Wednesday February 15, 2012

MASSWIPE's past comments

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    MASSWIPE

    Yet another endless online debate in which people only see what they want to see. Let me add my two yen:

    The clearest indication that the US didn't take the WBC seriously was in their choice of manager. Davy Johnson had a great career managing 4 teams, but he hasn't managed an actual major league baseball game in this century. By contrast, one of the main reasons Tatsunori Hara replaced Senichi Hoshino as Japan's WBC manager is that the former is a current manager while the latter is retired. No major league team in the US would have allowed its current manager to spend 5 weeks away from spring training as Hara just did. That, to me, is an indication of how seriously Japan took the WBC compared to the US.

    All the talk about national psychology in the WBC is a bit grating. It is clear, however, that the Japanese are obsessed with establishing their supremacy in a game that was invented, popularized, and introduced to the world by the United States. Koreans, meanwhile, are obsessed with beating Japan. Why that's the case is in the eye of the beholder. I just hope the next WBC doesn't turn into yet another Asian grudge match.

    Posted in: 'Samurai Japan' return to heroes' welcome after WBC triumph

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    MASSWIPE

    Have to wonder what Bush was thinking here, paying a visit to Iraq. By comparison, President Harry Truman, who ordered the dropping of two atomic bombs on Japan, and in so doing "liberated" Japan from decades of disastrous military rule (as some see it), had the good sense not to pay a farewell visit to Japan in December 1952. Japan by that time had far more reason to be grateful to the US than Iraq does today; the country was at peace and had regained its full sovereignty earlier in the year, and its economy was booming due to Korean War procurement orders from the US. Even so, Truman didn't visit Japan as president; in fact, he never did. And we all know why.

    So if more than a few Japanese back in 1952 weren't exactly grateful to the US for its benevolent military occupation of the country, you ought to be able to understand why more than a few Iraqis aren't exactly grateful today, either.

    Posted in: Bush dodges shoe protest during visit to Iraq

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    MASSWIPE

    I don't think it was necessary for greensatindress to bring up the issue of Japanese women wishing to have "white women's" skin, but I'm struck by how quick some people (like upnorth71) are to deny what is clear: a small but significant percentage of Japanese and other Asians feel inferior to whites, worship the ground they walk on, and/or wish to be more like them. The legacy of white domination hangs heavy over Asia, even in countries (like Japan, Korea, and Thailand) that were never colonized by whites. Do some people out there feel threatened by acknowledgment of this state of affairs?

    That being said, it's nice to have nice skin.

    Posted in: The Japanese Skincare Revolution

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    MASSWIPE

    200,000 followers of Christianity in 16th-17th century Japan--really a remarkable number for a country that probably had no more than 25 million people at the time.

    Considering what the Spanish and Portuguese did to the indigenous peoples of the areas that they did conquer in the 16th century, in retrospect the Japanese took a brutal but necessary approach. Francisco Pizarro, Hernando Cortes, and Vasco da Gama were not angels from heaven. Christians like them would have drawn and quartered the clueless, befuddled Japanese Emperor in his Kyoto residence had they gotten their hands on him. Think Atahualpa and the Incas.

    Posted in: Japanese Christian martyrs to be beatified

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    MASSWIPE

    The rough equivalent of Obama in Japan would not be a half-white or half-black Japanese; rather, a Japanese Obama would be the son or daughter of a Japanese and an ethnic Korean (Japan's own much-maligned minority group from abroad, dating back a century or more). The Japanese Obama would be someone born and raised in Japan, fluent in the Japanese language, and a graduate of Japan's top universities. He/she would also be totally upfront and honest about his/her Korean heritage.

    A lot of Japanese don't even wish to acknowledge that Japan has an ethnic Korean minority community, so of course no such person will become PM of Japan anytime soon.

    Mael, what's your purpose in repeating malicious lies about Barack Obama? You sure sound bitter.

    Article Unavailable

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    MASSWIPE

    I suppose what's irritating about the Republican Party is its sense of entitlement, as if the US presidency belongs to them. Republicans didn't used to be that way, but 3 straight landslide victories under Reagan and Bush in the 1980s went to their heads. But look now: the Republican Party has lost the popular vote in 4 of the last 5 presidential elections. It hasn't won a decisive presidential victory in 20 years (sorry, but Bush's 286-252 electoral victory over Kerry in 2004 wasn't decisive). And yet Republicans still have that sense of entitlement.

