JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION
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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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- Translator
- ZAIHON, Inc. (日本財務翻訳株式会社), Tokyo
- Salary: ¥6.0M / Year Negotiable
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thundercat
The political climate at the time of this crime is the reason these guys got off so lightly. They gang raped this girl and got a slap on the wrist because the government desperately wanted to keep the base in Iwakuni. I agree with rjd (for what might be the first time) this is disgraceful... These guys should have gotten more time.
Posted in: U.S. Marine sentenced to 12 months in prison for assaulting Japanese woman
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thundercat
i get pretty sleepy after a big bowl of rice as well...
Posted in: Have a rice day
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thundercat
skipthesong,
the point i was trying to make was that people didn't always 'hate' america. this article is about the raise of anti-americanism. i gave some examples of what i thought contributed to the problem and you retorted with the same old
'we saved you butts so shut your trap' nonsense that makes people want to hate you in the first place. that lame attitude will never win anyone over, especially when they feel wronged. keep thinking you are never wrong. keep pushing people around. keep saying ignorant things and watch those anti-american number continue to raise.
Posted in: Anti-Americanism at record levels worldwide, report shows
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thundercat
Perfect, exactly the ignorant attitude I was talking about. Guess you think French history started with America 'saving their butts'. Read your own history books. Where did the Statue of Liberty come from and whose actions helped get it there? It's silly and irrelevant to bring up such nonsense as read your books... Then you complain about other disliking you?
Posted in: Anti-Americanism at record levels worldwide, report shows
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thundercat
Left or Right? Seems the answer would be both...
I think the war in Iraq has a lot more to do with the negative attitude than the report is making out.
I had been living in France for sometime before the build up to war and saw first hand how some people changed during that time. America friends of mine who had been in France since the Vietnam war were suddenly finding their lives complicated by 'anti-Americanism' (which I think is a crock of $#!7 expression). French friends felt personally insulted by what was happening in America simply because they disagreed with the invasion. It was an emotional time but a big part of the problem was that there were leaders in the government at the time goading it along. I think it will be a long time before people in France forget the ridiculously arrogant comments by guys like Rumsfeld(who was seen as a representative of the American people). Seriously, that is the kind of stuff that needs to be apologised for and I think it would have a positive impact.
Posted in: Anti-Americanism at record levels worldwide, report shows
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thundercat
DanManjt,
I would suggest improving the systems that are already in place. It seems that the 'improvements' in secruity are being developed faster than people are being trained to use or implement them.
How about improving the working conditions for the people working in airports? Seems that the bottom of the barrel is being scraped to staff secruity personnel at most airports I've been through.
Even really simple rules are still being ignored. A few weeks ago at an airport in Toronto I was passing through the metal detectors when I saw an elderly man being stopped because he had a small knife on his key chain (probably 5cm to 6cm long). The inspectors were going to take the knife away until he said 'C'mon, I've had that knife for the past 50 years. You can't take it away from me now.' and guess what? They let him on the plane with it. It doesn't seem like much but who knows what this guy is up to. He could just as easily pass that knife off to someone else once past the check point.
Posted in: Scanners that see through clothing installed in U.S. airports
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thundercat
USN2, Sorry, you are right. Didn't have my thinking cap on straight yesterday.
Posted in: Scanners that see through clothing installed in U.S. airports
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thundercat
Nice, glad to see you raising the intellectual level of this conversation. What do you mean 'fewer crowds' and 'shorter waits'? You are already using the American Citizen only line, aren't you? I'm guessing that either way the crowds and waits will always be the same. The crowds and waits will be thinning out in the 'other' line. The Non-Citizen line will be getting shorter and shorter while you are waiting to have the family jewels scanned.
Posted in: Scanners that see through clothing installed in U.S. airports
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thundercat
Does this mean that temporary employment is just 'mostly bad'? Seriously, something needs to be done about regulating these 'temporary employment agencies'. Almost all major companies employing their services are doing so for the sole purpose of reducing wages and denying benefits. There is no reason that a major company like Meiden (for example) would have 80% of their factory staff provided by temp agencies (thats 1000s of people). This is a giant loophole in the employment laws of Japan that needs to be closed.
Posted in: Violent game launch canceled after Akihabara rampage; gov't discusses regulations on knives
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thundercat
I used to take connecting flights through the states on my way home to visit my family. For the last two years I've been paying the extra charge for direct flights. I really used to enjoy short layovers in different cities but never again. Passing through US immigration has become so painful that I refuse to go through it anymore.
I wonder how many other people have stopped using American airports as well?
Posted in: Scanners that see through clothing installed in U.S. airports
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thundercat
NB,
You said 'In society where there are metal detectors and guards...' I don't need to misquote. If you were implying that some schools had metal detectors and guards, you should have said that.
