cucashopboy comments

Posted in: BOJ Japan mired in 'mission impossible' against deflation See in context

fxgai - interesting post. The difference between the NZ policy in the 80s and current Japan is that NZ simply wanted stable prices in an era where 10% plus inflation in developed countries was a recent memory, whereas the BOJ seem to view 2% inflation as a panacea to all economic ills!

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Posted in: BOJ Japan mired in 'mission impossible' against deflation See in context

Ah so - nice analysis, it's incredible the amount of stupidity that is written down as economic wisdom these days, isn't it! Demand may cause inflation (but it's more likely to be cost push inflation in Japan) but I see no reason why inflation should create demand, which seems to be the idea behind the obsession with the 2% figure.

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Posted in: A slice of life in Nerima, the Tokyo neighborhood you probably don’t know See in context

Joe - there are some bargains to be had if you don't mind doing a bit of DIY work. Plenty of good-quality 25-30 year old houses bought by middle-aged people during the end of the bubble era. They are now downsizing and because most urban Japanese people don't want to live in a house of that age, you don't have to pay much more than the cost of the land, though you do have to budget for some maintenance.

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Posted in: A slice of life in Nerima, the Tokyo neighborhood you probably don’t know See in context

I live in Nerima-ku and have no complaints about the place. It's a good environment for bringing up children too.

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Posted in: SDF recruiters struggle as applicant pool dries up See in context

Japan's 'robust economy' ?!

Their SDF recruitment campaigns should focus on their valuable role when natural disasters occur, which is something that Japan and the soldiers themselves can be proud of, rather than cute manga characters.

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Posted in: Japanese ad showing mom doing all the housework and childcare has people steamed at dad See in context

As browny1 put it so nicely, why on earth are people speculating on the background to the husband in the advert? The only background to the advert is the marketers and the company who commisioned the advert. Those posters are showing the same difficulty in separating fiction and reality as the people commenting on the husband in the article!

Educator60 - your comments on the absurdity of drawing conclusions from watching women in the mall were spot on!

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Posted in: The road to 2020: Residents, volunteers alike can expect higher costs, negligible compensation See in context

The scam goes on. Seriously, why would any population want to host the Olympics

Kniknakknokaer - They didn't have any choice about it.

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Posted in: Japanese ad showing mom doing all the housework and childcare has people steamed at dad See in context

So people are getting annoyed with the fictional dad instead of the nonfiction advertising agency who made the ad or the company who commissioned and then OKed the ad. That's not very good!

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Posted in: Abe re-elected LDP leader, setting stage to become Japan's longest-serving PM See in context

They're perfectly free to run for office, and women (as well as men) are perfectly free to vote for them. If you're implying that discrimination is the cause, well, that's not it

Hakman - you seem very convinced that discrimination is not the cause of the extraordinarily low number of women who make up the government, which suggests you know that the casue is. Please enlighten us.

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Posted in: 5 foreign chambers of commerce in Japan urge gov't to legalize same-sex marriage See in context

The public should at least get to have a say in this right?

Hiro, discussed this issue with Japanese people a few times and not come across a person against gay marriage - even an elderly guy who found homosexuality highly distasteful was in favour of the marriage. I think the Japanese public are fine with the issue, it's just the homophobes in the LDP who don't like it.

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Posted in: Abe poised to win third term as LDP leader See in context

haloerika - I agree with your comment about other parties but you should have voted. Even if other parties barely make a noise, by voting for another party, you are making (a small amount of) noise.

If the LDP think they can do whatever they like without losing the election (which seems to be the current situation), then they will push forward their most extreme policies. Not voting allows them to do this. Please vote next time!

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Posted in: Abe poised to win third term as LDP leader See in context

and realize his dream of reforming the constitution.

I'm seeing too many articles that talk about the constitutional change as if its a foregone conclusion, i.e., the little matter of a national referendum is irrelevant. I'm sure this is intentional.

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Posted in: How to prepare for Japanese drinking culture at work See in context

According to my Japanese brother-in-law, who works for a subsiduary of one of Japan's large vehicle manufacturers, the bonding through alcohol culture is much weaker than it used to be, with less pressure on people to attend such events or drink alcohol at them.

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Posted in: How to rob an idol singer otaku: Look up the birthday of his favorite idol See in context

Reminds me of that brilliant scene in Trainspotting 2.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EQCpQbUrzI

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Posted in: Abe 20 points ahead of Ishiba in LDP leadership race: poll See in context

Thanks Simon

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Posted in: Russia trip keeps Abe in spotlight, but key issues remain unresolved See in context

No much failing,because it's the wishes of the government to keep things like this.

