JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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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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- Translator
- ZAIHON, Inc. (日本財務翻訳株式会社), Tokyo
- Salary: ¥6.0M / Year Negotiable
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- Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in Kanto region
- RCS (RCSコーポレーション), Kanto
- Salary: ¥180,000 ~ ¥250,000 / Month includes performance bonus
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mnemosyne23
PS -- Though I agree, Sato's suit is... indescribable. I've noticed this about many Japanese "fashion" suits, though, where the suit jacket and pants are made of the same vividly patterned fabric. I always think it makes the poor guys look like they were dressed by a stylist who upholsters furniture for extra cash.
Posted in: Becky and Ryuta Sato win Best Smile of the Year awards
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mnemosyne23
Aww, I'm glad! I love Sato Ryuta; he's got a great sense of humor and wicked comic timing, and he seems like a genuinely nice guy. I always enjoy Becky when she appears on variety shows, too. Congrats!
Posted in: Becky and Ryuta Sato win Best Smile of the Year awards
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mnemosyne23
What the heck was a ten year old boy doing alone in such a place? What time of day was it? Even without deliberate intent, it's entirely likely he might have damaged something irreplaceable just by running around and bumping into things, something ten year old boys (and girls) are known to do. As it is, he deliberately burned this priceless building to the ground. I can't even imagine what a satisfactory punishment might be.
Posted in: 10-year-old boy detained for torching Nagoya temple
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mnemosyne23
I certainly hope she's found safe and sound, just kicking back at an onsen with a bunch of friends or something similar.
And I'd like to echo what others have said -- what is with the delay between the date she was last seen and now having this story in the news? Even if her parents didn't report her missing (and I imagine they did), her employer, her university instructors, or her friends must have noticed that she wasn't around. A week is a ridiculously long period of time to wait before declaring someone officially missing. Twenty-four hours should be the minimum -- less if it's a case of a child going missing. In all this intervening time, who knows what might have happened to her? If it's foul play, there's a good chance that any hard evidence has already been degraded. And if it's not foul play but rather a case of a 19 year old wanting to skip ahead to her 20th birthday and independence without telling anyone, then it's a gross misuse of police resources and an inexcusable emotional drain on her family and loved ones, and she needs to be brought to task for it. I sincerely hope it's the latter, not the former.
Posted in: 19-year-old university student missing in Shimane since Oct 26
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mnemosyne23
head tilt With a HAND SAW? That's got to be one of the more inefficient weapons I've heard of recently. Useful if you're trying to mug a tree, maybe, but a bit unwieldy and ineffective when it comes to trying to keep a person at bay. Now, if it had been an ELECTRIC saw -- say a skill saw or even a circular saw -- then okay. That's got some serious cutting power.
Posted in: Female part-timer at Sukiya robs own restaurant with hand saw
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mnemosyne23
I know a lot of people keep saying that in America, the cops would have shot someone to put an end to the fracas. I personally don't believe that would be the case. Firstly, deadly force is only justified in the most extreme of cases, where an officer's life or the life of an innocent individual is in imminent danger. Secondly, unless the officer is a crack shot with pinpoint accuracy, he or she would not fire off a weapon in a residential neighborhood unless it was as an absolute last resort; don't believe Hollywood and all its cops 'n' robbers shoot 'em ups. I haven't heard of an American cop firing a "warning shot" since the days of Bogart and Bacall. There's no such thing as a "harmless" shot. That bullet's going to land somewhere, and in a place as densely populated as Japan, there's a good chance that "somewhere" is going to be somebody's head.
Finally, to be frank, if this were America, the officers would have been trained to try and defuse the situation, and failing that, would have requested back-up. Heck, for a 20-person melee, you can bet there would have been more than two cops sent to begin with! I'm surprised the Jcops didn't send a whole platoon of cops to deal with the scary "foreigner" brawl.
And ditto what others have said re: what kind of foreigners are we talking about? Were they of Brazilian descent like other posters have stated? Or were they from elsewhere? A little more detail than "wearing t-shirts" would be appreciated, since I'm sure there are quite a few foreign and foreign-looking people in Japan who own t-shirts and are under 6 feet tall.
Posted in: Policeman fires two shots during brawl with foreigners in Mie
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mnemosyne23
I take issue with the statement that the girl didn't exhibit suicidal tendencies. Cutting, while not a guarantee of suicidal ideation, is nonetheless a clear signal that the person in question is emotionally unstable and in need of support, not "shame" and "discipline." Acute social withdrawal? Domestic violence? Self injury? In what way do these indicators AT ALL represent a need to be taught right from wrong? This girl doesn't sound like the type who was going out all night, smashing store windows with baseball bats and howling like a banshee with her lunatic friends. She sounds like someone who felt abandoned and unworthy and excluded from the world. Then they shipped her off to what amounts to juvie and are surprised that she committed suicide? What?
