89-year-old man arrested for assaulting 'noisy' children

All around Japan Day Care Centers are needed but not being built due mainly to elderly neighbors protesting the prospect of hearing children's laughter and play. Sure it is noisy but these geriatrics are being far too self centered. Whatever happened to Gaman for the Good of Japan? I personally lived just 5 meters from a school playground... one that was used on weekends for sports. While I'd have loved to have slept quietly until 9AM on a Saturday or Sunday, I was always awakened around 7AM to their voices and play. Did it bother me.... yes, a little, but I made a lot of noise as a kid too and no one ever complained. Who am I to deny these kids when I myself enjoyed unfettered freedom, even in a city environment too, as a kid. Its tough enough growing up in Japan as it is with the examination process... let kids play.

getting angry at kids playing at 10am??

I don't know about you but I wouldn't put up with someone grabing my child and punishing them for something as innocent as playing with a ball outside especially if they were just outside their home. If the kids were doing something really bad like destroying something or hurting someone, that's a different story...

Excessive noise that repeats every day will bug out anybody.

The sound of children playing is not 'noise'. We are not talking about trucks (black or otherwise), motorcycles and I doubt was a talking about noise that prevented Ishikawa from carrying on a conversation. This strikes me as an overnervous man's overreaction to the natural sounds of children at play. If he had a problem with children being overly loud, he could have politely talked with them or even spoken with their parents. What he should not have done is put his hands on them.

When I was younger, my parents would crucify some sense into me.

There was a baseball field at the back at our rental house before, children almost everyday play baseball but sat & sun they play all day long even if it's raining. At first we don't have a problem but when my first child was born, our master bedroom are facing the baseball field, the game is not too noisy but the people who are watching if not screaming but talks too loud. So we asked our landlord to talk to whoever facilitates the game, which he did and they moved the bench away from our house. Of course we still hear the noise and often close the shutters completely and occasionally they would come to our house and give us cookies for the "inconvenience". So when we finally bought our own house we made sure it wasn't close to a base ball field, school or play ground.

Kids will be kids...

I also offered the alternative of them doing this in the nearby elementary school yard.

Yes, but, and I don't mean to sound arrogant in my question as that is not my intent at all, was such an alternative actually possible? There could be a number of reasons why just going to the nearby elementary school yard might not be a possible alternative. Let me suggest at least three possible reasons why it might not be possible. First, although I do not know the age of the children in your case, they may not be allowed to leave the area directly near where they live. Second, the elementary school may not allow free use of their yards. Third, the school yards may be already in use by the school itself.

I am not sure what a good solution for your case is because I really do not know the situation and yes, constant noise can certainly be annoying, but we do all have to leave together. Japan is a country in which so many people keep suggesting the dangers of an aging population. It certainly does not help matters when people make the people who do have kids feel bad for their kids just acting like kids.

Pulling the ear of a child is very painful. Many kids have chronic ear infections (I'm an adult and have that problem) and pulling the ear is painful. It is assault! He handled it very wrong. They live in government subsidized housing and there is someone they can talk to if there are problems. Taking the situation in his own hands is wrong. C'mon, they're kids and it wasn't in the middle of the night.

@knobby while I agree with the latter half of your post ASSAULT is NOT the way to go.

@Just a user & Knobby Roads ooh big deal he grabbed their ears like people did back in the day. Such a fuss and panic over nothing.

If it was your kid would you be ok with it, i know i wouldnt.

especially in front of his 8yo gf!

How do you know she's his girlfriend? They could've been siblings, cousins, strangers that just met, platonic friends, or secret lovers.

If I do happen to reach 89, I hope I don't change into a grumpy old man like this guy. It would suk to go out like that.

Honestly how noisy were you all? (during playtime)

Honestly how noisy were you all? (during playtime)

Exactly. A little empathy goes a long way.

I just noticed that my original post contained an error that makes it difficult to understand what I wanted to say.

Ironic that this happened on Respect for the Aged Day. Mr. Ishikawa, you can't expect respect from others if you are not willing to give it.

That's what I wanted to say.

Yes, it is not a good thing to grab other people's children and he is definitely old school. But I don't feel any real crime has been committed and it is just a generation ideology issue. I recall many years ago when I was a young teenager and walking down the street with my elderly father. There was a mother and her two out of control screaming kids walking past us and he yelled at those kids to be quiet. They were stunned and immediately behaved. The mother looked alarmed. I was shocked... but it worked. These days I realised what he did would not be acceptable but it was the way of his times and obviously effective.

it is in far more serious condition than merely being questioned.

I may have been wrong, but do you think that little mistake of mine makes a damned bit of difference to this jiji? He still walked away unpunished after a minor inconvenience and that was my real point

So what, he's 89 and nobody will do a danged thing. Remember, "arrested" does not mean "charged" or "sentenced", only that he was brought to the koban and questioned.

Wow, such a big man and outstanding citizen by assaulting children.

another sufferer of post traumatic senile dementia. jiji should be grateful he can hear at that age.