You may be right Hiro, the appearance of making an effort (abduction issue, reforming the economy, 'creating a society where women can shine') is so much more important to the government than actually succeeding. The Kurile islands may be another good example of this - a few talks are held so Abe's cheerleaders at NHK and in the newspapers can run a few positive stories about how the government are よく頑張っている.

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Posted in: Abe 20 points ahead of Ishiba in LDP leadership race: poll See in context

Why are they polling ordinary people who are unable to vote in the leadership election? Their opinions have absolutely no bearing on the result.

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Posted in: Abe says isle dispute with Russia must be settled before peace treaty can be signed See in context

Peeping Tom - that lone link didn't make me realise anything, except to retain my scepticism of your opinion. Now stop that sophistry please! :-)

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Posted in: Japan on brink of IWC pullout after commercial whaling comeback blocked See in context

Also wasted a lot of money to be friendly with other members and getting them to agree with pro-whaling.

Hiro, such honesty about Japan's bribery of poorer nations of the IWC is very refreshing!

I was puzzled by your comment on the EU throwing a tantrum though - could you give me an example?

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Posted in: 5 tips for introducing your Japanese partner to your parents See in context

Reading the article, I found myself wondering what the author was so worried about beforehand - why should there have any problems between a girlfriend with so many good qualities and two well-travelled and extremely pleasant parents?

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Posted in: Abe says isle dispute with Russia must be settled before peace treaty can be signed See in context

Peeping Tom - thanks for addressing the comment. Watched your link. There was a bit of speculation at the end that Russia was hurting because of the sanctions, but by no stretch of the imagination could Russia be described as begging from the link you posted.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

Posted in: Abe says isle dispute with Russia must be settled before peace treaty can be signed See in context

GW - thanks for that, saved me a job.

Putin threw in the 'Peace Treaty' comment to wrongfoot Abe during their recent meeting, and wrongfoot him it did. I don't see any of this 'begging' for a peace treaty that Peeping Tom keeps referring to.

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Posted in: Japan on brink of IWC pullout after commercial whaling comeback blocked See in context

There it is folks! It has nothing to with culture, sustainability or a need for food. Japan wants to hunt whales to make money from them. That’s all!

Do the hustle - and they can't even make money from them! Japan has really backed itself into a corner on this issue through the misplaced pride of a few nationalists and the excessive influence of vested interests.

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Posted in: Kono says Japan will accept more foreign workers See in context

I don't think I've ever heard an LDP minister sound so pragmatic!

vistula - Nice post. Japanese people also find it difficult to make friends with Japanese people, so don't worry too much about it!

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Posted in: Tokyo 2020 to begin recruitment of Games volunteers on Sept 26 See in context

that person - most of the spectators will be Japanese speakers and most of the athletes (who you said you wanted to work with) will be English speakers. That's why I made my comment.

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Posted in: Japanese opposition leader says Abe too close to Trump See in context

Typical "opposition" figure in Japan, wants to criticize the ruling premier/party but offers no compelling alternative policy ideas. 

jcapan - that's exactly how the LDP behaved in opposition in 2009-2012.

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Posted in: Tokyo 2020 to begin recruitment of Games volunteers on Sept 26 See in context

that person - I'm sure they'll be delighted to have native English speakers volunteering with the large number of foreign tourists and athletes.

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Posted in: Gov't starts crafting contingency plans in event of Mt Fuji eruption See in context

goodlucktoyou - according to Tokyo University researches, it will accompany a M10 earthquake in Tokyo.

An M10 earthquake. Care to provide a link, or are you doing your Chicken Little act again?

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Posted in: Gov't starts crafting contingency plans in event of Mt Fuji eruption See in context

techall - the wind direction is generally from the west.

AgentX - even if 90% of people are expected to work, it has been hypothesised that the ash blowing into Kanto from the west may incapacitate electronic and transport systems, so many people may not be able to work.

https://japan-forward.com/could-a-mount-fuji-eruption-paralyze-tokyo/

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Posted in: Abe dangles financial aid in return for N Korea concessions See in context

Kenji Fujimori,

If you have a longer memory, you might recall that givng aid to North Korea was originally what Koizumi planned to do in the early 2000s. If I remember right, certain right-wing nationalists now in positions of power threw a hissy fit at the idea of giving aid to North Korea because of their heinous crimes against Japanese citizens, so the plan was abandoned.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2003/09/06/national/koizumi-hit-over-wishy-washy-north-korea-policy/#.W5hwvOgzaUk

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