Was she abused by her boyfriend? By another family member? What kind of domestic violence are we talking about? And please define "acute social withdrawal" for me, too, because I think the last thing someone suffering from social withdrawal needs is to be sent away to a strange school traditionally known for housing society's "bad" kids. If she felt worthless to begin with -- and it sounds very much like that was her mindset -- then effectively shipping her off to reform school like some uncouth delinquent would just re-enforce that belief.
Yes, there are plenty of children and adolescents whose parents have failed to teach them the basics of right, wrong, good, bad, sympathy, empathy, and compassion. Sometimes these children can be helped through an environment of even-handed, strict -- NOT ABUSIVE, thank you, but strict -- discipline, so long as that harsh environment is tempered with equal parts praise for each young person's accomplishments. This can re-enforce positive behavior while simultaneously deglorifying negative, delinquent behavior. So I don't understand why any "educator" would characterize their school as teaching children and adolescents "shame." Shame is a negative, dark emotion, and it shouldn't be the focus of any school's behavioral rehabilitation. Rather, a school such as this should focus on bolstering a student's sense of compassion and humility. That doesn't mean giving them a free-ride and catering to their every whim. It DOES mean teaching them the REASONS why certain actions are good while others are bad, and encouraging them to try and see the world through less jaded eyes. This is what their parents failed to do, either through inattention, apathy, or insecurity. If you're successful, the shame for past misdeeds will follow naturally, as will the sense of relief that they can put those old behaviors in the past and start fresh.
But if this article is taken at face value, it doesn't sound like this girl needed to be "shamed" into being a better person anyway. It sounds like she was already suffering from an EXCESS of shame; shame in HERSELF. Self-loathing, self-mutilation; she had no respect for herself, and she certainly didn't need someone calling her out publicly for her behavior. It's like setting a match to a stack of dry tinder; it would take no time at all for it to go up in smoke.
Regardless of what it's like today, the REPUTATION of the Totsuka Yacht School is one of severe, even fatal punishment, not supportive rehabilitation and character reform. Being sent to a place like that must have hit this girl like a hammer. "See? I hurt myself and I hate myself, and then they tell me I'm bad and send me to this school, so I must REALLY be worthless. Nobody could love someone as bad as me. I want to die."
It's all too tragic. I wish someone could have genuinely helped this girl and prevented this awful result.
Posted in: Another question mark over Totsuka school's education methods
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mnemosyne23
So sad. My heart breaks for the boy's family.
Posted in: 10-year-old boy dies after falling from tree in Chiba park
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mnemosyne23
“Men now in their 20s and early 30s are of the generation that grew up under the banner of respect for individuality,” explains marketing writer Megumi Ushikubo. “They have little experience of the triumph of outright victory in all-out competition. Consequently, they don’t know their own potential, which is why they have no confidence.”
This whole passage confuses me. I'm an American, and a New Hampshire native taboot; you don't get much more ruggedly individualistic than that without moving to Montana. The point of this passage to me, then, seems to be contradictory to all sense. Ushikubo appears to be saying that individualism decreases competitive spirit. What? The complete OPPOSITE is true. Individualism is the pinnacle of vested self-interest; it places the individual ahead of the group. Taken to its negative extreme, it creates narcissitic, arrogant people who will undercut anyone and anything in an effort to be top dog. However, taken to its POSITIVE extreme, individualism drives innovation, advancement, and achievement.
The key to harnessing those positive qualities in the workforce is in learning how to blend diverse individuals with equally diverse talents and interests into a single, motivated unit that strives toward a shared goal. Just look at any successful sports team. You may have a roster of all the best hitters, pitchers, outfielders and infielders that money can buy, but if they're all just playing to boost their own statistics the whole team loses. It's when the players come together and effectively marshall their varied talents as a GROUP that the final goal of a championship title can be achieved.
I can't really blame these guys for being "listless, wary, anxiety-ridden and insecure." I would be, too, if I knew I was going to be judged (personally and professionally) on how I measure up to all the old fossils who went before me, and not on what I'm capable of as a person right now, right here, today. History is like an anvil: you can stand on it to help you reach high places and use it as a tool as you make beautiful things, but if you tie it around your neck and try to swim, all you're going to do is drown.
