Azrael comments

Popular vote must be respected.

Muslims have quite some problems to address. Usually one does not see so-called moderate Muslims take any sort of real action to let's say disown radical Muslims. Sad as it is, Muslims foster a feeling of insecurity and perplexity. How to approach Muslims as a group? Muslim countries are intolerant of other religions and they in turn ask to be allowed to make inroads in "infidel" countries; Muslim communities that then repeat certain patterns: genital mutilation, body veil, forced marriages including sending daughters back to their country for a forced marriage for fears she has become "Westernized." Discrimination against women and intolerance for Western females to the point that Western females may be required to wear veils "to fit in" in Muslim-dominated places.

A balance must be found, for peace. Tolerance has to be a two-way road; Muslims have to open their fist and give, too. In the meantime I can understand why the Swiss voted this way.

I don't support abortion.

Typo. "100% of any given work" should read "any given group." I deleted the wrong word. If any of the moderators would be so kind, please edit my post accordingly. Thank you.

Wolfpack: You are of course entitled to your own opinion. Please do consider the fact that you may be mistaken. In any case you may sit back and let others work. Statistically speaking it is impossible to get the 100% of any given work to support an idea before the consequences of non-action directly effects their life. Just don't go postal somewhere to stop positive social and economical changes (having cleaner energy resource options is only intelligent) - that would be unhelpful.

Serge: We can't.

All we can do is slow them down, minimize impact and remove the causes to prevent further effect. That is why global warming is an urgent issue: there is no way to fix the damage already done. What we can do is estimate what the immediate future damage is and stop doing what would cause it.

That is all. You can say goodbye to the world you knew. It may sound extreme, but it is the truth. The landscape will change even more within the next three decades. It will be... interesting, to say the least.

I really should be a little surprised that some people listen to hate-news, but sadly I am not surprised. Climate change has become obvious to the naked eye quite quickly and alarmingly in the past three years. Storms and floods, drought and insects populating areas previously inaccessible to them in the northern hemisphere and destroying crops and forests, permafrost thawing, Greenland ice receeding - the list goes on and on. Ask Britain. It's not a hype or a fabrication.

Understandably enough for anyone who knows what hackers and misinformers do for a living, the emails that got stolen were selected and quoted out of context to create a desired effect; this is why the scientists have not denied the emails are real, but have emphasized that not all the stolen emails were released by the hackers, and the quotes are out of context. Since the scientists have the original emails in their proper sequence and code classification numbers (Hello? Even memos and emails at simple public offices have serial numbers for classification) they are able to point out these things. Simply and plainly yes, there are vested interests behind keeping energy shifts at global scale. Any oil company could have paid these hackers. Remember Iraq war and oil companies? At first nobody wanted to see the elephant in the room; now it's old news.

However, a lot of people also believe in Roswell aliens, the Chupacabras and that the moon landing was staged. Go figure.

The woman is a heroine.

As for the kid, was he playing or was he still debating if he should jump and end it all or not? 3rd floor window on a school building is fairly high. I doubt he wouldn't have been seriously injured if he had dropped from that height. Maybe he was bullied into walking the ledge. Sorry, I've read too many news of Japanese children bullied at school and dying as a direct consequence of it.

Noripinhead at 05:20 PM JST - 26th November: In the immortal words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, "Only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise."

LOL! ^^;;;

XD! Not to generalize concerning Serge's comment, but I think it's funny how on most posts men here seem to like skinny and curveless girls but this time the "dynamite" woman is the heaviest one in the photo (she's not fat, just NORMAL on a healthy weight and does not look like some kid) that actually has curves.

Back to topic, soft on the outside and strong inside sounds like a jam cookie. Personally I prefer men with a healthy dose of self-esteem that do not hide their personality. Soft men are the type that expect you to be their mother and haul them around for the simplest things like, get him to a doctor when he is sick (and chid him when he fusses over medicines), fight off his mother, choose his clothes for him and be the backbone of the relationship because he's too soft to be reliable. Yeeks. Then he only shows some backbone when? After you die or get SO sick that it's impossible for you to command the ship and he discovers HE is going to drown. As soon as you are back to health, the backbone shrinks and disappears.

So NO, thank you.

I still cannot see what is so good about canned coffee, coffee in cartons or in foam cups. It's just junk food... or junk drink, all things considered. It's days old. Nothing beats fresh ground coffee right off the filter! Strangely enough, natural things are "luxurious" nowadays when people eat adultered, watered down and preservatives-laden stuff just because someone else made it and the packaging looks pretty.

It must be kind of strange when you can eat your own research.