    But the US is a competitive 2-party democracy (DON'T respond taniwha, I really don't want to hear your broken record socialist blather). It's not a de facto one party state as Japan has been for much of the past 60 years, and it's not an actual one-party state like China. Nor is it a barely functioning state where rich people pay no taxes, such as Pakistan.

    Is this what US conservatives want, for the government to barely function, for the wealthy not to pay taxes, for the Republican Party to rule forever? And how about the legislative branch of government? So many conservatives laughably claimed that Palin had more experience than Biden, McCain, and Obama put together, by virtue of her 20 months as governor of Alaska. Do conservatives feel the legislative process is unnecessary? Were you pleased by Bush's near-authoritarian style of rule when Republicans controlled Congress? Why? Does actual legislative democracy frustrate you? If so, and if you're Americans, I think you're citizens of the wrong country. The more liberal party just won a decisive victory and deserves a chance to govern.

    Conservatives will try to destroy Obama, no doubt. They nearly impeached the last Democratic president, and their knives are drawn. But I think the president-elect is prepared.

    Posted in: Republicans in tatters, look to regroup

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    MASSWIPE

    "Better Nikkeis than non-Nikkeis."

    Wrong again, Nigelboy. Rather, better to regard unskilled foreign laborers as human beings rather than just replaceable parts that can be discarded when a downturn occurs. Whether the foreign laborers have Japanese blood or not is far less important.

    Again, contact Keidanren if you're so worked up about this issue. That organization is pushing harder than anybody else for mass immigration in Japan, because Japanese businesses want that cheap, exploitable foreign labor. For once, demand that Japanese take responsibility for their actions. Can you do it? Somehow I don't think so.

    Posted in: Foreign laborers hit hard by downturn in Japanese economy

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    MASSWIPE

    "This is why "mass" immigration becomes a problem."

    Well then, Nigelboy, why don't you tell this to the people at Keidanren? They are the ones (pure-blooded Japanese, through and through) who are pushing harder than anybody else for mass immigration in Japan. They don't have any confidence in the ability of indolent Japanese to get away from their Nintendo DSLs and do factory work. Do you?

    You keep whining about people bringing race into this discussion. The entire Japanese immigration policy is based on race, akin to the White Australia policy. Why were unskilled laborers from Brazil with names like Sameshima made an exception to the rule and given Japanese work visas in the first place? Because such people have Japanese blood, and the Japanese establishment foolishly thought that that alone would assure their assimilation into society. You reap what you sow. Japan has brought these problems upon itself. It's time for a new policy in Tokyo.

    Posted in: Foreign laborers hit hard by downturn in Japanese economy

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    MASSWIPE

    "Putin wants Obama for prez. As does Castro, Ahmadinejad, Chavez, Khaddaffi, whoever runs N Korea, and the PLA. As does Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Quida, Muslim Brotherhood,..."

    Helter_Skelter, I don't understand the point of responding to you, but here goes: I beg to differ. What I THINK (I'm not as confident about reading minds as you are, apparently) the above organizations and individuals would really like, more than anything, is a third Bush term. Nothing suits them better than a stubborn, bumbling, incompetent US President.

    Thankfully, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution will block that possibility.

    Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal

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    MASSWIPE

    "Putin wants Obama for prez. As does Castro, Ahmadinejad, Chavez, Khaddaffi, whoever runs N Korea, and the PLA."

    Unverifiable speculation. We do know, however, that tens of millions of proud, patriotic, open-minded Americans want Obama for president.

    The petro-dictatorships of Iran, Venezuela, and Russia had a great run during the Bush II Era. Oil prices hit a peak of $147, thanks in large part to the incompetence and inaction of the Bush administration. North Korea's leaders had a good time, too, taking advantage of Bush's desire for one (just one) foreign policy success during his disastrous presidency. Look who's no longer on America's "terrorist nation" list. And look who's driven a wedge between America and Japan with the abduction issue.

    Thankfully, in less than 3 months all this amateurish monkey business in the White House will end.

    Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal

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    MASSWIPE

    "Putin is itching for Obama to get into office. He can finally reassemble the Soviet Union without fear of consequences."

    1) How do you know that? and 2) no, Putin can't. Russia is suffering absolute population decline on the order of about 700,000 people per year. It won't be able to reassemble anything for years to come. The country is a giant gas station largely dependent on global oil prices (which are now at half their peak price from earlier this year). The main stock exchange in Moscow is a joke, having shut down several times in the last few weeks because of plunging share prices. Russian natives are basically xenophobic and won't allow immigration to make up for the population loss.

    It would be nice if you examined the facts rather than quoting from Rush Limbaugh.

    Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal

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    MASSWIPE

    "I know this is good news, but does it really justify taking up half the airtime on the NHK evening news?"

    No, because Japan is a successful country and winning Nobel Prizes should not be such a big deal, but the Japanese establishment is more obsessed with those things than Gollum was with his ring.

    Pukey2, if you were somewhat annoyed by the NHK coverage tonight, do yourself a favor and avoid ALL Japanese media outlets for the rest of October. This is only the beginning of an all-consuming, orgiastic, masturbatory Nobel Prize mediathon in Japan.

    Posted in: 2 Japanese and 1 American share Nobel Prize in physics

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    MASSWIPE

    taniwha--Sorry, but my message wasn't addressed to you and I really didn't want to get a response from you. You're just as much a dogmatic broken record as people on the other side. You once called me a "racist" on this forum (I won't ever forget it, and don't you deny it), so just keep your broken record pro-socialist comments to yourself, will you?

    Posted in: Biden, Palin spar over Iraq, economy in debate

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    MASSWIPE

    "MASSWIPE- If it did not fail, what is the 18 year recession all about then? Biden is a closet ultra socialist, Obama is a open socialiser. They are the most dangerous men in America."

    FandB--Great, yet another "anti-socialist" broken record online. Do you even understand the technical definition of a recession? If you did, you wouldn't refer to an "18 year recession" in Japan. In case you didn't notice, Japan's extraordinary car industry (adhering to near socialistic principles of management and production) is on the verge of forcing either GM or Ford (or both) to file for bankruptcy.

    If you hate socialism so much, don't you think the US Defense Department should be abolished? Rather than funneling hundreds of billions of US taxpayer dollars to the Pentagon every year, shouldn't responsibility for America's protection be handed over entirely to private militias? Would you approve of that? Somehow I doubt it.

    And let's not even get started on Paulson and Bernanke's decision, with Bush's blessing, to effectively nationalize some of America's biggest financial services companies. Here you are crying about the socialism of Obama/Biden; well, socialism has already arrived in the Bush Era.

    Posted in: Biden, Palin spar over Iraq, economy in debate

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    MASSWIPE

    "Socialism has been tried many times and failes [sic] always"

    WilliB, were you brainwashed as a child? You like Japan, right? Then surely you must know that during its economic "golden age" from 1960-1990, Japan was an economically "socialist" country. Brutally high tax rates for the top income earners. Ruthless redistribution of income to ensure social stability and a "classless" society. If you want to talk about a workers' paradise, Japan at that time was definitely it. And it most definitely did not fail.

    Posted in: Biden, Palin spar over Iraq, economy in debate

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    MASSWIPE

    moonbeams, very good question. The hatred for Obama is vitriolic. The latest hate-monger to make his feelings clear was the leader of the College Republicans in Pennsylvania. He made some stupid remark about the size of Obama's lips and was forced to quit as a result.

    All I can say is this: if large numbers of Americans won't vote for Obama simply because he's half-black, then the US deserves whatever bad fortune will surely befall it under McCain/Palin.

    People need to wake up about Sarah Palin. To put it gently, she is an empty suit, know-nothing, Christian extremist. Government officials in Tehran, Moscow, and Pyongyang will be delighted if such an amateur lightweight is sworn in as America's Number Two next January. Not to mention the Taliban and their friends in the Pakistan Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Agency. Does Palin even realize that Pakistan is America's ostensible "ally" in the "war on terror"? Or are all "those people" over there the same to her?

    People need answers to these questions now.

    Posted in: Obama accuses Republican rivals of dishonesty

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    MASSWIPE

    "The result is McCain now leads Obama in the polls according to the latest Zogby poll. As they say, you can't argue with success."

    Oh yes you can, especially if "success" means continuing to drag the US down the wrong path it's been on since this new century started. If you seriously think that taking the surplus savings of the US government and giving it all back (and more) to rich people in the form of tax cuts instead of investing it in something worthwhile (infrastructure, scientific R&D, etc.) is the right path, then please go ahead and cast your vote for McCain/Palin in November. Next time you find yourself driving across the US on its fine interstate highway system, remember that it was government investment and NOT private enterprise that made that system possible.

    It's hard to figure out what McCain is thinking here. The man obviously has little regard for Christian extremism, unlike George W. Bush and Sarah Palin. If he is elected, hopefully he'll treat Ms. Palin the way US presidents used to treat their VPs: as an irrelevant afterthought. Theodore Roosevelt is McCain's hero, and today barely anybody knows or cares who TR's vice-president was. Now there's a good model for McCain to follow.

