JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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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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- Assistant Language Teacher - TOKYO - late-March start
- Interac, Tokyo
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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- Assistant Language Teacher - Kanagawa Prefecture - late-March start
- Interac, Kanagawa
- Salary: ¥230,000 ~ ¥255,000 / Month
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nishikat
Only that amount? That have probably spent 100s of millions (yen) already (I'm not criticizing it- just saying big cases cost big bucks). But if they make it 30m yen that might make someone talk even if the suspect is dead since if I remember correctly they can arrest someone posthumously.
Posted in: Setagaya family murders remain unsolved after 11 years
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nishikat
Another thing I know is police work 24 hour shifts (7-7). I actually had a couple of morning students who took lessons when their shifts ended. Nice students.
There can be sloppy police work in any country. And there are also nightmare stories like what happened after Hurricane Katrina when some of the cops there killed people execution style. No police force is perfect in any country. Same with the justice systems. FYI I was once called into the police station here because I was a witness to a crime and it was fine. They were very polite. What happened to you oyamaman? Were you framed by them? Do you have a personal story that you want to share with us? Was Ichihashi's victim your sister, or something? But they got him later anyway.
Posted in: Cop arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two junior high school girls
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nishikat
Oyamaman, where do you get your assumptions? There are actually two levels of entry into the police force from what I heard from an ex-private student. What I know generally- The "upper" requires a university degree, then you have the street police ("lower") which goes from at earliest high school. But either way it's very difficult to get in, very competitive and you have to be strong both mentally and physically and a lot don't make it. I know someone - really good guy - who tried his damndest to get in but in the end was really broken hearted that he could not have his dream career.
By the way, you forgot to refer to the police as "keystones". What happened there?
Posted in: Cop arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two junior high school girls
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nishikat
I have almost the same thoughts (Not only in Japan for anyone anywhere in the developed world who has too much frustration). Just take a trip to Thailand for the weekend. Just keep it legal and with people of legal age.
Posted in: Cop arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two junior high school girls
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nishikat
I asked this in another story and I would like to know why people here keep referring to the J-cops here as "keystones". It just sounds like Japan bashing by a bitter gaijin living in Japan too long.
I'd say let justice run its course and recognize the police force are generally a good bunch to serve the community.
Posted in: Cop arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two junior high school girls
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nishikat
Wow! The word "keystone" used four times so far. I've dealt with the J-cops here and they are real gentlemen compared to the cops back home who have their guns half cocked before they even talk to someone suspicious. Whenever people use the term "keystone" I imagine someone bitter about their life in Japan? Have been in the country a bit long and life going no where? What's going on? No country's police force is perfect just like no justice is perfect. But I am impressed with Jcops' persistence and focus once they decide to investigate something. And what's this about Sumo wrestlers being in the Yakuza?
Anyway, this is a good thing! Leading by example. Keeping the streets safe and this can lead to more positive activities for the community.
Posted in: Sumo wrestler crime prevention team patrols streets of Tokyo
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nishikat
Currently in Japan if you are an average downloader just for yourself probably nothing serious will happen. Even if they start really nailing people probably everyone will catch on and stop downloading or use some secure thing before it happens to you or anyone you know. We all know about the RIAA in the USA. I don't know anyone in the USA who was sued but I'd would never try downloading in the USA for that very reason- it's always in the news.
Like that for Japan. Eventually we might start hearing more and more news in both Japanese and English about how recording industries, police, etc, etc will start taking action here. Then hear even more news about people getting nailed but it is very unlikely it will happen to you or someone you know during this transition. At the same time everyone will start to know these stories and that will probably have an impact on what or how they download.
Posted in: 30 arrested for illegally sharing manga, music, movies, TV shows online
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nishikat
First the police are not Yaks. I was actually called into the police station since I witnessed a crime and they are they were real gentlemen. The just didn't give me coffee, oh well!!
OK, just about every gaijin is downloading some HBO or Showtime drama so need to pay attention to this. Personally I know a person who knows a person a few years back who had the latest Spiderman movie in his shared space for P2P. The provider detected it and sent an email about it to take it off. But no legal action. What I went to know is to what extent were these people arrested sharing? Did they have a huge about of stuff available? Latest stuff? Does it make a difference if you get something quickly by BitTorrent and take it off the shared space right after it is finished downloading? If you have a latest movie on your hard drive like TIN TIN that would probably attract more attention than a movie made twenty years ago like Goodfellas. There have to be at least a million people in this country using P2P illegally so either these 30 people did something that attracted a lot of attention (more than just downloading the latest HBO thing for himself) or were really unlucky. For the gaijin community this is a topic that needs serious discussion.