There is no quick answer like Mrs. Cleo says, but the "questions" are multiplying really fast. Despite low birth rates in some countries, those few consume much more resources than the poorer countries whose resources they reap. This kind of breakthrough is important because the oceans are warming quickly and the effects are beginning to show: giant jellyfish impeding fishing and poisoning fish when trapped together in fishing nets... and the like, plus overfishing.

What I am against is Soylent Green kind of foods. I read on the news last week about researchers being able to grow tiny slabs of meat already, and the chief researcher saying human meat would also be interesting to grow as food. Way to go, mankind. I prefer not to eat you, thank you very much.

I asked my cousin once, why do people talk so much about Catholicism and why so many folk stories regarding it attract so much discussion? She said because obviously it is the most interesting religion in the eyes of mass Media. She was joking but like Aristophanes said, in joking you may say the blunt truth. Or something similar. Two thousand years and people still love to talk about it.

She looks great, and great for her age, too. It's a pity she promotes fur by using it... unless it's a synthetic fur jacket?

The guy on the top left ruined the photo by being the phantom of recession looming over the shiny happy people of Japan.

I second LoveUSA and Mrs. Cleo.

The police woman was lucky she glanced up at her veranda before going into the building, saw the pervert and (quite intelligently) got backup. Who knows if she would be unharmed or even alive today otherwise.

I suppose continue as till now: Keep Ichihashi under tight police surveillance and conduct regular medical checkups to make sure his vitals don't weaken and he remains healthy enough to stand trial. If his body begins to weaken, then IV drips may be used. If he continues to refuse food, then there's always the alternative of tube-feeding performed at a hospital. Meanwhile prosecutors may build their case based on physical proof and a careful investigation regarding Ichihashi previous to capture: where did he go and how, his contacts, debit and/or credit cards they may have found in his wallet and where did his money come from. Interview former co-workers. Not all depends on Ichihashi talking (yes, I know police in Japan is said to rely on confessions rather than on hard evidence, but still). It's his defense that may want him to talk rather than the prosecutors. After all, his case and culpability seem (so far) to be understood from the evidence he left behind when he fled. His activities during his time eluding Japanese justice do not speak in his favor either.

Johnny Depp has my vote on this matter, definitely.

Miyaratmosphere at 03:05 PM JST - 17th November, I am a surprised by your comment so I would like to say in all constructive criticism that you seem to be a little confused. Courtesy, at least in the West, is about treating others as you wish they treat you and most specially, care for those weaker than you at the moment. That is what courtesy is about. I cannot help but to perceive you harbor animosity towards Westerners and more acutely towards Western females (regardless if you are Western or not). A pregnant woman, an elderly woman and a woman carrying a child in her arms in a packed train are always in a weaker position than you. It is only good-natured and polite to offer your seat. You see, the cornerstone of courtesy is to be kind from the heart. If you discriminate against females, well... you are being rude. It's your choice and you may remain seated; but please notice that authentic politeness does not discriminate.

Kirakira, I wish I had something to answer all my questions, too XD. I wish you deliver a healthy child! Yabusama, thanks for your reply. Yes, it's a sad state of affairs everywhere. No matter their background if people give up on courtesy, society becomes a pandemonium.

yabusama at 03:59 PM JST - 16th November: The Japanese have the idea of WA, preserving the harmony of society, not being disruptive. Acting like a bunch of monkeys on the trains is not practicing WA.

Exactly. I maintain my point of view that chivalry is foreign to Japan. The West has chivalry; Japan has Wa. These are two different and sometimes opposite sets of courtesy. Kirakira, I think Wa is the answer to your question. Yabusama, as you mentioned yourself, to be polite or not be polite is a choice and many Japanese on trains choose not to practice it; however may I point out to your notice that the politeness a Japanese practices is by default derived from the Wa. Chivalry of course sounds nice and romantic, but that does not mean it's automatically stuck to all societies. It derives from cultural practices and as most know, Chivalry is strongly associated with Christendom, where it was born. Japan has been heavily influenced by the West as you propose, but Japan still holds its own cultural identity based on its own roots. Japan with Shinto and Buddhism, has Wa to sustain its manners and morals. It is in the end as you may see, a cultural thing.

The title of this article poses a weird question. Is chivalry dead on Tokyo trains? It asks. Chivalry is not part of Japanese culture in the first place. Chivalry is a Western concept. All the manners and deferences associated with chivalry are foreign to Japan and are not taught to children by their mothers simply because Japan has a different set of manners and what is considered polite in the West does not match what is considered polite in Japan. Simple things like, allowing the elderly to go to the front of a line, for example; leaving one's seat for a pregnant woman to sit down; holding open doors for women and children; allowing an older person to pass first through a narrow space; none of these things happen in Japan. Hence, is strange to expect chivalry to manifest in Japan train cars or anywhere else.

