JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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- Full-time English Teacher - Osaka
- Epion English Language Schools, Osaka
- Salary: ¥200,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month Depending on your ability and experience
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- Part-time English Teacher - Osaka
- Epion English Language Schools, Osaka
- Salary: ¥10,000 ~ ¥15,000 / Day Depending on how many days a week are worked
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- Core Developer - コアディベロッパー
- Midokura Japan K.K. - ミドクラジャパン株式会社, Tokyo
- Salary: ¥4.0M ~ ¥10.0M / Year Negotiable
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Simon_Foston
Now correct me if I'm mistaken, but hasn't the unemployment rate been going up? This from the US Department of Labor:
I don't see much success there.
Posted in: Fast transition of power seen after Tuesday's U.S. election
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Simon_Foston
It would make a change from cutting taxes and still spending money like nobody's business. But you seem to have conveniently forgotten that the people getting tax hikes are the ones that can afford them. Pick whatever faults you like with Obama's plans for tax cuts (what is it that you keep going on about, "how can 95% of American workers get tax cuts when 40% of them aren't paying taxes" or something like that), the fact is that cuts are on the agenda and they will be aimed at helping the disadvantaged rather than mega-rich Republican campaign donors. And quite frankly, if someone's whining about having to pay extra taxes while they can pay off a mortgage on a big house, send their kids to college, keep a couple of cars running and still put aside some money, screw 'em. In Japan there are elderly couples starving to death. A bit of wealth redistribution doesn't sound bad to me, it might stop a lot of that messed-up stuff from happening.
Posted in: Fast transition of power seen after Tuesday's U.S. election
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Simon_Foston
No, it doesn't. John McCain himself basically wants nothing to do with the guy. American soldiers are still dying in Iraq and Afghanistan. Al Qaeda and the Taliban are still out there, neither Osama Bin Laden nor Mullah Omar have been brought to justice. No matter who caused the financial crisis (you're probably right that the Democrats deserve at least some of the blame), the administration has responded to it just about as effectively as they did to Hurricane Katrina. And didn't the tax cuts cause a dramatic reduction in revenue while federal spending was increased by 26%? Someone explain to me how that can possibly be a good thing. And can it be plausibly denied that the 2001, 2002 and 2003 tax cuts basically favoured the wealthy at the expense of the middle and working classes? The general perception seems to be that they did. If you're expecting any expressions of heartfelt thanks for Mr. Bush's services to America and the world, you're going to be waiting a long, long time. Probably as long as it'll take for the poor schmo who takes over to clean up the mess that's been made in the last eight years. Up until around 2000 or so, people around the world basically looked up to America. Thanks to George W. Bush, not any more.
Posted in: Obama confident, McCain seeks upset
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Simon_Foston
Well, you can't really say much fairer than that. I think a few other posters would do well to take heed. Personally, when the people I support lose election, I always try to tell myself that the other lot might not be so bad after all. Usually they are, but what can you do.
Posted in: Obama confident, McCain seeks upset
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Simon_Foston
I don't suppose it would go down so well with the diehard right-wingers in the crowd if he just said what just about all the other top Republicans are admitting, i.e. they all think they're going to lose.
Posted in: Obama seeks landslide but McCain claims momentum
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Simon_Foston
Sorry, but I think it is. McCain's team made a big thing out of it, and it appears to have had very little impact. Everyone knows the Republican viewpoint that Obama's associations reflect badly on his character, but the only people who seem to care now are committed Republican supporters who would never vote for him anyway.
Posted in: McCain says pundits being fooled; promises victory
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Simon_Foston
Never thought you'd imply that advocating unconditional support for George W. Bush was "not very intelligent thinking." Didn't know Britney Spears was supporting Obama though, where did you hear that? Anyway...
Back to this again, is it? To be honest, I think going after Obama for his policies is fair enough. Pointing out why your ideas for running the country are better than the other guy's is what campaigning should all be about. But this Ayers stuff is just pathetic. If it were a serious issue the Obama campaign would have been dead in the water as soon as it was first brought up. Instead all the reliable indicators point to an Obama victory. I'm guessing that a lot of people care less about Obama's connections to Ayers than they do about McCain's connection to George W. Bush.
Posted in: McCain says pundits being fooled; promises victory
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Simon_Foston
Really, WilliB? In that case Britney Spears has come a long way since she said this in 2003:
So if she's endorsing Obama what could have turned her off Bush, the Republicans and McCain?
