bjones comments

I don't like the fact that Casio doesn't update their modified android version from 2.3.2 and that I can't remove pre-installed apps that are now obsolete or that I don't use. Facebook, Gree, Google Talk, etc. I'm going for a genuine Android phone which gets version updates quickly.

Now if only they had an emulator app for smartphones!

Coming soon: A deep freeze causes radiated water storage tanks and pipes to burst and leak...

I blame the fraud on antiquated processes. On my non-Japanese bank accounts I can add a totally different bank account to my other online bank website and transfer funds from one to the other at no cost. In Japan they still use hanko system and one has to pull out cash from one account and sneaker it over to their other account and hand over the cash. Anyone can transfer funds internationally to and from sites like xoom . com except to Japanese banks. Seems they are still stuck in the 60's. If you are lucky they might have a fax machine!

Is there a step-by-step plan until completion, or are they going to keep digging storage pits and making above-ground tanks until they finally run out of space?

What is preventing the police from stepping out of their kobans and redirecting the bike salmons to the correct side of the street? What is preventing the police on bicycles from adopting the use of helmets themselves and become a role model? Where are the posters or signs that say something like: "If you can read this you are riding on the wrong direction." or "Helmet smart kids to keep them in the gene pool."

Is riding against the flow of traffic considered "Dangerous"? What about not having front lights or rear reflectors at night?

Even if it wasn't dangerous it was not an appropriate action; shaken, nor stirred.

Seriously, I had bicyclists riding in the groove where cars have made a track in the snow and travelling in the wrong direction expecting me to move way over into the other lane. They were no where near the curb. I even saw one pedestrian walking in the tire track because the sidewalk still had snow. Just like Fukushima plant disaster; if instructions are not in a manual or taught in school they can't deal with it.

"Peace and Security" can never be accomplished.

"The Quran contains at least 109 verses that call Muslims to war with nonbelievers for the sake of Islamic rule. Some are quite graphic, with commands to chop off heads and fingers and kill infidels wherever they may be hiding. Muslims who do not join the fight are called 'hypocrites' and warned that Allah will send them to Hell if they do not join the slaughter."

See the verses and the above from:

http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/Quran/023-violence.htm

Bicycle riders riding down the wrong side of the street. Young children passengers without helmets. Even the bicycling policemen do not wear helmets. Bicycles without lights or reflectors. Riding with umbrellas and/or cell phones. Really?? I would expect this in Vietnam, but not high tech Japan.

Can anyone point me to a website showing the Japanese hand signals? For example:

http://www.be-safe.org/css_com/bicycle/rules.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_signals

I wonder what he is eludicating to God right now...

I think Line is better than Tango or Viber. Nettalk app is great for making free calls to US phone numbers.

Fine the Bike Salmon-person who ride their bicycle against the flow of traffic. I've nearly hit some who ride around trucks parked along side the road. It's such a shock when suddenly these idiots appear right in front of you.

All I can say is these are the auto workers who are building these cars:

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/chrysler-auto-workers-busted_20100923_dk

and again a different plant:

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/local/chrysler-workers-in-trenton-caught-smoking-and-drinking-during-lunch-breaks-20110713-dk

Still want to buy American?

Xoom is cheaper (i.e. less than $5 USD transfer fee to Germany, and the exchange rates are very good)

How to Send Money Internationally with Xoom (not available in Japan, but...):

Your recipient can receive cash in local currency or US dollars or in many countries can have the money deposited to their bank account or have it delivered to their home. Xoom.com has relationships with banks and money transfer payout partners to provide a secure and fast means of sending customer's money. With these bank and money transfer payout partners, Xoom.com customers can send money to thousands of cash pickup locations around the world.

perhaps some day it will also be available in Japan...and no kiosk needed...

It would be nice if they reported if the cyclists were riding in the direction of traffic, were wearing helmets or reflective gear, had their lights on, etc.. Or else know one knows what mistakes were made.

For overseas I would say the Yen rate. Here in Japan I bought Sharp TV products because the menus are also available in English! I bought Korean brand electronics also because they can be programmed to be region free and they are less expensive. I bought an Apple TV 2 device because it can be programmed (FireCore dot com) to get to the TV shows and movies I want to watch (via the Internet). Got a MagicJack and a NetTalk Duo so I can make free calls (via the Internet). For my Internet router I replaced the limited OEM operating system with the free DD-WRT. Sony isn't producing anything I really want, although their quality may be high. Japan seems stuck in the era of the post office, the fax, paper forms, the hanko, and hyoshigi fire patrol methods although they are culturally interesting.

I was driving just outside Tokyo one evening and saw this big white sedan with those number plates with the green back-lit numbers. It was huge. The design was unfamiliar. When I got up close it said Hyundai in big bold letters across the back. It looked like a large Lexus, Audi or Mercedes - really nice. Right-side driver like in Japan. I did not know they sold any Korean cars in Japan!! Samsung is selling TVs like crazy in the USA. In Japan I could only find Sharp TVs who offered optional menus in English. I understand Korean homes are larger, insulated and have central heat and air - (no kerosene) is this true? Hmmm, I'd be worried if Japan has or will lose the edge...

What makes most noise cancelling headphones so expensive? I mean really, you can purchase a PC or a media player with more electronics than in most pairs of "noise cancelling" headphones at half the price. I'm glad to see the price is finally coming down.

So who's up for trying this out? Opticians often have those ultrasonic glasses cleaners: simply dangle the old nadgers in one of those for a while and see what happens.

I have a ultrasonic "sonicare" toothbrush, and a glass- would that work?

I know someone who was taking statins for heart problems and then died later on of liver cancer. Bad stuff - research it before you take it. Doctors perscribe it in fear that if they don't they can be sued since it is FDA approved.

Do a search on Gog Magog and Turkey. It will take seven months to bury the soldiers of this King of the North.

Western Union is an ancient icon. Last year I used Xoom dot com to transfer money to a bank in Germany for less than five US dollars. I admire out-of-the-box thinking like the successes of NetTalk, MagicJack, Xoom and others. I hope Seven can do the same.

It took them awhile to get off the powerpc processor. Seem like they would have been good partners with AMD though..

Caught as double agents/spies or the quality of the merchandise was inferior. Else they bit the hand that feeds the regime.

Put into effect Rolling Rides... 10:00-11:00 Dumbo ride 11:00-12:00 It's a Small World ride 12:00-13:00 Country Bear Jamboree etc.

Hanko interesting culturally, but not a very secure means of verification/authentication of a transaction in these times. How long ago did Europe drop the wax seal?

Coca Cola products found in U.S. vending machines never change from just a hand full of choices and they are all cold. I wonder why hot/cold and new products don't catch on in the U.S. And I have never lost a coin in a Japanese vending machine.