    Posted in: McCain-Palin becoming Palin-McCain?

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    MASSWIPE

    "Like Barack (redacted) Obama it appears some just can't bring themselves to acknowledge that former mayor Sarah Palin is now governor of a state - the largest in the union - with a budget of more than 10 billion dollars and something like 24 thousand state employees under her. She has more executive experience than Obama and Biden together."

    Rabid supporters of Sarah Palin aren't concerned about her "executive experience". She could be a stay-at-home housewife for all they care. The important thing is that Palin is one of "them", meaning a white, evangelical Christian. This is about tribal loyalty to one of their own. But America has never been a Christian theocracy and isn't about to turn into one. Millions of American Jews, Hindus, and Muslims (probably the fastest growing religion in the US-oh, the horror!) will make certain that doesn't happen.

    "But the eruption of total hysteria on the Democrat side (both the party and their mainstream media sycophants) is something to the behold. They way they are going ballistics means that he really hit them where it hurts. They practically going insane, trying to smear that woman and her family. What is it that irks them so much?"

    Needless to say, an overstatement. John McCain caves in to the Christian extremists in his party, chooses a total stranger to be his running mate, and doesn't properly investigate her background before doing so. The result is a media feeding frenzy for information. If you're surprised by this, try to remember that we're living in the 21st century.

    Trying to find out the truth about Sarah Palin, who she is, and what she's done is not an attempt at smearing her. For crying out loud, this woman could be sworn in as Vice President of the US next January 20. If McCain is going to declare the vetting process "closed" and won't even allow Palin to appear on talk shows, then somebody else will make public the kind of information we have the right to know about this lady.

    Posted in: McCain-Palin becoming Palin-McCain?

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    MASSWIPE

    Seiharinokaze, thank you for revealing the true extent of your paranoia and belief in ridiculous conspiracies. Most people believe that Japan was a sovereign, independent nation acting on its own free will in the 1930s. It was far from being a puck on a shuffleboard. After all, you've praised Japan repeatedly as an agent of positive change in Korea, bringing the "buoyancy of civilization" to that "backward" peninsula from 1910-45. And yet the same country was just a helpless chess piece vis-a-vis the "unseen power"? Ridiculous.

    Now, regarding Yasukuni and all that, I suppose a multiple choice quiz is in order. Japan lashed out with extreme savagery and barbarism against its Asian neighbors from the 1930s in order to: 1) liberate them from Western colonialism (even though Japan was a colonial power itself, and even though some countries attacked by Japan weren't colonies, such as Thailand and China, go figure), 2) save Asia from Soviet communism (seemingly unaware that treating Asians like abused cattle would, if anything, push them into embracing utopian, home-grown, non-Soviet, nationalistic communism, which is what happened in China and large areas of Korea), 3) join the US as the only country in the world to have achieved hegemony over its home region in modern times.

    Hint: World War II isn't called a hegemonic war for nothing. Good or bad, that's what Japan was fighting for: Hegemony over Asia. Why do some Japanese have so much trouble admitting that? You'd think that a people obsessed with power and prestige would be happy to admit that they once wished to dominate an entire corner of the globe.

    Posted in: Yasukuni

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    MASSWIPE

    imagawa, your comments contain several inaccuracies:

    "Aside from Tokugawa Ieyasu & his mad little attacks against Korea Japan has only once left its shores to fight a war, granted it was a big war."

    It was Toyotomi Hideoyoshi who initiated those attacks against Korea, and they weren't little. Japan laid waste to its neighbor, and it took Korea decades to recover. And Japan left its shores multiple times (against China in 1894, against Russia in 1904, against Germany in 1914, against the USSR in 1918, etc.) to fight wars in modern times before the really big one started in 1931.

    "The race idea I was talking about in my earlier post stems from the league of nations conference when Japan put forward the idea of all men being equal & the conference rejected it."

    Japan did not believe in the idea of all men being equal back in 1919 during the Versailles (not League) Conference; at that very moment Japanese soldiers were bayoneting pro-independence demonstrators in Korea. What Japan wanted was for the Western powers to acknowledge that Japan was their equal. Japan certainly did not believe at that time that Koreans, Chinese, etc. were their equals. This is a common misconception about the Japanese "racial equality" proposal at Versailles.

    Why the antagonism towards Japan? I suppose there is something particularly repulsive about "howling with the wolves", which is what Japan, as a sovereign nation, chose to do in the period from 1868-1945. So it may not be simply a matter of racism towards Orientals.

    Posted in: Japan ministers, but not premier, visit war shrine

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