Posted in: McCain says pundits being fooled; promises victory
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Simon_Foston
Sarge said:
Seeing this reminds me of the famous words of wisdom uttered by that great Republican icon, Ronald Reagan:
"There you go again."
Posted in: Obama lashes McCain as Bush 'clone'
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Simon_Foston
I know this is from a British newspaper, The Times of London, but it's owned by Rupert Murdoch who also owns FOX News. I find it quite amusing:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/usandamericas/us_elections/article5019585.ece
Posted in: Obama lashes McCain as Bush 'clone'
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Simon_Foston
Why should they if they're liberal? But there are plenty of papers that have supported conservative policies in the past, like The Washington Post, or endorsed Republican candidates, like The Chicago Tribune. Yet they're now endorsing Obama.
Posted in: Bitter infighting over 'diva' Palin in McCain campaign reported
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Simon_Foston
Well, if it makes you feel any better. You're not hoping that this nickname you've come up with will catch on, are you? But I gather that "Mr. President" is a second person form of address, so when are you ever going to get the chance to try out your witty epiphet face to face on the man himself? Assuming he wins, that is?
This latest news about infighting just makes it look more likely to me. It's getting pretty wide coverage, and it just joins a series of articles by, comments from or interviews with Republicans about everything that's going wrong with the campaign. If everything really was going well we just wouldn't be seeing this kind of stuff.
Posted in: Bitter infighting over 'diva' Palin in McCain campaign reported
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Simon_Foston
Very true. But they're spending their own money on wardrobes and stylists, not campaign donors'.
Posted in: Palin denies accepting $150,000 in designer clothes
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Simon_Foston
(Yawn) There are plenty of conservative papers and TV stations that would be all over this story if it had any substance, and McCain's team would have it in every one of their ads. So why is it that they're only criticising Obama for going back on his promise to take funding and not these illegal donations you keep going on about? It's the biggest thing McCain could hit him with, surely?
Posted in: Palin denies accepting $150,000 in designer clothes
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Simon_Foston
This is an interview from The Washington Times, a paper that I understand doesn't have a liberal bias, and is about the Bush administration:
"We just let things get completely out of hand... spending, the conduct of the war in Iraq for years, growth in the size of government, larger than any time since the Great Society, laying a $10 trillion debt on future generations of America, owing $500 billion to China, obviously, failure to both enforce and modernize the [financial] regulatory agencies that were designed for the 1930s and certainly not for the 21st century, failure to address the issue of climate change seriously... Those are just some of them."
Who delivered such a damning indictment of the incumbent President? John McCain.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/oct/23/mccain-lambastes-bush-years/
Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal
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Simon_Foston
I know this is from the British press, but it reports a message on a pro-Al Qaida website. Looks like those enemies of America just don't know which way to turn:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/alqaidalinked-website-backs-mccain-as-president-969224.html
Based on that logic it's almost surprising the Russians don't want to give McCain money. If the Russians really want to be America's enemies, then his presidency would give them the perfect excuse to act against America's interests.
Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal
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Simon_Foston
The current administration has completely squandered America's ability to stop anyone from doing anything they like. Its feeble reaction to the conflict in Georgia is a stark example of this. Iran remains defiant and pretty much unchallenged, terrorists operate with impunity in Pakistan, the Taliban are resurgent and the horrors of Zimbabwe and Darfur are totally ignored. America has nothing to combat the damage that is being done except a dangerously overstretched military, a knacked economy and a reputation tarnished by images of Abu Graib, Guantanamo and unconditional support for the Saudis and Israelis. Such is the damage that Bush has done that in many of the most dangerous parts of the world opposing America is increasingly seen as an extremely righteous thing to do. All he has done is weaken a nation.
Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal
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Simon_Foston
Coulrophobic,
All this stuff about Obama and the socialist inclinations of the people he's associated with?
No one cares.
Posted in: McCain questions Obama's readiness in a crisis
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Simon_Foston
You might recall that he wasn't exactly quaking in his boots at the prospect of the US reaction to the conflict in Georgia. Neither should he have been, as the Bush administration's response was feeble.
Posted in: Russians say 'nyet' to McCain fundraising appeal
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Simon_Foston
Someone just remind me again how many people are going to get their taxes raised under Obama's plan? Did someone say 5% of American income earners? I suppose it'll be whatever percentage is earning more than $250,000, but I suspect that they're in a minority that I have absolutely no sympathy with.
Posted in: In swing states, McCain and Obama spar over taxes