The 89yo can consider himself lucky that the 10yo boy didn't drop him with one punch (not much height difference between an older J man and a 10yo?!) especially in front of his 8yo gf!

More seriously I agree that what this man did was wrong and I would have been filthy if it was my kid but calling "ear pulling' an assault, puh-lease!!! PC world all right.

According to police, the incident occurred at around 10 a.m. on Monday. Sankei Shimbun reported that the suspect, Yukichi Ishikawa, approached a 10-year-old boy and 8-year-old girl who were playing with a ball within the grounds of a housing complex. He told them they were making too much noise and and allegedly proceeded to grab the backs of the two kids and pull their ears.

Ironic that this happened on Respect for the Aged Day. Mr. Ishikawa, you can expect respect from others if you are not willing to give it.

Remember Tom Waits' story about Mr. Stitches. When Tom was a kid, if a ball his gang was playing with wound up in Mr. Stiches' yard, you'd never see it again. Now Tom is proud that he's become another Mr. Stitches. Excessive noise that repeats every day will bug out anybody. The beeping of trucks backing up, motorcycles with loud mufflers that come by every day...if the noise keeps you from being able to talk to the person next to you, what are your rights? Not your behavioral rights, but rights to sanity. Sound monitoring gear up high on poles?

backscratcher, anything excessivevis noise.

One person's noise can be another person's music. This man should not have touched the children.

Based on the reported police reports, I get the distinct impression that this guy was a crab, plain and simple.

this is real life not some daytime tv soap opera.

Sorry, I have no idea what you are talking about here. This story really happened and the guy really overstepped his bounderies.

patricia, good post. yes, thats the reality.

Outrider wrote: The old guy should be thanked. ...... Are you kidding? I heard that the kid was having an in-depth soul-wracking discussion at the time on the possibility of going full trans. I'm afraid the traumatized kid may do something rash now and put away his bat for good.

Justa user, Knobby, I completely agree. Those kids got a good harmless old school lesson in manners. The old guy should be thanked. Instead some clueless so-called parent calls the police.

No wonder young Japanese adults don't want kids....

"I did not intend to assault the children"

Doesn't matter what you intended, assault is what you did. I say take away the man's pension for a while, pointing out that it's these kids -- which are a dying asset in this nation -- that will be paying most of their hard-earned money for elderly people such as himself, and then lock him up in a room with a bunch of noisy criminals for a day or two to remind him that actions have consequences. I see freaks like this old man all the time, and they are FAR louder than kids playing innocently in the parks or going to and from school. The guy probably sits at home all day drinking, or goes to the local izakaya where he laughs and shouts and has a good time with his buddies (which is fine, but just pointing out he probably isn't aware of how loud others might perceive him to be when he is enjoying himself).

I have a park behind my apartment building, and it can be VERY loud at times with kids playing -- but it's a park, and they are kids, and I have no right to scream at kids and definitely no right to assault them simply because I might selfishly want my silence. If they are banging on doors or committing crimes, that's a different story.

Doesn't matter what you intended, assault is what you did. I say take away the man's pension for a while, pointing out that it's these kids -- which are a dying asset in this nation -- that will be paying most of their hard-earned money for elderly people such as himself, and then lock him up in a room with a bunch of noisy criminals for a day or two to remind him that actions have consequences.

calm down

I have a park behind my apartment building, and it can be VERY loud at times with kids playing

They were not in a park

I see freaks like this old man all the time, and they are FAR louder than kids playing innocently in the parks or going to and from school

He's a freak now?

The guy probably sits at home all day drinking

Mind reading again smith?

sensei258SEP. 22, 2016 - 08:39AM JST

He still walked away unpunished after a minor inconvenience and that was my real point

No where in the article, it says he was released.

sensei258SEP. 21, 2016 - 07:06AM JST

Remember, "arrested" does not mean "charged" or "sentenced", only that he was brought to the koban and questioned.

Nonsense. In Japan, "arrested" means being in the custody of public prosecutor or police based on an arrest warrant issued by a judge for criminal procedure. There are some exceptions to it, but it is in far more serious condition than merely being questioned.

backscratcher, anything excessivevis noise. this is real life not some daytime tv soap opera.

Tokyo is too crowded for kids to playing ball or having tennis or batting practice against the walls. Sorry, it is just rude. I've gone out and politely explained the situation to the kids (and thoughtless parents if they were present). I also offered the alternative of them doing this in the nearby elementary school yard. It was too much...bap....bap....bap..bap....bap....bap..bap....bap....bap..bap....bap....bap..bap....bap....bap..bap....bap....bap..you get the picture. :-)

ooh big deal he grabbed their ears like people did back in the day. Such a fuss and panic over nothing.

Well done to this old geezer. The kids were probably playing were they weren't supposed to. Parents in this country rarely tell their kids to be quiet and think about those around them or stop them from doing what they want. Especially if it's a boy. That doesn't mean kids won't be noisy... they are kids..., but at least trying to educate them on such things is important. The amount of times I've had to tell kids to stop their anti-social behaviour in front of the parents is astounding. The parents just stand there and watch little Taro be a little brat. So this bloke is my new Hero!