Posted in: 4 found from missing tourist boat off Hokkaido See in context
No trace of anything or anybody, that is just totally weird. It almost looks like they all vanished into a different dimension. Maybe there is a time warp/portal there?
-16 ( +4 / -20 )
Posted in: Trump to launch own social media platform: ex-aide See in context
Ah goody. Hopefully it won't be hacked like some other alternative ones.
1 ( +3 / -2 )
Posted in: Japan to give some travel agencies more subsidies for Go To Travel program See in context
Well, money grows on trees. Just print more...
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Social media abuse drives girls off Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: poll See in context
After reading the detailed article, something seems off. "We use (your platforms) not just to connect with friends, but to lead and create change. But they are not safe for us. We get harassed and abused on them. Every. Single. Day," they wrote." - Perhaps the harassing is happening because they are trying to force their beliefs on everybody? I would think that there was no reason to harass anyone over just connecting with friends. So it is likely the "to lead and create change" part.
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Plastic bag usage at Japanese stores down by 50%, but plastic bags sales through the roof See in context
Even if some people do buy plastic bags for garbage disposal, you only need so many bags for that purpose. I found that even with paying for larger bags from time to time, overall plastic bag usage does get less. When buying smaller quantities of stuff, I opt for no bag and just put them in my existing bag that I happen to have with me, and when at the supermarket, I get one or two large bags and use those for garbage. As for smaller bags used for throwing smelly stuff, we just keep the bag packagings of anything and reuse them. It is pretty amazing how many smaller size bags accumulate when you actually make an effort to keep/recycle them.
8 ( +8 / -0 )
Posted in: Trump's coronavirus retweets spark claims of censorship See in context
Oh I did not know this was about Trump, what a surprise... But typically the whole thing is turned around and certain aspects taken out of context and presented in such a way that it serves the mainstream point of view and everyone participating seems like a lunatic. I watched the video yesterday and thought it was very well done, with all the various doctors sharing their experiences and opinions, except the tall black doctor who seemed to talk in circles... I tried to share the video several times since it kept being removed. Censorship these days is really getting bad and we really need to find other ways to communicate with each other, without going through the social media giants who apparently now do joint attempts to block any information that does not fit the mainstream agenda. Welcome to the beginnings of communism where anyone who dares to speak against or even question the status quo gets silenced immediately. This is very disturbing.
-7 ( +1 / -8 )
Posted in: Fuji TV had deal with 'Terrace House' cast on how scenes played out See in context
There is the staging but there is also twisting and presenting things afterwards as the producers think it will rile up audiences as much as possible. I wonder what's the point because viewers will often find out and eventually get disgusted, but at the same time if it is not "entertaining" enough, many viewers complain that it is boring. I've been watching Below Deck (on Bravo TV) for a while and lately started to realize that a lot of the scandalous incidents are created by editing and presenting matters in a tricky way so that they appear different from what they were originally. Even just conveniently leaving out some small but important details might create drama. From this aspect most media (shows) really are despicable.
2 ( +2 / -0 )
Posted in: New York City virus deaths exceed 3,200, topping toll for 9/11 attacks See in context
It sure doesn't help to keep showing these pictures of empty hospital beds...
-1 ( +1 / -2 )
Posted in: Abe cautious about declaring emergency despite spike in virus cases See in context
"governors are allowed to use land and facilities without permission from their owners and users"
This might be a little scary...11 ( +13 / -2 )
Posted in: Sales tax cut emerging as option as gov't battles coronavirus fallout See in context
Goody goody!
-2 ( +2 / -4 )
Posted in: Nara deer leave park; head to station for food as tourist numbers tumble See in context
Since the deer are obviously hungry and that's why they come into public areas eating whatever can be eaten, and even plastic (!), this is becoming a problem that is not going away until the tourists return, the city of Nara should organize regular feedings by local students who have no school anyway, where the deer food is is provided (by the city of Nara). It should not be that much of an extra expense.
11 ( +11 / -0 )
Posted in: Abe says no need yet for emergency declaration; Tokyo Olympics still on See in context
As others also pointed out under previous articles, it is not just about Japan but the other countries of the world. Even if Japan contains the virus to some extent, it is questionable if the other countries also do. The Olympics is a global event...
15 ( +16 / -1 )
Posted in: Antitrust watchdog launches probe into Rakuten's free delivery plan See in context
Well that's really not nice of Rakuten, at least the free shipping amount should be set higher, to like over 8000 or 10,000 yen. And a lot also depends on the nature of the particular products a retailer sells, it might really be difficult to offer some with free shipping. I wonder if Rakuten goes ahead with this, a bunch of retailers will leave...
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Final moments of Kobe Bryant's fatal helicopter crash revealed by investigators See in context
Regardless of what actually happened, it is quite intriguing about the recent Bryant commercial with the funeral scene.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Downtown Tokyo's homeless fear removal ahead of Olympics See in context
Welfare offices try to get people to move into shelters but many, like former construction worker Masanori Ito, resist. "They have rules," - It would be nice to know why shelters are considered to be so horrible that the homeless rather prefer staying in the streets.