You asked a 'simple' question, I give a 'simple' answer and you dismissed it outright. Then I gave an example of what I was referring to and you ignored it. Gun and knife crimes might be common in 'da hood' but they are not common place in every classroom across the board. So when someone trespasses at a school, waving a knife around threatening people and then 20 cops are called it's going to make it in the news no matter what the social climate and definately where I come from. If a random kid is caught with a knife in his locker I highly doubt it would be in the news but this story hardly fits that description.
Posted in: 16-year-old boy arrested for barging into ex-girlfriend's high school with knife in Kitakyushu
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thundercat
DXXJP
Be careful, the laws changed in 2004. Legally you can no longer drive on an international license after one year of residence in Japan. They've even made it an offence over which you can be deported.
Posted in: Driving lessons available for foreigners
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thundercat
gogogo
Australia and France drive on the same side of the road?
It doesn't matter which side of the road you drive on as long as your country has an agreement with Japan to recognize each others licenses. You also need to have a valid license from your 'home' country that you obtained 3 months prior to coming to Japan (or a drivers abstract stating how long you've had your license). All Canadians need to do is go to JAF and have their license translated and then make an appointment at the local Menkyo centre. After answering a few questions and watching a short film they have the card printed and ready to go!
I wasn't even ever told what the road signs ment. Just a little 'drive safe' and off I went.
Posted in: Driving lessons available for foreigners
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thundercat
Did you miss the part when it was reported that the officer hit him with a baton?
Posted in: Suspect says he decided to stage Akihabara attack a few days before
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thundercat
Really? Have you forgotten about the crazy who offed 8 kids in Osaka? That guy was certifiable. A complete nutter. He was in solitary for 3 years and then executed. There is no way a an insanity plea will mitigate this guys actions. My guess is that he will never spend one more second of his life outside of prison.
Posted in: Suspect says he decided to stage Akihabara attack a few days before
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thundercat
rtrhead1,
You don't think this guy will be in solitary until he is put to death?
BTW, from what I have read, the police officer in question chased the guy down, dis-armed him and prevented further killing without killing the suspect who can now face punishment. Pulling out a gun and yelling 'Freeze' isn't going to do much to stop that crazy bastard but whacking him in the head a couple of times and then pulling out a gun seems to have done the trick. What else do you want?
Posted in: Suspect says he decided to stage Akihabara attack a few days before
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thundercat
No problem with the increases... as long as you are aware of what you are paying for at the time of purchase.
I had an experience recently with No. 1 Travel. Booked a flight home and was quoted a certain price, invoice was sent, etc. The day I was to pay for the ticket I received a phone call from them saying that there had been a fuel surcharge increase and I would have to pay 2000Y more. Not a lot I know but after a few questions I realized that these increases could continue even AFTER I paid for the ticket in full. By phone I was told that the ticket would be issued at the airport on the day of departure and that I would be responsible for any further increases in price. I basically felt like they would hold my ticket ransom and demand whatever they wanted even after I had made my final payment. They even went so far as trying to convince me that this was common practice with travel agents in Japan. Anyway, the first Japanese travel agent I called told me that they had never heard of such an absurd policy and that it was 'basically' illegal for No. 1 Travel to increase the prices after a final payment had been made. Make sure to read the fine print before paying!!
Posted in: As fuel prices continue to rise, the fuel surcharge on airfares is also increasing. What's your view on the issue?
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thundercat
I wonder how many station masters are worried about losing their jobs to stray cats...
According to this article all it takes to be a 'super station master' is to never complain, let passengers touch you all over... and have patience and charisma. Not a bad pussy actually ;) I wonder if this cat ever thought about becoming a hostess?
Posted in: Cat hired as station chief brings passengers back to debt-ridden train company
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thundercat
Yeah, this isn't the first time this year that someone has been caught doing this!
Posted in: Man disguised as schoolgirl arrested for trespassing in Ibaraki school
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thundercat
Nigelboy
Criminals? You seem to be assume that all people arrested and held are automatically guilty. That just isn't the case. Otherwise the arrest rate (those detained) would be hovering around the 99% conviction rate.
Furthermore, Patrick's anecdote hardly seems like BS to me. One of the reasons I feel so strongly about this topic is that a similar fate befell a friend of mine as well. He also lost his job after being released. Try even getting a day or two off from your company if it's not a scheduled holiday without getting into your bosses bad books. What was even worse was that he was locked up for a week before he could even get word out that he had been arrested since he was alone when he was picked up. So, his friends, family, company, no one knew where he was.
I don't think this is a rampant problem in the Japanese legal system. The fact that any of these stories exist bothers me. I also see a lot of potential for abuse in a system with very little over-sight.
Posted in: Nick Baker sent back to Britain to finish jail sentence