ChibaChick comments

Japan does not have a vigorous tradition of satire. Its cultural emphasis on the importance of social harmony also discourages public ridiculing of others.

This is the bit I find the funniest by far.

Hang this guy while we're at it.

I agree with you Smith but actually at the same time I kind of admire the balls of the guy to have even defended them in the first place. That had to be a dangerous job. I believe several lawyers gave up the case after receiving death threats.

She was found in the same hotel room with the body, not having called for help (presumably) and she and the victim were having troubles. Yes she denies killing her??! Am really interested in who she is going to pin this on then. Or did the victim strangle herself?

I cant make up my mind which is more distasteful - using Fukushima as emotional blackmail to get the olympics, or using the olympics as emotional blackmail to fulfill a political agenda.

1400kms in 11 days. Thats around 127kms a day. At an average walking speed of 4mph he would have been walking for on average over 21 hours a day. For 11 days. In this heat. Sorry. Not buying it.

You dont want to worry anyone, so you disappear off the face of the earth for 11 days causing everyone no end of worry.

Not the brightest pixie in the forest, this one.

Me too. I found the first few days following her death particulary creepy - people crying on the street and in the shops, radio stations all playing sombre music, it was a very sad time of course, but the countrywide reaction to it was odd to say the least.

Hee hee Cleo!

You know, I was one of the first to get peed off about certain aspects of Japan but having left the place and viewing from afar I have to say, like the US and the UK and anywhere else, there is also a lot to love about the place. I think Im finally growing up! Nah....surely not?! ;)

This is embarrassing quite frankly. Whatever anyone may have thought of Diana, my God her sons are still alive and around to see and hear about this garbage and Dr Khan has exhibited more restraint and dignity than these movie makers ever will. Let it go. People will always be fascinated with Diana but why portray a fake character you actually know nothing about?

Yes, so some may have seen her as promiscuous. Give the girl a break. Married at 19 into the most dysfunctional family on the planet, to a husband still in love with the One That Got Away, and all completely in the public eye. How would any of us have reacted?

Nothing really that surprises me in this article. Pretty much all accurate in my experience raising kids in Japan as a non-Japanese and now the US as a non-American.

1) Dietary restrictions - yes, absolutely true. BUT - fails to mention the ridiculous outdated advice many Japanese doctors give that women must only gain 8kgs in pregnancy with no regard whatsoever to their pre-pregnancy weight. And then worse still, try to put them on a DIET when they go over the 8kg limit. I actually found a hospital in Japan that recommended I gain 12-14kgs based on my BMI and pre-pregnancy weight. Imagine that! But they are still few and far between.

2)Mothers conversations - these are pretty much the same wherever you are - I knew many working Japanese mothers through the hoikuen and stay at home ones through the kindergarten. I can understand though the author if she is a Japanese mother in the US finding it hard to find other Japanese to relate to. There are some working Japanese mothers here (I know a university professor for example) but the majority here are here with their husbands job, and stay at home. I can also understand that being a Japanese other Japanese dont want to tell you their problems. I was the foreigner so they ALL came to me. It was like TRU (Therapy R Us) in my place at times!

3) Party time - yes, this is absolutely true, unless it is a barbeque! Just last weekend I went to a party where the (Japanese) guys manned the BBQ and the girls sat drinking plonk, and then cleaned up later. Definitely with Americans it is much more mixed up. I like both styles for different reasons. My husband has got used to the idea now that I have a lot of male friends, some of whom are husbands of friends of mine but that was a huge struggle in the beginning. Now some of my guy friends are equally friends with my husband which I love, and a few of his female friends are great buddies of mine. If you have the trust, there is no issue.