We had a Finnish professor for two years in my university. He was a gentleman to everyone, regardless age and gender. Japanese women were delighted and surprised - and yet, he was not doing anything extraordinary in my opinion... but in Japan his simple and kind manners were extraordinary. I am not saying Japanese are -rude- but politeness is simply different. One may or may not come to like and differentiate both sets. It's a cultural thing.

Thanks for your reply, dolphingirl. You are probably right. I think it's better in the long run to leave Japan.

Norinrad21, are you quite alright?

This is a sensitive issue. As my school days draw to an end I am considering the possibility of staying to work in Japan, but a tiny voice in the back of my mind wails with horror whenever I think about working here. Working conditions and workplace equality for women are inferior in Japan than in my home country. Also, I would like to marry and have children someday and Japan refuses to sign the Hague Convention regarding international children abduction by parents - that is a Sword of Damocles I refuse to have hanging over my head. I read about a case when the Japanese wife died and while her French husband (they lived in France) was still grieving hours within his wife's death, his wife's mother abducted their children to Japan and he hasn't been able to recover them. What a terrifying thing. Also, I have not met any real candidates; almost all men expect me to ditch my culture and fully embrace Japanese culture to the point of even shush any cultural reference to my past because (yes you guessed) 'This is Japan.' I speak Japanese albeit not at native-level and this I observe may put a hindrance on landing a job, even in a scholarly field. It appears like even if I pay into national insurance it will support the Japanese elderly but I won't be supported unless I work 20 years in Japan -continuously- so that if I work out of Japan for some years, I lose everything. I am a post-graduate professional. Honestly... the tiny voice is wailing louder. It might serve me better to pay heed to it.

I suppose the street where he threatened her was a solitary street or there were few people around. I might have just blinked at him at passed by (if he used kanji I have not learned yet in his message) or just use a high-pitched scream if he tried to get closer. At least he got caught and he will pay for his crimes. Several reports of similar incidents? This guy needs to be put away for a very long time.

The fact that the emperor has never visited Yasukuni shrine after it enshrined the souls of Class A criminals despite right winger's calls every year for him to pay homage in Yasukuni is very tale-telling about the emperor's understanding of history. I think he's a strong man despite his life is so restricted. I wish his heir son had his strength. Young (Japanese) people are forgetting history alright, or never learning it altogether. Perhaps under this new regime the situation may change.

Report the sighting to the nearest Koban. What else?

This is a travesty of justice. How come an individual is allowed to force centuries of tradition and cultural identity away from Italian children because the symbol she attacks makes -her- uncomfortable? Tolerance is a two-way road. Unfortunately narrow-minded people cannot understand this basic principle of civilized existence and prefer to push their private ego above the cultural legacy of a whole country where millions disagree with her egotism.

Yokomoc: Have you ever heard about recycled paper? It's a very useful invention.

My AU KDDI phone broke down. I was prepared to buy AU a new headset this month, but AU won't sell me anything unless I sign a two years contract (apparently in blood). I have only a few months left in Japan, so NAW. I just had my old AU headset repaired, fully paid from my accumulated AU points so I got the repairs for FREE and I keep my 2man yen for me. On my student plan I pay under 4000 yen a month because I only text and check the weather reports. TAKE THAT AU! >:D

Amazon restricts users and (already has) changes the contents of books you "own" without prior notice because it doesn't need your permission to alter the contents of your books (specifically, replace your edition with an edited edition). Turns out, you can't "buy" books, only buy a "license" to read them. That is SO 1984. I refuse to buy a Kindle or any similar device as long as that issue is dealt with.

On the other hand as someone already mentioned, who said all avid readers belong in the moneyed elite? Electronic books can be a fashion gadget but nothing more. Printed books must continue to exist, because the vast majority of the world population (yes, including people in the developing world and poor nations) cannot afford fancy lifestyles. Children need school books, libraries; even now many poor children receive second hand school books via donations and charities that collect and redistribute used books. Used book shops are goldmines for great reads and way cheaper than Kindle for DECADES worth in receipts. One whole book (more so the classics) for less than a dollar (surprised?). Kindle is an elitist fad. Perhaps it will prosper in its captive market (the rich in rich nations, like 2% of the human race), but as far as saying electronic readers will eradicate paper books? PLEASE. Right to Education is a human right on the UN list; paper books are inextricably linked to that right.