OH, yeah, heard about the VPN. Need to check that...
Posted in: 30 arrested for illegally sharing manga, music, movies, TV shows online
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nishikat
I read in the paper for users who are caught in China (just for using) it's not that bad and you are not even considered criminal even though the police are involved. They have some sort of protective custody where the process lasts for 14 days. The article mentioned that if you are using just for yourself you are not harming another person which is the logic behind the non-criminal process. In that case it would have been better if Ms. Sakai had been caught in China. If you are distributing in China then you will get really nailed since that is considered hurting another person.
Posted in: Noriko Sakai in China for anti-drug campaign
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nishikat
Going back to the part of "...in order to receive a liver transplant in the U.S. ahead of ailing American citizens..."
I found this:
http://www.organtransplants.org/understanding/unos/
Which quotes:
"...General principles, such as a patient's medical urgency, blood, tissue and size match with the donor, time on the waiting list and proximity to the donor, guide the distribution of organs. Under certain circumstance, special allowances are made for children. For example, children under age 11 who need kidneys are automatically assigned additional points. Factors such as a patient's income, celebrity status, and race or ethnic background play no role in determining allocation of organs..."
I guess it's misunderstood. Unless it's involving the son of Christ the FBI or any other organization cannot influence the priority list in any way. OK, I accept he made it to an American hospital but he just got the liver "ahead of ailing American citizens" because his case was at a certain medical priority as decided by the transplant protocol- and they found a match for him. Even if the guy was evil- medically it sounds ethical to me. The docs just did their jobs. Simply taken out of context at least in this discussion. But I wonder if the book claims the FBI had direct influence over the priority list.
Posted in: Reporter's look at yakuza gets personal
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nishikat
"...in order to receive a liver transplant in the U.S. ahead of ailing American citizens..."
Wondering if this book lacks credibility. I'm sure it's possible he got a liver transplant. But to be put in priority like that? Is that slightly on the BS side? You tell me. I mean if I were a US doc (or whoever is responsible for administering the priority list) and the FBI told me to put him in higher priority I'd tell them to...(I can't say on this board but you can imagine)
Posted in: Reporter's look at yakuza gets personal
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nishikat
Even if you have a very powerful server overseas somewhere to take advantage of an English system and probably a cheaper price there will still be an obvious lag since you are not on local pipes here. And think about overseas usage spikes like when Michael Jackson died. Actually I use this service here:
http://server.sakura.ad.jp/dedicated/entry/index.html
(The webmin cp is multilingual- thank god)
Yes, you have to deal with them 100% in Japanese but seem to be rock solid and even with the entry server I noticed obvious gains since it's locally connected.
Home server: You can run your own server with your broadband connection. I would not recommend it for business use but if you want to, for example, host pics and vids of Kyoto for friends/family back home then that's perfect. But when it comes to business you need to rely on a datacenter. Also, filesharing (for those who do it) tends to "clog" things up a bit and can make your home server inaccessible, like a personal DDOS.
Check this site, some useful info:
http://www.diywebserver.com/
Posted in: Switching to virtual servers
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nishikat
Back in my teens, I and just about everyone around me had the thoughts or dreams of getting that first car. Got to work that part-time job to pay for those car and exorbitant insurance payments. Need a job because I need a car and need a car because need a job. How stupid I think of it now. But it was in our culture. Today? It still is in our culture but it's really changing. If I were in my teens or college today? Screw it! I'll gladly take the bus with my laptop or iPod full of videos. Got to get a date? Then hook up with myspace. It's not just GM. It's all the car companies that face this danger of today's changes and technology. I love cars. But I really love the freedom of not needing one. Cars will continue being important but the days of one for each member of the family 16 or over....is over.
Posted in: Japanese automakers worry about fate of GM, Chrysler
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nishikat
kaminarikeizai I was commenting on someone else's comment. And what does your story have to do with this one? I like living in Japan but would not want to work in a regular company. But not because I would be afraid of the Japanese staff accusing me of doing things. Teaching here is best for me. And I don't have many bitter experiences here.
Posted in: NEC's loss widens; plans to cut 20,000 workers
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nishikat
"...fat cat executives..."
Japanese executives don't make that much money compared to the west. In USA CEOs make in the millions usually- well, at big companies, at least. But in Japan CEOs generally make in the 100s of thousands (dollars).
