caffeinebuzz's past comments

  • 4

    caffeinebuzz

    "Hello Europe! Well you see, it's like this; It's kind of like a pyramid scheme but uniquely Japanese. You wouldn't understand. Thank you".

    Posted in: Abe leaves for Europe to explain 'Abenomics' at G8 summit

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    At least with this technology you could have some control over where is appropriate for wearing these devices. I'm pretty sure the movie industry will lead the way in having them banned outright from cinemas, and other establishments will automatically follow suit. There is a fair bit of a media beat-up about Google Glass, but some of it is fair- like facial recognition technology which borders on scary considering its potential use for stalking and possibly picking people out of a crowd. That said, a major supermarket chain in Australia recently ran into trouble over the sale of video recording pens; and video recording watches can easily be bought online. Iffy websites that owe their existence to voyeur material are going to be even bigger winners.

    Posted in: Google's wearable Glass gadget: cool or creepy?

  • 3

    caffeinebuzz

    I didn't even realise mine were noticeable under my shirt until a student pointed it out and the other kids in the class started giggling...Got some darker shirts and always threw on the undershirt if I wore white after that! As for the office, I'm sorry but if someone told me my nipples were offensive, I'd probably throw back a comment about their breath- I don't miss that about Japan!

    Posted in: 84% of women don’t want to see men's nipples at office: survey

  • 2

    caffeinebuzz

    It's probably easy for me to say, but if I were a farmer there is no way I could sleep at night wondering if some of my produce slipped detection and was poisoning anyone- kids especially. Like someone else said, I wouldn't mind paying a government levy on rice to compensate and relocate farmers in that area of Fukushima. I understand that farmers have worked in that area for their whole lives, but unfortunately detection flaws and loopholes are going to happen again.

    Posted in: Farmers resume planting rice near crippled Fukushima site

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    This just reminds me of South Park's episode where the Germans beat the Japanese in the awards for Earth's least funny people, and Merkel went on a tour trying to tell jokes :p

    On the holidays issue, I found the Japanese attitude towards them to be like one big massive Catholic guilt-trip: Thou shalt not take lengthy holidays; Repent and shower your office in cookies, confess your sin and say 7 Hail Mary's to your shacho.

    Posted in: Germany most popular country in the world; Japan No. 4: BBC poll

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    Handshakes 'can' be a good giveaway of who thinks they have the cards- although when it comes to the Japanese the interpretation of many common gestures can go right out the window. As the Thai PM is also Asian, it's a little iffy to apply standard Western norms. On the other hand, if you look at photos of Bill and Hillary Clinton taking a walk, you can clearly see she's taking the lead and considers him to be her property. Although, sometimes you just have to take some things at face-value as coincidental posturing. The best examples of power play handshakes can be seen with European/US leaders. Most Western leaders are given a rundown in how to try and 'gain the upper hand', so to speak.

    Posted in: A visit from Thai PM

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    I'm going on, but if the Bible is to be taken literally, polygamy, slavery, incest and genocide could all be acceptable under certain conditions or when "necessary". As society changes and modernises into an urbanised structure, it stands to reason that there is some leeway, but wickedness, greed and murder are all constant no-no's throughout the old and new testaments.

    Posted in: Same-sex marriage gains traction around world

  • 2

    caffeinebuzz

    Sorry, am I missing something here? How is paying the neighbourhood protection racket so much more enlightened than participating in alliances for mutual assistance?

    We have to spell out each country's name in full with the Colony descriptions so the world know they are just a semi sovereign nation, not yet mature okay?

    If these countries are smart, they will see China as a Protector like in the old days where tributary countries pay homage to China

    Fortunately I think China is a bit more reasonable than wanting to be basically worshiped and paid off like a neighbourhood mobster protection racket.

    Posted in: U.S. study sees China using 'coercive power' on Japan

  • 1

    caffeinebuzz

    I too, thought the ranking categories were odd. Maybe they should have asked people's favorite branded snacks from each major category: Chocolate, chips, senbei etc.

    Posted in: The 5 most popular snacks in Japan

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    Seconded on the Angel Creams: Leave them alone! (Going by the name I'm not sure I wanna know what they're made of anyhow :p )

    Posted in: Mister Donut Japan to change product ingredients for first time in 42 years

  • 1

    caffeinebuzz

    Is it just me, or is that a bloodstained Ronald clapping his hands together with an "Itadakimasu". Cameraman is a goner...

