JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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- Corporate Business English Trainers
- ACT Systems, Inc.（株式会社アクト・システムズ）, Tokyo
- Salary: ¥269,500 ~ ¥280,000 / Month
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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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thundercat
Yes Moderator! I agree these kinds of comparisons are completely meaningless. If you can't see the difference between a telephone conversation between two people and a for-profit entity that collects, saves and redistributes messages you have a problem understanding what it means to 'post' something.
Posted in: Should operators of websites be held criminally responsible if users post death threats, notices of intent to commit crimes, instructions on how to build bombs, etc?
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thundercat
BTW, read this thread again. The first person to bring up 'race' was you with your childish, off topic remark about expats (foreigners).
Posted in: Russian sumo wrestler denies marijuana use; wants new test
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thundercat
nigelboy,
The amount of "KY" expats here are appalling. Please explain.
Posted in: Russian sumo wrestler denies marijuana use; wants new test
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thundercat
Nigelboy, calm down and read again. I never said he was being set up. You are so biased it blinds you. The point I was trying to make is that you have no proof that there isn't a set up. That is simply your opinion.
Can you please explain why the results of a preliminary test were released when a conclusive test hadn't even been conducted yet? The only reason I can think of is that there is an attempt to sensationalize the story and ruin someone's name without sufficient proof. Do you have a different explanation?
I think conspiracies are generally the stuff of movies... but since you asked, does Kitanoumi have any rivals for his position? That would be a good motive for setting up one of his wrestlers. There are lots of other equally plausible scenarios... Now, before you make the accusation, I don't believe any of the conspiracy theories surrounding this case. I simply think there is room for error in these types of tests.
BTW your condescension reveals you insecurity. Aren't you an expat? How do you sleep at night??
Posted in: Russian sumo wrestler denies marijuana use; wants new test
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thundercat
Every one of the comparisons made by previous posters is ridiculous and completely off base (sarcasm123 comes pretty close though). This question arose from an interview with the creator of 2ch. Freedom of speech is a ridiculous argument. Uttering threats, especially death threats is not protected by freedom of speech. It's a crime for a good reason. If these kinds of posts are not removed or moderated then the operator is definately liable.
Posted in: Should operators of websites be held criminally responsible if users post death threats, notices of intent to commit crimes, instructions on how to build bombs, etc?
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thundercat
'alleged beating' ??? What kind of BS white wash is that? It's a very well established fact that the young sumo wrestler was beaten to death.
CavemanLawyer, funny stuff!
LFRAgain, I think the implication is that he feels the first tests were bungled.
BTW, the person who performed the test explained that there are a variety of reasons a positive result can occur. One of which was taking prescription drugs... This begs the question, why were the results released before they were confirmed? Anyone who claims these guys aren't being set up should think about that for a moment.
Posted in: Russian sumo wrestler denies marijuana use; wants new test
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thundercat
Mugabe will be dead soon and the world will see who is really running the show in Zimbabwe. We are going to wish we had done more when we had the chance.
Posted in: Zimbabwe regime jubilant at failed U.N. sanctions bid
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thundercat
A lot of these stores were opened with the specific intent of putting the competition out of business. They were operated at a loss in order to ensure that there was no way to fairly compete. Once Aeon puts 'the other guys' out of business they shut their doors too? Shameful. Unfortunately, this is the business model of more than one company in Japan. Not really sustainable in the long term.
Posted in: Aeon to close 40 supermarkets
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thundercat
As for convenient stores, wouldn't a good start be to put doors on all the refrigeration units?
Posted in: Do you think curtailing convenience store hours would be good for the environment?
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thundercat
I needed this article yesterday morning! Too funny!!
Posted in: San Francisco group proposes naming sewage plant for President George W Bush
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thundercat
flip-flop?
What a load of garbage. Obviously you'd rather have someone stubbornly lead your country down the drain rather than admit that a change is required! Takes a forward thinking, rational person to admit a mistake.
All you flip-flop chanting fools expect perfection and end up with George Bush instead. Congratulations. You don't want whats good for your country only what is good for your political affiliation. I guess you get what you deserve.
Posted in: Obama says Iraq trip could refine his policy
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thundercat
RepublicofTexas,
I would never claim for one second that the ICR isn't the only group with a political agenda. If someone were to base all of their arguments on evidence presented by the Sea Shepherd organization I would also state, without hesitation, that their mandate is political and their motives are questionable as well.
I was simply pointing out to ihope2eatwhales that he/she is taking such an obviously biased stance by only ever quoting from ICR press releases that nothing they say can be taken at face value.
ihope2
"The data is for us, whale eaters, not the crazy anti-whalers." That you can't see the ridiculousness of a statement like this is beyond laughable. I don't think anyone is 'anti-whaler'(anti-whaling is perhaps what you ment?). If you maintain such a beligerant attitude I'm sure soon enough there will be a large 'anti- whale eaters' movement as well! I have long held the belief that whaling, done in a traditional way and in coastal waters is not necessarily a bad thing. The more garbage I hear from you the more I question whether even that should be allowed. Something to think about, eh?
Posted in: DNA tests uncover undocumented whale meat on sale in Japan
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thundercat
Molenir
Are you saying that Fin whales aren't endangered because they are not big?! The are the second largest animal in the world, after the Blue Whale. Do you even know what a Fin whale is?
ihope2,
Cherry picking random snipits from ICR is never ever going to be convincing. Their entire mandate is to promote whaling under the guise of research! Anyway, thanks for clearing up that mystery about the 'accidental' capturing of the 'baby' Fin whale. 10 meters is tiny compared to the adult size of over 25 meters. Catching one of those giants would be impossible if one was using a fishing net. Do the babies taste better than the adults?