Posted in: NEC's loss widens; plans to cut 20,000 workers
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nishikat
McCain for '00!!!!! Sorry people picked a "wholesome" recovering alcoholic idiot (generally an idiot, I mean) rather than a great man as yourself.
I thought Clinton was all right. OK, a bit horny and talked too much but still OK. No super big disasters. I thought after 8 Clinton years a republican in the WH - Namely McCain - would have been a good change but not W. OH, my god! I mean if you are going to vote for someone please vote for someone who is at least better than you are. With GWB you might as well put a republican monkey in the WH.
Sorry John, '08 is too late and too old and your VP pick was well....
The point of true conservatism is about quiet grumpy old rich men who want to keep more of their money from taxes and who think that's good for everyone at all classes in society. And I'm cool with that fundamental debate. But what has this party changed into? Especially with GWB?
But I don't blame W. for the current economic crisis.
Posted in: How would you evaluate George W Bush's presidency?
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nishikat
I never really liked PB and the INVISIBLE CAR??? Jeeze. Criticizing SC would be like criticizing Johnny Carson. But DC is great for these times and back to the basics. You can believe this guy came out of the S.A.S.- a guy you know can take hits and then some. He is the hell man of hell week.
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One of my favorite scenes that portrays this idea is when he saves the new jumbo jet. The cops have him as they initially think he's the terrorist. When they are holding him up to be arrested he gets whacked. You might think this bit is trivial, and maybe it is. But somehow to me that short scene summed up his character. He went ahead and took his beating first and explained his real deal and contacted his boss later.
100% PURE BALL$ BABY
RM, depends on the movie but I think The Spy Who Loved Me is really one of my favorites that puts you in a different world.
Posted in: Which actor's portrayal of James Bond is the best?
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nishikat
Who keeps thinking there are that many SG members? According to Wikipedia SG "claims" 13M worldwide and 10M in Japan alone. I really don't think so. Let's break this down. I estimate there are about 200 people living in my condo bldg. 8% of that is about 16. There are NOT 16 SG members living in my building. I've lived here for almost 10 years and I would know. Also I work in several public schools. Each school has around 25-30 staff total. That means for each school I work at there are 1~3 co-workers who are SG. Again NO!!! This is about as credible as claiming Dr. Ikeda is a great world peace leader.
Religion? Cult? It's up to anyone to decide. But whatever you want to call them they are ANNOYING. No, not all of them. But enough of them to conclude that SG itself is an annoying organization that encourages its followers to do annoying things.
I challenge anyone to ask Japanese people you know well (non SGs) their opinion of SG and most of the responses will be negative. I had a private student who is a licensed accountant said something to the effect that (but he said it's something he shouldn't say publicly) the members are not so educated, compared to the general population. Another student who said she knew several SGs (or children of them) in her school and as soon as she turned 20 she was ANNOYINGLY contacted by her former SG classmates for voting. She really got pissed off. Again, they do stuff like that.
Posted in: Soka Gakkai boosts advertising on TV
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nishikat
"...Vice-General Director McCloskey tells the mass media that the SGI-USA has 350,000 believers, but recently, he admitted to a certain group of people that the actual number of members is close to 20,000..."
Look above. There are not 300,000 members in USA. I'm from USA and before I came to Japan I had no knowledge of SG at all. Scientology has around 55,000 members (really) in USA and people know them. But SGI-USA with "300,000" members and hardly anyone knows them? Do you really want to argue there are that many members in USA?
Also, 12 million members in Japan is about 10% of the population. I don't think so. I have met more people here going to Christian church than SGI so that number is really inflated. I can't believe that for every 10 random people I meet in Japan one will be SG.
Is Mr Ikeda really that great with all these awards? It seems if you play the game right and have enough power you can make yourself look good and get all kinds of awards and respect even if you don't really deserve it. I mean Tom Cruise says Scientology is great. And Ted Haggard used to meet GWB regularly in the White House until he was busted out by a gay hooker. Hell, it seems Osama Bin Laden had the support of the US at one time. Also, Saddam Hussein.
Posted in: Soka Gakkai boosts advertising on TV
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nishikat
One more question.
...banning the use of cluster bombs. Yes, they are terrible. But how involved was Mr. Ikeda in that? Was he really a significant part of this treaty? In other words if it wasn't for Mr. Ikeda would the ban NOT exist, or at least would it have faced major obstacles before being passed? Are you implying he was the original and most significant person to draw up this treaty and push it through?
Posted in: Soka Gakkai boosts advertising on TV