JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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To be healthy, live in the big city
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Teacher nabbed for using miror to peek up girl's skirt
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Japan's nuclear safety standards flawed, says commission chief
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4
From carnivores to herbivores: how men are defined in Japan
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Why do Japanese change their attitude when they communicate with foreigners?
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- English Instructor (Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe)
- Berlitz Japan, Inc. (ベルリッツ・ジャパン株式会社), Kansai
- Salary: ¥125,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month
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- FT English Teachers for Kids - Osaka
- Kohgakusha Co., Ltd. （株式会社興学社）, Osaka
- Salary: ¥255,000 ~ ¥275,000 / Month Travel Expenses, Encouragement of Japanese learning*
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- Translator
- ZAIHON, Inc. (日本財務翻訳株式会社), Tokyo
- Salary: ¥6.0M / Year Negotiable
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abromofo
Ok, I know the outcome could have been a lot worse, and I'm glad no-one was injured. But doesn't the image of a man in his 50s (possibly two of them) committing this act crack you up?! I've been laughing about this off and on all day!! I wonder how many gray haired oyajis around my office fantasize about doing this kind of thing.
Posted in: 2 sought after throwing bicycle onto tracks in front of oncoming train
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abromofo
Hopefully a few more will follow, and actually succeed. I'm so tired of having my ears blasted with psycho rhetoric and pre-World War 2 military music.
Posted in: Man stabs himself outside Diet building
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abromofo
There are plenty of flying cockroaches here on the mainland! I've seen them in Tokyo and Hakone.
Posted in: 'Eeeek, gokiburi!' How gallant guys can score points with damsels in distress
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abromofo
@tigris
Quite possible! A generation problem, and a bunch of unhappy souls could explain a lot :-)
@herefornow
Yeah, you make some good points too that the government should also be focusing on. Tourism and exports, definitely important. But "soft power" (borrowed from tigris), is more what this is about. Promoting an image of Japan that has massive worldwide appeal will lead to economic benefits. Actually I think this small piece of promotion is clever. It can reach much further than a normal tourism campaign. And lastly, if it makes a few hundred (thousand?) young kids overseas think "Japan is cool, I wanna visit there one-day", it's worth it.
Posted in: Ambassador of cute
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abromofo
Yeah, in my opinion it's one worthwhile activity to try and improve overseas perceptions. People here (not you) seem to be forgetting they're not the target audience. It's similar to adults criticizing the telly-tubbies for being infantile.
This is a 20 year old girl, and the target audience is people around that age, or younger. Perhaps more specifically Asian school girls who already have a keen interest in Japanese pop-culture. It's a real aspect of Japanese culture that already has a following, in a non-perverted way. If it promotes a bit of interest in Japan from overseas, that's great. I know I'd like to see any remaining barriers that young Asians and Japanese people might have removed, so this might help just a little.
Non-perverted interest in Japanese cuteness also exists in other places, like in New Zealand, back when I was at high-school. I remember many girls at my school loving all sorts of cutesy Japanese schoolgirl type things whenever we had a visit from one of our sister schools. I can't imagine Ms. Fujioka going all the way down there, but it just illustrates my point that a lot of young people throughout the world are interested in Japanese pop-culture.
As for freaks taking up-skirt photos being something I consider being in the spirit of fun... Err, no. I was referring to the girl in the pic and those members of the government that considered it a worthwhile thing to be doing. I'm sure she will take it seriously and enjoy herself. If I happened to catch someone taking up-skirt photos of either of my two daughters wearing their school uniforms, I would gladly beat seven shades of $hite out of their puny otaku bodies.
Posted in: Ambassador of cute
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abromofo
How can something be vapid and cute at the same time?
Posted in: Ambassador of cute
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abromofo
I for one wake up every morning pleased that I live in a country where some people still know how to enjoy themselves and have fun.
Posted in: Ambassador of cute
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abromofo
Jeeze, lighten up people. Some of you guys speak as though you believe Japanese people are misrepresenting themselves to the rest of the world. Just get over it and let them be themselves.
Why must you brow-beat every Japanese thing you see that isn't acknowledging or apologizing for all the problems you love to point out with Japan?
Posted in: Ambassador of cute
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abromofo
Yeah, Beyonce is super sexy! But Japanese ladies still win my vote overall.
Posted in: Beyonce
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abromofo
I looove Japanese legs. But actually, this photo was taken with a wide angle lense (hehehe).
Such lenses have the nasty side effect of distorting the perimeter of the photo. As a result, her legs have been stretched horizontally. Her over-sized right foot confirms this. It's all messed up. She will look different in real life...
Posted in: Pregnant pix
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abromofo
Yeah, jokes aside, not something I want to capture with photos.
Posted in: Pregnant pix
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abromofo
Jeeze, she's let herself go a bit :-D
Posted in: Pregnant pix
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abromofo
Ahhh, the sea. It's just like a big pantry, isn't it? But I don't think there's any need to worry about sustainability of seafood. Does anyone really know how many fish there are swimming around? Anyway, if one species did actually become extinct, nature would bump up some other delicious species to take it's place.
Posted in: Sustainable Sushi
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abromofo
Mmm, no it's not, Cleo. Your thinking is very black and white. Allow yourself to see the shades of grey. It will open up a whole new world for you.
Posted in: Saving the planet
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abromofo
You're right about this. This is a situation where the free market, if left unregulated, would disregard animal welfare. Hopefully in developed countries, we have a chance of regulating practices that reduce stress on animals. Maybe this is where PETA and other activists could be contributing something useful?
I think people missed my previous points about vegetarianism being a moral luxury. Take Japan as a first world example, many families rely on meat and fish to provide nutrition for their children. They cannot afford to purchase enough vegan products to get the same.
Then, take developing countries as an example. In some situations, eating meat is a matter of survival. In that case, unfortunately animal welfare takes a back seat to the survival of humans.
Posted in: Saving the planet
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abromofo
sigh
I kind of enjoyed posting on this board for a few weeks, but the serious lack of constructive feedback is wearing thin.
Posted in: Jewish human rights group protests 'anti-Semitic' ad in Nihon Keizai Shimbun
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abromofo
Seriously fascinating info. Thanks for posting it. The website does show a lot of similarities in cultural artifacts. But I was just wondering, have any remains been found that could possibly be traced back to the ancient tribe?
Posted in: Jewish human rights group protests 'anti-Semitic' ad in Nihon Keizai Shimbun
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abromofo
I think the books would make interesting reading. Come on, Jewish friends. Surely it doesn't really matter if some Japanese newspaper wants to advertise a book that makes some claims about people of your ethnicity, probably incorrect and based on flimsy research. People should have the choice of being able to read it and draw their own conclusions. Calling it an "outrageous misstep" supporting "anti-Semitism" makes neutral parties wonder what all the fuss is about.
Posted in: Jewish human rights group protests 'anti-Semitic' ad in Nihon Keizai Shimbun
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abromofo
Cleo:
Relating this back to the article and my previous post, these two statements do not invalidate each other:
1) I believe that vegetarianism is a lifestyle choice that only rich westerners (the white middle class) can choose to take.
2) I like eating big meaty hamburgers, which are a symbol of overconsumption and greed.
Wanna discuss this further over a beer, or plant-based beverage of your choice?
Posted in: Saving the planet
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abromofo
Make that a Sapphos Burger with 2 sides of chunky-lezza salad.
Posted in: Saving the planet