Posted in: DNA tests uncover undocumented whale meat on sale in Japan
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thundercat
ihopetoeat
Are you actually suggesting that Fin Whales could be mistakenly caught in fishing nets? Fin Whales = gigantic!
Posted in: DNA tests uncover undocumented whale meat on sale in Japan
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thundercat
VOR,
I read in the Stars and Stripes that some of the marines WERE charged with rape and even kidnapping at the start of their court martials. Was that information incorrect?
Posted in: U.S. Marine sentenced to 12 months in prison for assaulting Japanese woman
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thundercat
Let's also not forget that this is an endangered species.
Posted in: DNA tests uncover undocumented whale meat on sale in Japan
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thundercat
Farmboy,
You are missing the bigger picture. If there isn't enough evidence to clearly state that these whales were killed illegally then getting the story out could be an attempt to get the Japanese government to react. The government's reaction to a story like this could shed light on the situation.
Posted in: DNA tests uncover undocumented whale meat on sale in Japan
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thundercat
All of the circumstances of this case have led me to believe that this woman was raped. Her case was dismissed because of 'inconsistancies in her story' not because of physical evidence. By all accounts, the police dropped the case without having thoroughly investigated her claims. This is also the reason I believe these marines were not tried for rape by the US military. Some of these guys WERE charged with rape but copped pleas for lesser crimes. Had their trails gone ahead I think they would have been found guilty.
"Lance Cpl. Larry Dean was, however, found guilty during his court-martial of sexual misconduct for having sex with the woman without getting her consent." Stars and Stripes 05/10/08
WITHOUT HER CONSENT!!! What is the definition of rape again?
"After his first contact, Dean noticed she wasn’t enjoying sex with the men anymore but had sex with her a second time anyway, making him negligent and guilty of sexual misconduct, Hale said.
The alleged victim said she was raped by the men and pretended to enjoy it at first because she feared for her life." S and S 05/10/08
Feared for her life... disgusting. Violence is not always needed when intimidation can be used.
"The woman’s symptoms are consistent with symptoms of severe trauma, according to a military psychiatrist who testified last week.
Dean had sex with the woman twice in the parking lot and was the last man to copulate with her, according to court-martial evidence.
He told investigators the woman seemed to “give up” but that he had sex with her again anyway." S and S 05/11/08
She "gave up"! Sounds like she wasn't a willing participate. Also clearly rape!
I tend to believe her story that she agreed to sleep with one of the men and that the others joined in without her consent. No matter how you argue that one, it's rape.
Also, everyone is ignoring the fact that these guys ARE criminals! They are CONVICTED criminals. They lose all benefit of the doubt and their "word" is worthless. If you would rather believe the word of criminals than the word of someone who has commited no crimes and stands nothing to gain from making her accusation that is your choice.
So USN2, you question my understanding of the assumption of innocence until proven guilty?! If any jury had heard the same testimony I'm sure, beyond a reasonable doubt, these guys would have been convicted of rape.
BTW, getting pretty sick of the personal attacks. I'm proving my stance. Can you do the same? What evidence do you have that supports their stories?
Posted in: U.S. Marine sentenced to 12 months in prison for assaulting Japanese woman
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thundercat
USN
Right, you may have an 'inside track' (which I still doubt) but you certainly have trouble using a calender.
March 2006 - Local referendum voted against Iwakuni base.
April 2006 - Anti Iwakuni base mayor Ihara is elected.
October 2007 - 4 marines accussed of rape
October - December 2007 - pressure mounts on Ihara to resign after the municipal assembly members supportive of Iwakuni base continually vote down his budget.
December 28, 2007 - Ihara resigns and an election is called.
February 2008 - Fukuda Yoshihiko, pro-Iwakuni base is elected mayor.
" Fukuda, 37-year-old former House of Representatives member from the Liberal Democratic Party, was assisted by the ruling coalition parties, and his inauguration as a new mayor of Iwakuni is expected to benefit the central government's implementation plans on the realignment of the U.S. military presence in Japan under an agreement with the United States. "
"Since the relocation plan is a key item of a 2006 bilateral accord on the realignment of U.S. forces in Japan, the central government has been paying attention to the outcome of the election which may influence other local governments' reactions to the realignment plans, including the most symbolic relocation of U.S. Marines' Futemma Air Station within Okinawa." Japan Times.
So you would have us believe that incident occured after the election and that there was no political motivation to have this crime swept under the rug. Check your facts. The crime and the investigation occured right in the middle of all this political manoeuvring to have the base relocated.
Japanyesterday, as I said earlier, you can attack me all you like. Think I'm a conspiracy nut? It would take a total idiot to deny that this crime didn't occured at a politically sensitive time for the LDP.
Posted in: U.S. Marine sentenced to 12 months in prison for assaulting Japanese woman
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thundercat
So you're saying that politics didn't have a role in this? Inside track or not, it's undeniable that this crime occured in a politically charged atmosphere. Go ahead and attack me all you want, it doesn't bother me in the slightest.
Everyone keeps using the fact that the prosecutors (who are generally deeply politically connected) dropped the case and therefore no crime occured. I feel that the prosecutors were instructed to drop this case, which they did, because the LDP could not have a scandal such as this occuring at a time when pressure was mounting to move the base and when a candidate for mayor who greatly opposed this base was favoured to win an election. The LDP pulled strings to have their man elected and I don't doubt for a second that they would pull strings to have this covered up.
I highly doubt you or any other member of the American military had any 'inside track' to the workings of the political manoeuvring that let these guys get away with their crime.
Go ahead and prove me wrong. More than anything else I want to know that justice was served.
Posted in: U.S. Marine sentenced to 12 months in prison for assaulting Japanese woman