4) falseflagsteve - you need to understand that sometimes people in Japan dont have extended family close by and that makes "date night" very difficult. But it is SO important and one of the things I insisted on from the start. We went out to see the Superman movie and had Thai food the other night as MIL is visiting now, and I had the best time with this gorgeous guy I sometimes want to strangle but for the most part I adore. MIL did laugh though as he slopped out the door in flipflops and shorts and I tottered out all made up in heels having made a big effort. THAT is the difference between new and long term relationships I guess! :(

5) I think this one is silly. Money is an issue wherever you are in the world if you dont have enough of it! But I have to admit I was pretty shocked coming over to the US and finding they dont have free after school care! WTF??! After paying insurance (3000 yen) and application fee (4000 yen) after school care in Japan was free and fantastic! Here for two kids it can cost over $1000 a month!!! Elementary school PTA/lunch prices are pretty compatible though. I dont think it is any cheaper or more expensive in either place, it just depends on your lifestyle. Todays trip to the beach was free except for the cost of snacks and drinks we brought with us from the supermarket for example. I am in a place where apparently the school district is the "best in the state". This is why we chose this place. To be honest, Japanese elementary school at least pees all over it. I think once it gets to JHS its a different story, but one regret I do have actually is that my younger kids are going to miss out on a J elementary education. My oldest made it to the end of grade 3 before we moved and loved it. Her Math level is WAY ahead of the US.

Its swings and roundabouts. But its always interesting to compare, especially for me with no great loyalty to either the US or Japan as I am technically from neither place, although I do take pride in answering the question "OHMYGAAAAD I LOVE your Aksent! Where are you fraaaam?" with "Japan"!

4)

Thumbs up from me too bass. I am sick of the American haters and Im not even American. At least they are prepared to get off their butts and DO something.

However - it still worries me. Not that I wouldnt like to see the Assad regime get whats coming to them, but history has shown that whenever a regime is toppled in that region a new equally bad one steps up to take its place AND stability is undermined. Egypt? Libya? Iraq? Afghanistan? Those are just the obvious examples.

I dont agree that taking 3 small children to see an old woman covered in blood with a knife stuck in her throat is "harmless fun". Enjoy obon season, dance, and go and see whatever you want if you are an adult and can take it but exposing young children to that kind of horror - thats just irresponsible.

Bah! Thanks a bunch, God!

Mother in law was due to visit us here in July but her flight was cancelled after the SF Korean plane crash. She has rescheduled for this week and now there is a tropical storm threatening the departure airport.

What more proof do we need that there is a God......?!

Every round of ammunition on that base is tracked as if it were a nuclear weapon. Anyone 'loses' a round, they're pretty much guaranteed to lose a paygrade. And every time a weapon is fired it is taken apart and cleaned. Since those weapons were going to be handled by civvies, they were likely double and triple checked as well, first by the armory and then by an officer or chief. Someone didn't just say "Hey, let's let these kids handle our weapons!" Since that's a good way to go see the Captain and lose paygrades, too.

Oh, the rubber training guns are blue or red. Never black.

Someone who actually knows what he is talking about. Thank you!

No excuses for him, the guy is a twit, but this California law is really stupid. You have to get a license within 10 days of arrival in California if you are resident. Well 1) try booking an appointment for a driving test within 10 days of arrival and see how far you get. I had to wait 6 weeks for mine. and 2) you cant appply for a driving license until you have a social security number - which takes around a month to come through.

So most new people to California from outside the US just have to drive without a license until they can get one. California doesnt recognise international licenses. Its a crazy system.

This is just awful and going on and on and on. Anyone else feel like their childhood memories have gone to crap?!

I always feel so so sad for this couple every time I see them in the news. I cant imagine the suffering they have gone through over the years. I really hope there is some end to all this for them and that one day soon they will finally know the truth.

So the simple answer is: separate the trash yourself, put the toilet seat back down again, shut the front door, watch TV yourself at mealtimes, pick up the trash, straighten up the shoes to your own levels of satisfaction, wipe round the toilet once a day, put stuff away, switch off the lights and pick up the laundry.

Or get a job.

Although there were five officers in the police box at the time, none of them noticed the incident taking place,

This is the bit that cracks me up the most!

Sometimes I really miss Japan! You just cant beat it for news headlines!

Since you are a girl, if this didn't involve a cheating husband, would you consider it murder?

