 4

    JeffLee

    Why not abolish all tolls nationwide? That's what other developed countries do. Lowering the cost of transport will stimulate the economy.

    Posted in: New expressway toll-free program for disaster-hit Tohoku to start Dec 1

  • 0

    JeffLee

    not investing in promotion of the country

    Strongly disagree. Japan has set up an entire international TV channel just to promote itself: NHK World. Funded by taxpayers.

    How much promotion does the US or UK "invest" in themselves? Big companies in the West don't want it anyway. They see themselves as "multinationals" and thus avoid promoting their nationality, with the exception of a small number of niche players like Harley Davidson or maybe Paul Smith. The major Japanese companies, however, generally play up their nationality, (and going against the grain of globalism).

    Posted in: Japan - conflicting opinions

  • -7

    JeffLee

    Using up seat space for people. Encouraging people to drink hot or sticky liquids in a fast-moving vehicle. Get rid of the damn thing!!

    Posted in: Unique vending machines in Japan

  • 0

    JeffLee

    Such scandals dont affect good businesses

    But Olympus is (was?) a "good business." It's a pioneer of voice recorders and one of the world's top camera and optics manufacturers. And no mention of Japan's demographics and other problems? I wonder how straight he's shooting?

    Posted in: Buffett's Japan view unchanged by disasters, Olympus scandal

  • 0

    JeffLee

    Good commentary. This ultra-cautious and inward looking attitude (involving a distrust of foreigners) is destroying Japan in the 21st century.

    Ever see the English-language TV commercials and tourism promos on CNN, BBC, etc? The ones by Indonesia, Korea, Singapore, etc. are really slick and natural. The ones from Japan are clunky and awkward. Same for NHK World news. The stilted writing makes it really difficult to watch, although they're spending tons of taxpayers money on service.

    Posted in: The trouble with translating

  • 8

    JeffLee

    If you're heading to Roppongi in search of a good izakaya, you've lost the plot. The wonderful thing about living in Japan is discovering a cozy little place in a hidden or unexpected places, as tiger mentions.

    Posted in: Best izakaya in Tokyo

  • 0

    JeffLee

    @Carcharodon

    "a $200 amazon specific toy"

    Really? Is its Android market locked? Is its browser only set to Amazon related urls? What about the wifi? Does it block out non-Amazon sites? Please tell me more.

    Posted in: Kindle Fire shipping to mixed reviews

  • 1

    JeffLee

    Japan's strict standards on food are generally aimed to block low-cost foreign food imports and have been identified as a non-tariff barrier by food exporters.

    Japanese regulators had assumed that if there was contamination, it would come from overseas. Clearly, the Fukushima accident wasn't anticipated, and so Japan's own regulations are now slapping the country in the face. How ironic.

    Posted in: Gov't eyes Fukushima rice ban after high level of cesium detected

  • 0

    JeffLee

    " I never understand why no-one swims in these gorgeous, pristine lakes. "

    Because lakes normally don't have shallow ends. Every Japanese pool I've been to is all shallow, and the general public seems to be frightened of deep water.

    Posted in: Outdoors on the cheap

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