    Posted in: Free gifts, cheap coffee no help as McDonald’s Japan troubles continue

  • 1

    caffeinebuzz

    If I'm not mistaken, the earthquake alerts depend on the location of the epicenter, your distance from it and the time it takes for the information to be relayed over the phone networks from the meteorological agency. You could be slap bang in the middle of a large quake and only find out about it in progress; but someone a bit further away might receive notification of the approaching seismic waves. Fairly complicated stuff and definitely not 100%, but if it saves any lives then it's worth it.

    Posted in: 24 injured after M6.3 quake hits western Japan

  • -2

    caffeinebuzz

    I remember reading in a Japanese article that a lot of chain restaurant sushi chefs often just grab a nearby plate of what the customer orders, and put it on the express rail, rather than make something from scratch unnecessary. Since the conveyor belts converge in the kitchens, it's quicker and saves wasting time and food. Even with that in mind I didn't have any problems using the touch screen to order what I couldn't find on the belt- and never had any stomach trouble during my time in Japan.

    Posted in: Customers’ behavior changing sushi culture in Japan

  • 3

    caffeinebuzz

    Defiant smokers often claim that they are being unfairly targeted. Most cleaners however, will tell you just how lazy and uncaring the vast majority of smokers are of their surrounds. Where I worked, you could see cigarette butts piled up in outside alcoves of buildings, with dedicated bins only a few meters away which they could have used- but just couldn't be bothered with. In Japan, one of my peeves was with friends who would ask if they could smoke, while already in the process of lighting up. I don't think all smokers are selfish, but I think it's an addictive habit which overrides consideration of people who sensibly choose not to smoke. By the way, there is nothing more miserable than walking behind a smoker on a wet, and cold day.

    Posted in: Have Japan’s anti-smoking laws gone too far?

  • 2

    caffeinebuzz

    Some people forget the lessons of history and just how much more effective North Korea has been at sealing itself off from almost all outside influence; while holding its own population captive and perpetrating the kind of brainwashing and segregation that even the Nazis would find incredible. I've seen accounts of defectors to South Korea still tearing up at the sight of Kim Il Sung or his son/grandson on tv- and most will readily admit that when they were living in the North, they thought they were happy as they had no point of comparison with the outside world. This may be slowly changing as smuggled S. Korean and Chinese tv shows/movies have been making the rounds; but with a society in which your closest friends, neighbours and even family are keeping a close eye on you- we have no right to pass judgement over the average North Korean citizen. Throw that together with Korean history and its repeated invasions and subsequent extreme xenophobia (Keep in mind that South Korea still had military dictatorships into the 1980s), and you can see that North Korea still has a long way to go in breaking the ice internally and externally.

    Posted in: Sanctions noose makes it harder for Japan's Koreans to help their own

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    he said it was because he didn't want me to think he was lazy and had left work before 7pm.

    Kringis, what if that was another lie, and he wanted to demonstrate his uniquely Japanese work ethic;)

    Since leaving Japan, I've had to deprogram myself from all the white-lie stuff. In my own country I'd never have to tell my workmates a "relative died and I have to go back to my hometown", so I could take time off for an overseas trip in holiday time, so I wouldn't provoke jealousy and be lumped with extra work as punishment for my audacity etc.

    Posted in: Japan 4th in world liar rankings

  • -1

    caffeinebuzz

    For the love of God, whoever gave me a thumbs down for commenting that a song repeated ad nauseum on the radio might be irritating- surely has issues. I don't care what the band is, but if a song is played to death on across the FM spectrum, then I'll naturally want to shut it out and stick my fingers in my ears and wish one of the JT mods had the power to delete these songs as easily and readily as they do with trivial posts

    Posted in: Mumford & Sons wins best album at Grammys

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    *playing to death

    Posted in: Mumford & Sons wins best album at Grammys

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    I haven't heard any of their other material besides that "I will wait" track that Aussie radio is playing time death...I'm that sick of it I switch stations but it's a Hydra. Make it stop!

    Posted in: Mumford & Sons wins best album at Grammys

  • 0

    caffeinebuzz

    For the record, I've never come across a decent article on gym etiquette in mainstream newspapers.

    I agree with quitting the gym and employing some imagination. I quit ages ago, took up running and got some weights for home, and saved an incredible amount of time and money each month. I noticed that because I was hitting the gym, I felt entitled to eat what I wanted and so while I was fairly healthy, I'm now far fitter from condensing my workouts and spending time on actual hobbies.

    Posted in: Modern etiquette: Minding your manners at the gym

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