JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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- 秘書及び業務サポート
- 加治金属工業株式会社, Tokyo
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- ALT - Mie Prefecture - Yokkaichi City - June start
- NPO法人グローバル教育推進機構（GLAD), Mie
- Salary: ¥230,000 / Month For a full working month. Some months differ.
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mikemiro
I don't know what Sea Shepherd's organizational structure is like, but if he runs it like a good business (meaning, if he doesn't run it with him as the only person making decisions at the group) then even if he is incarcerated, it should be no problem for the group. They can continue to plan, organize and execute their operations with other members making decisions. If the group has not been set up like this, then this could well be the beginning of the end for Sea Shepherd.
Posted in: Anti-whaling leader Watson suspects Japan was behind his arrest
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mikemiro
that's good & bad news I reckon. As part of the reason why this country is mired in deflation is because people don't spend their money. However, after experiencing the consumer-unfriendly return policies here among retailers (once you buy it, you can't change your mind & return it) I understand why people here are reluctant to spend & keep their money in their coffers. Of course that is not the only reason, but it plays a role in why people here hang on to their yen so tightly.
Posted in: Japanese family's average savings: Y16.64 mil
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mikemiro
I couldn't agree more - have had beer handed to me at the Hub that was half foam & demanded they re-pour. It always surprises me how gullible people here are. As in this case, believing Japanese beer marketer's claims that foamy = fresh. There is a lesson to be learned here. If you want your crap product to sell in Japan, package it in an aesthetically pleasing way, pay some cute or well-respected Japanese celebrity to endorse your product & then have a bunch of talent-oh debate the benefits of the product to the Japanese people on a chat program & voila! watch your revenue rise!
Posted in: Japanese beer heads cause Westerners to froth at the mouth
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mikemiro
I agree, in principle, with the writer but like many commentators have stated, I don't think it is necessary to learn 2000 Kanji nor is rote memorization a palatable approach to learning. The problem is the time & motivation required to learn Kanji keep me from developing (and sticking to) study habits hat will allow me to communicate better in Japanese.
Posted in: Why you must learn kanji
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mikemiro
too funny. I was there & Lapasset is right. people tried to get the crowd going but only when Japan was playing - and they were fairly lackluster so it stayed quiet. I was there with a throng of Englishmen but we weren't drunk enough to inspire any revelry. more pom pom girls next time please!
Posted in: Tokyo Sevens needs more fun, pompom girls: rugby boss
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mikemiro
@brainiac - ditto. its because Japan changes people...
Posted in: Zuckerberg tells Noda tsunami inspired him to widen Facebook's role
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mikemiro
hopefully, Japan will then get out of its dinosaur manufacturing businesses (which are being taken over by China & India now anyway) & get involved in ecologically-friendly alternative energy production so we can all live in a healthier & safer environment. I guess all we have to do now is to wait for all these 80 year old Japanese business owners to start innovating...
Posted in: Many companies, especially manufacturers, are saying that if such a situation continues for two or three more years, then they would have to go abroad.
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mikemiro
I just got back from an izakaya where I was choked with tobacco & let my emotions get the better of me after seeing this pic. But it still peevs me that the govt here owns 51% of Japan Tobacco & thus does nothing to protect the majority here who do not smoke - because they are likely chain-smokers themselves with no interest in looking out for anyone but themselves. So perhaps I should say that I wish those gentlemen running things here would... ahem ... not carry on for much longer.
Posted in: Sign of the times
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mikemiro
What a joke. He says this, as he tries to restart the nuclear generators nationwide, without properly scrutinizing how well-prepared the nuclear reactors are to another disaster, nor providing any transparency whatsoever as to how the govt will measure and analyze plant readiness in the event of another crisis - whether man-made or natural. I hope the Japanese see the hypocrisy in their leadership...
