ThonTaddeo said...

ThonTaddeo at 10:20 PM JST - 21st August

Mindyou, the English lad was right to argue with you -- only in Norway and Sweden is the ridiculously-long 10-kilometer "mil" in use.

Just about everywhere else, the "normal" mile is 1609.344 meters, or 5280 feet, which is quite close to the original Roman distance of 5000 feet.

If the…

Posted in Ex-Yankees, Marines Irabu arrested for alleged assault at 10:20 PM JST - 21st August
ThonTaddeo at 11:28 PM JST - 14th August

Chamberlain's "Things Japanese" -- the 1904 edition is indeed one of the better ones -- is a must-read for anyone eith even the slightest interest in Meiji-era Japan.

This is just the beginning, once you start getting interested in Chamberlain's works. He was the first person to give the Okinawan…

Posted in Things Japanese: Being Notes on Various Subjects Connected with Japan at 11:28 PM JST - 14th August
ThonTaddeo at 09:19 PM JST - 1st August

That's an amazing numerical coincidence -- the increase was as close as you can possibly come to being exactly 0.01% of the new total.

Has there ever been a year-on-year population change of such a small magnitude? All those people coming and all those people going, with the totals almost…

Posted in Japan's population up for 1st time in 3 years at 09:19 PM JST - 1st August
ThonTaddeo at 07:43 PM JST - 4th July

Not only is summer exhaustingly hot and humid in Tokyo, but now you can't even get away from it at work as many businesses are instituting the 28-degree (83 Fahrenheit!) "Cool Biz" system. For us guys with hairy bodies and no option to wear shorts, it's a miserable, energy-sapping environment.…

Posted in 1st 'tropical day' this year marked in Tokyo at 07:43 PM JST - 4th July
ThonTaddeo at 11:03 PM JST - 3rd July

Jonobugs, I agree. Women are smart enough to take advantage of the privilege of not having to work. I'm sure the government would love to have everyone working from morning until night and paying lots of taxes -- if you can escape this rat race, you should do it! Most…

Posted in OECD raps Japan female underemployment as waste of human resources at 11:03 PM JST - 3rd July
ThonTaddeo at 10:52 PM JST - 3rd July

24-hour convenience stores are wonderful and are a lifesaver for people who work late nights. They reduce crime

Their prices, higher than those of supermarkets, reflect their increased hours; if they close early, are they going to knock a few percentage points off each item?

I agree with the other…

Posted in Japan divided over 24-hour convenience store operations at 10:52 PM JST - 3rd July
ThonTaddeo at 10:13 PM JST - 2nd July

If index movements were completely random, we could see the index fall 10 times in a row roughly every 1024 trading sessions, or every four years.

Even the total magnitude of the 10-day drop is less than 9%, and there have been much bigger crashes than this in a single…

Posted in Nikkei falls for 10th straight day for 1st time since 1965 at 10:13 PM JST - 2nd July
ThonTaddeo at 11:50 PM JST - 1st July

Terrikus, Taiwan uses traditional characters, so if the islands are part of Taiwan, they should be written as any other Taiwanese place name would. Not like a place on the mainland.

Posted in Japanese lawmakers view disputed islets from air; China, Taiwan protest at 11:50 PM JST - 1st July
ThonTaddeo at 09:41 PM JST - 1st July

It's 10% across selected streets.

How about a total figure?

Posted in Japan's average land prices rise 10% at 09:41 PM JST - 1st July
ThonTaddeo at 09:41 PM JST - 1st July

Anybody ever look at these islands on Google Maps? It's fascinating. They're labeled in Japanese but also in Simplified Chinese. You'd think that if the Chinese position is that the islands are part of Taiwan, then they would have traditional characters. So I asked a Chinese friend and got the…

Posted in Japanese lawmakers view disputed islets from air; China, Taiwan protest at 09:41 PM JST - 1st July