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: In a 24/7 food culture, periodic fasting gains followers See in context
Well goody! Fasting is getting more and more popular as people start realizing that it is still the easiest and cheapest way to lose weight and/or getting rid of their health problems. But ultimately it all comes down to what and how much you eat during the eating periods. I've been doing fasts for over 10 years, ever since the good old days of Brad Pilon's EatStopEat and I've done countless 24+ fasts, up to 4 days, including dry fasting. Also, fasting is really not the holy grail of healing so it is good to have some realistic expectations. The first time you do a 24-hour fast, it is like "Wow! What a big deal! I actually haven't eaten for 24 hours!" Then as you keep doing more and more fasts it just becomes the same old same old, just a part of life. Definitely good to do it regularly even just for health maintenance since during a fast the body has a chance to do other stuff it otherwise does not have any capacity left to do because of the constant digesting/eliminating of food, especially when most people keep eating all the time.
2 ( +3 / -1 )
Posted in: Healthy rice gelato puts dessert back on the menu for vegans See in context
Cool. No oxalates in this either, vegans/vegetarians should be happy.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Pro-Europe vote fragments but limits nationalist gains in EU election See in context
Nice smile there.
-3 ( +3 / -6 )
Posted in: Blockbuster Queen biopic reignites Japanese fans' passion See in context
After seeing the trailer, I was looking forward to watching the movie but was quite disappointed. To me it seemed that the movie was often dragging. Sadly the trailer was much better than the movie...
0 ( +1 / -1 )
Posted in: Aum cult founder Asahara, 6 followers hanged See in context
Regarding the suggestion for paying back their debts by performing menial tasks for society, I think that would be pretty difficult considering that he was "refusing to use a toilet in the cell, he always wore a diaper and was seen sometimes with rough skin" etc. Was there such a practice at all, most likely convicts would find clever ways like that to evade.
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Police identify first body in serial murder case See in context
Despite appearances, there are lots of seriously messed-up people in Japan (as well) and even without guns, they easily find their ways to murder others.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Trump, Abe play a round of golf diplomacy See in context
Nice pictures.
I kinda wonder what the "full of spirited conversation" consisted of :)
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Trump vows to win 'battles' ahead, at home and abroad See in context
"Mr. President, the media is not fake news," he said. - Indeed, it is just various ways of looking at and presenting the same thing, depending on what your agenda is. So in a way, everybody is right, and each and every perspective will be a little different.
As for results, after the Flynn incident and with the Syria bombing it became apparent that Mr. Trump's original foreign policies were stopped and turned around. From that point on, whatever the DS wants is happening. It seems that he is still allowed to do some internal US stuff... Kinda sad. I was hoping he could make it.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Senator says GOP colleagues question Trump's mental health See in context
Basically anyone who thinks differently from a group of people will be termed a nutter by the members of that group ("How come they dare to deviate? Let's ridicule them."), so that is no wonder. Nothing new here.
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Canada's Trudeau talks trade with Trump at White House See in context
” But he said “the last thing Canadians expect is for me to come down and lecture another country on how they chose to govern themselves.” - Goody. Thank you for the healthy common sense approach.
0 ( +1 / -1 )
Posted in: The new civics course in schools: How to avoid fake news See in context
@Kuya 808: Very good quote there about the interpretations. I usually say that unless we were there in person, we really have no way of telling whether anything is true or not, or what really happened. These days anything can be easily fabricated and presented as "evidence", also depending on how something is presented, it can be two completely different stories. Furthermore if a number of people observe any event, it can be reported in as many ways as many people were there, for each and every person will experience it in their unique way. So it's kinda difficult. Too bad we cannot distinguish between fake and true with our hearts (yet).
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Trump's border wall faces reality check See in context
Perhaps the paying for the wall is not to be taken directly, but in some other form for Mexico to pay. Trump has an open mind and unique solutions so I'm sure he will find a way that might even be surprising.
-3 ( +2 / -5 )
Posted in: Trump's 'war with the media' raises questions of trust See in context
Well, unless you were there in person, it's always useful to look up both sides of a story. Of course it is always just easier to take whatever is offered on the silver platter...
5 ( +5 / -0 )
Posted in: Tokyo’s cat pub - the cat cafe for grown-ups See in context
On the external link under the article there are a ton of pictures, and I did not see any ashtrays anywhere so I'd say it's probably not one of those smoke-filled izakayas.
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Abe to step up nuclear technology export drive See in context
Boooooo! "Czech national power producer CEZ AS is looking to start operating the new reactors in 2020 or later." - hopefully there won't be any need for this risky technology any more at that time!! It is too bad that they are getting together to promote nuclear, they should rather be getting together to discuss how to start using free energy technologies on a mass level scale!
6 ( +6 / -0 )
Posted in: 34 fall ill on flights from Guam to Japan; food poisoning suspected
Sounds like he’s either a mentalist or an attention seeker to me.
Posted in: Self-described Nazi becomes first person jailed in Australia for performing outlawed salute
Posted in: With Trump's win, some women wonder: Will U.S. ever see a female president?
Posted in: 8-hour Russian drone barrage keeps Kyiv on edge as war in Ukraine nears 1,000 days