Posted in: The age of listless, wary, anxiety-ridden and insecure young men
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mnemosyne23
What a freak. I'm almost morbidly interested in what the argument might have entailed. Glad no one was seriously injured!
Posted in: Police arrest knife-wielding man after high-speed chase ends in crash
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mnemosyne23
I want the parents of the 8 year-old to post flyers throughout the city with pictures of the attackers and their home phone numbers, and include details on what these "children" ("children" meaning monsters) did to their son. The justice system might be legally prevented from disclosing the identities of these little creeps, but I don't see why the victim's family should be bound by those same legalities. After all, it's a public service!
"Neighbors! Please take a moment to look at the pictures of these individuals. Be aware that on August 6, 2009, these delinquents kidnapped, violently assaulted, and attempted to murder an 8-year-old boy. The 8-year-old was able to survive and these attackers have since been arrested and charged. Since they are juveniles, they will receive (or have received) minimal sentences. Please, when you see these delinquents near your home, call their parents IMMEDIATELY and demand that they come retrieve their offspring and take them home. Doing so will protect the well-being of your children and all the children in our neighborhood."
Even if nobody calls the parents, the public shaming should be enough to make them wish they'd never even CONSIDERED committing this crime.
Posted in: Two 15-yr-old boys sent to family court for assaulting 8-yr-old boy
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mnemosyne23
Does anyone have any information on WHY he kept calling? I mean, did he just call 110 to say, "You guys are stupid and I hate you!" or was he making nuisance complaints? He's clearly either delusional or arrogant beyond belief if he thinks it's "ridiculous" that he's been arrested for abusing 110 over 12,000 times. If nothing else, that accounts for MILLIONS of yen in wasted staff time and delayed response time for callers with genuine complaints. I say fine him what those "free" calls would have cost him had they NOT been toll free. That would be ironic justice at its best.
Posted in: Shiga man arrested for calling 110 number more than 12,000 times
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mnemosyne23
That is just SICK. (SHUDDER) The poor girl! First she gets flashed by some pervert, then the law enforcement officer who's supposed to protect her from that kind of depravity goes and STEALS HER UNDERWEAR. Are you kidding me? Stone him in the streets, the sick b@stard. Like Timorborder said, this guy should NEVER have stayed around to question the girls when he discovered that there were no adults present. He certainly shouldn't have asked to search her BEDROOM. What would you need to do that for? You wouldn't! She's not a suspect in anything! No, the cop saw his chance for a sick thrill and took it. Thank God he didn't do worse.
Disgusting.
Posted in: Cop arrested for stealing girl's underwear during investigation
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mnemosyne23
So weird. He threw his bike away? What was he planning to do for a getaway? Good on the two bystanders for catching and restraining him. They aren't going to be charged with interfering or some other cockamamey legality, right? Because that would be ridiculous.
I'd say all the women who have turned this jerk down in the past had the right idea. They should be patting themselves on the back!
Posted in: Man slashes woman because he 'can't get a girlfriend'
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mnemosyne23
are we sure there wasn't a mistranslation in here somewhere? Are we sure this wasn't "September" rather than "September of last year"? because after a year, the smell should be largely dissipated. So I'm confused.
And yes, poor baby. Regardless of how the child passed away, to be packed away in a cardboard box instead of given a proper burial shows a lack of respect for the deceased. Maybe the woman has a psychological condition that didn't see this behavior as wrong, or perhaps she was utterly bereft after the baby's death and couldn't bear to part with her child; either way, it was inappropriate, unhealthy and disrespectful to the child.
Posted in: Woman arrested for hiding body of dead baby in Nagano home
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mnemosyne23
I'm glad they caught the creep before he tried to get the uniform by force, which you have to assume could have been the end result of this harassment. I'm wondering if there was any way the Jcops could have traced the numbers this guy used to contact the girl, and if there was any surveillance video footage in those places. It's a shame it took so long to track him down and take him off the streets!
Posted in: Agriculture ministry employee with uniform fetish caught making harassing phone calls
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mnemosyne23
I'm not a fan of public nudity, but this is classic college stuff. Let them off with a warning and MAYBE some community service, but seriously, this is at the minor end of the minor scale. They did it when the station was virtually empty, they RAN across the station to reach the bathroom, and there's no indication that anyone was harmed. At worst they caused a few turned stomachs, some blushing giggles, and some fresh gray hairs for their parents.