Im not "on her side". I think what she did was appalling. But did she intend to kill him? That is the test of murder. Did she lie in wait for him to come home? If so, she would probably not have picked a coffee cup to do the job with. Im surmising then that she found out suddenly on the spot and the coffee mug was the first thing to hand - ergo no pre-meditation. If her actions were then an overreaction to the sudden news she could quite easily be charged with a lesser crime of manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. So as the police ARE charging her with murder they clearly have more info not contained in the article that suggests a murder charge will stick, but based on the info above, I dont see it. Hence why I dont think it is murder - unless more info comes to light later.

Would I consider it muder if the roles were reversed? No. Because my opinion has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with the actions taken by the victim based on the info above. Would I consider it murder if it hadnt involved a cheating husband? Well, as I said above, it would depend on the cirumstances: lie in wait with the mug - probably murder. Sudden reaction to something or self-defense - not necessarily murder. But Im not a lawyer. Just my opinion.

I lost count of the number of times we saw our neighbors out and about at about 9pm at night alone with out the kids. they looked at us dumbfounded that we had ours with us (asleep in their pushchairs) and we were equally dumbfounded that they had left theirs alone. And these werent any scummy people, both well educated with (in his case) a very good job. Just a completely different cultural mindset.

My Mother in law used to tell me matter-of-factly that she regularly left her kids alone when they were babies for 2-3 hours to go shopping. And then wondered why I never let her babysit.

Teacher was enraged after Student's comment. Here is immediate need to check the Parents of that Student "What kind of Parents they are?"

99% of 14-15 year old boys are smartmouths. You cant blame parents for raging hormones and social immaturity. But a teacher SHOULD have the maturity and training to handle them.

Must have been one hell of a coffee cup.

I dont think this is murder either, as people have pointed out she would have had a choice of weapons at home guaranteed to do the job if that was her intention.

For you see, marriage is not about sex. Its about taking care of one another. Its about a brother/sister sort of love primarily, which is why get brothers and sister's in law, and your partner's parents become your parents in law. Romance is great and all, but its nothing to base a marriage on because it does not last. Jealously is for the birds, and jail birds like this one. Affairs, in moderation, are not the problem. Selfish jealousy is, expecting them to never happen.

Wow! I think I understand what you are trying to say but I for one couldnt stay in a marriage like this one.

Ambrosia - you have a point too!

They send someone to pick up expertise from the Russians on how to deal with this and they send the Foreign Minister??! I will be impressed if someone can tell me where he obtained his doctorate in nuclear physics from. Otherwise what is the point? Surely they are better off sending someone who even knows what questions to ask? Unless this is just a PR stunt. But surely not???

Oh-oh! Ive been married 10 1/2 years....! :-/ !

I dont know if this poll is true or not but I was constantly amazed by the asexuality of many married women I encountered through life in Japan. It IS a lot like the switch gets turned off after children come along, and I dont know if the reasons behind that are sociological, psychological, physiological or what. But there seemed to be a great many people not getting any around me. It was an extreme though - either getting nothing at all or full blown affairs.

As for badmans straw poll - well, I think a lot of people DO communicate their expectations, etc before marriage. We all knew coming into it that it wasnt going to be easy at times. Common sense in an international marriage situation. But the question should be: how many of you communicated your expectations before the marriage and were blatantly lied to, just to get the ring on the finger. THAT would yield some results.

Serrano@ No one is qualified to words in Mohammad's mouth, unless they are the graduate of an Islamic divinity school.

Oh I think in this case most people could take a pretty educated guess that the prophet Mohammad did not advocate random violence and murder against helpless innocents. Islam is a gentle, peaceful religion. It is the twisting of his words by extremists that causes all these problems.

Ah, thanks dbsaiya. I was trying to remember the name of the guy who checked himself into the hospital the moment the going got tough - it was Shimizu.

Was this Yoshida guy the leader of the group they dubbed the "Fukushima 50"? the ones that risked their lives bringing the plant under control? I think we and the world owe them far more than we will ever know and TEPCO will ever admit to.

RIP Yoshida san.