Posted in: Noda: World must not fall for 'myth of safety' over nuclear plants
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mikemiro
So if oil & gas is used to supply electric power, the cars are more eco-friendly? I'm dead-set against restarting the nuke plants & Japan needs to invest in alternative energy sources but its a bit of a weak argument to me... saying that the car company or owners are not being green. I mean, what are their options?. To me, the fault lies with the Japanese govt for not finding a better solution to the country's energy needs...
Posted in: Electric cars risk losing green sheen in Japan
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mikemiro
The whole nuclear industry has already come under fire from energy watchdog groups for their lack of transparency and sub-par safety regulation - not just in Japan but globally This is like the tobacco industry telling us that smoking is not bad for your health and that there is no proof cigarettes are addictive and cause cancer. I would not believe any nuke sponsored spokesperson's comments about nuclear energy's benefits.
Posted in: Nuclear power only option despite Fukushima: industry
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mikemiro
I agree with the policy but I feel for the driver too, as he is probably on his shift for 12 hours at a go and if he can't even bring a mobile to work, then good luck trying to have a marriage, or friends, or any semblance of a social life...
Posted in: Train driver seen using cell phone while on job
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mikemiro
don't know if anyone else in Tokyo has noticed this, but the shopping area in west Shinjuku called, "Mylord" - and ostensibly pronounced "Me road-oh" by the locals... amusing.
Posted in: What are some of the weirdest examples of English used in ads or on T-shirts, bags, etc, that you have seen in Japan?
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mikemiro
ages ago, on an old ANA airline poster: "Have a nice fright". Brilliant.
Posted in: What are some of the weirdest examples of English used in ads or on T-shirts, bags, etc, that you have seen in Japan?
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mikemiro
unless the perp is overcome with guilt at his misdeed & gives himself up, I highly doubt the police in Chiba will EVER find this guy.
Posted in: Man steals Y1 million from Chiba love hotel
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mikemiro
seriously. I wonder how much the maruzas target politically-connected, aristocratic, corporate leaders in Japan. After seeing how corporations like Olympus go on for years working hand-in-hand with their (global top-tier) audit firms to hide their income (or debt) , you realize that these govt-run peon auditors will never even get close to uncovering the endemic corruption and graft that is at the root of the tax evasion and concealment in Japan.
Posted in: Marusa tax investigators leave no stone unturned
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mikemiro
@Lazzaris Alberto - great link man! it just sounded off when the next quake off of Fukushima hit - felt it rocking in my apt in Tokyo just as it finished counting down to the expected quake
Posted in: M6.1 quake jolts Chiba, surrounding areas
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mikemiro
Too bad. A very intelligent man. Unlike many wealthy Japanese business leaders, Mori had a keen interest in helping the city, not just himself, prosper, while at the same time making it beautiful and distinctive.
Posted in: Property tycoon Minoru Mori dies at 77
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mikemiro
I hope they're gonna bring back the vinyl upholstered bench seats and heavy-duty white-wall tires too...
Posted in: Nissan may revive Datsun brand
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mikemiro
Scary... Wen is now stating that growth will drop to 7.5% - yet economists have stated in the past that below 8%, the Chinese economy will be difficult to sustain. With a GDP below 8%, it will be very difficult to find jobs for young people in China (as McKinsey economist David Li noted: http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/IsChinarecessionproof2366)
Many economists in China have said the same thing & 8% is an enormously high GDP for any economy to sustain for a prolonged time period. The problem with China is that, with a population with too many males, the only option to prevent internal rebellion is to start a war. So IMO, China may be building up its military in order to give its angry, young, unemployed male population something (or someone) to vent their anger upon in the not so distant future. I think that, as a result of these unrealistic growth expectations that still exist in China and the resulting lack of employment, social unrest will start to take place which will leave the govt in China no option but to begin an external conflict in order to prevent an internal revolution. That may explain why Japan is developing weapons with Great Britain and bolstering its own defeneces.
Posted in: China hikes military spending to win local wars: Wen