Posted in: 10 Keio Univ students face charges for streaking through station
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mnemosyne23
cow76 wrote: you mean people are going to be *shudder spending quality time with their *families?!?**
I know, right? I mean, perish the thought! Young people actually want to have lives that DON'T revolve solely around their work? They actually want to leave the office at the end of the day and SOCIALIZE? Maybe they actually want to go home and SEE THEIR FAMILIES? What the HELL is wrong with this country!? My GOD, this kind of behavior must be STAMPED OUT!
Yes, okay, I'm going a little overboard, but give me a break. Reading this article, all I envision is a bunch of tired old fossils complaining about the poor work ethic of the newest crop of "whippersnappers." Um... so? If you really don't like them, fire them and hire someone who better suits your company. There are plenty of out of work people out there who'll be MORE than happy to accept the "honor" of going out drinking with their crusty old boss after work every night if it means they get to take home a paycheck.
I don't support lazy workers, mind you. That kid who flashed his boss the peace sign? He would have been fired in a heartbeat if it had been me sitting across the desk from him. At the very least he'd have gotten a letter of reprimand in his permanent file. But I'm not going to throw all of these youngsters to the wolves as being lazy, layabout good for nothings with no work ethic when I know it's not true. The modern workplace is a bustling, busy place, constantly in flux. The old model of doing business that so many companies employ is tired, stale, and BORING. This is the generation that grew up with Nintendo, Playstation, cell phones and the internet. Even without the mess of the Japanese educational system getting in the way, you can't expect these young people to come into an office system that's still structured like something you'd have found back in the 80's and then be shocked when they're unproductive and slow. The workplace has to catch up with the workers, not vice versa. A lot of that boredom, lack of productivity and absence of manners could be cured by encouraging innovation, experimentation, and imagination to keep them interested and to give them a sense of belonging to an organization that sees them as vital pieces of a puzzle, not nameless cogs in a wheel. But that's not the workplace situation for many of these new recruits, so they end up goofing off and behaving badly in an environment that stifles creativity, individuality and, by and large, morale.
"Big Boy" business should stay in the boardroom. The rest of a corporation, though, needs to grow up and get with the times. Going out to drink with your boss is only appreciated if you know you can say "No" without being excoriated in the press for your "cheekiness."
Posted in: New breed of employees can’t communicate and wilt under pressure
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mnemosyne23
There are one or two comedy acts I find genuinely funny -- Bananaman, for example, though I find them funnier when they AREN'T doing their routines and are just joking around. But for the most part, I don't get Japanese comedy. I beg cultural ignorance in that respect. I've always felt traditional Japanese comedy is very vaudevillian, if I have to draw a western comparison, and Vaudeville comedy has always been hit or miss with me.
To get back to the actual meat of this story, though, I agree that the comedians should have exercised better judgment in their dealings with Shimada, but I think he was completely out of line by getting physically aggressive in retaliation. Both sides were in the wrong and acted in a highly unprofessional manner.
To the guys in Tokyo 03: like it or not, Shimada is THE honcho in the comedy world. You might not like him, but if you want to be a somebody in the biz, you'll have to bite the bullet and act like the kouhai you are. He's been in the business a long time, and he will still be there a long time from now. You can learn things from him that will give you longevity. Don't burn your bridges before you've even made it halfway across.
To Shimada-san: Shame on you, sir. If you truly had a problem with the behavior of these young comedians, you should have pulled them aside AFTER the program finished airing and given them a lecture, not gone hairing into the seats like Ron Artest. You're supposed to be the respected senior here, but this makes you look like a spoiled child who isn't being pampered to his liking. If you want your kouhai to respect you, you should act like a proper sempai; earn their respect, don't demand it.
Posted in: Shinsuke Shimada snaps during live show
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mnemosyne23
I'm an American, and I think it's ridiculous that President Obama received the Peace Prize for, ostensibly, doing absolutely nothing. He won it solely due to the cult of personality. Maybe one day he will achieve something truly worthy of acclaim at this level, but he hasn't even been in office a year and he's spent most of that time trying to destroy the American healthcare system. How does that in any way qualify him to win a Nobel Prize of any sort? Why isn't the prize committee rewarding the efforts of Middle Eastern women who are willing to speak out against their own oppression, despite the possibility of retaliation? Or any of the hundreds of military chaplains who minister to deployed soldiers? Or someone, ANYONE, who has actually done something tangible to achieve harmony in the world? It's ridiculous.
But then, why are we even talking about this? The Nobel Peace Prize lost all legitimacy when they gave it to Arafat.
Posted in: Do you think U.S. President Barack Obama is a good choice for the Nobel Peace Prize?