David Brent comments

Meanwhile the locals continue to burn their plastic trash and and farmers their plastic grow-tunnels, all at low temperatures, thus releasing lots of dioxins and other contaminants into the air and soil.

Bid rigging is normal in Japan. Happens between my company and our “competitors” all the time.

She has zero chance of winning much, but hey, got to make the effort, I suppose.

I work with a guy whose mouth smells like someone took a dump in it decades ago and he just never bothered to wash it out.

Grown "men" buy these.

The FBI guy on YouTube talking about how Abe's security team failed so badly is worth a watch.

The NHS was not designed for how the UK has changed since its inception.

I think inevitably it will cease to be a 100% tax funded service in the near future.

Something more like the Japanese model would be better, where the patient pays both from their taxes and also a % at the point of sale, depending on age and/or means.

I fear a more American system might be brought in through the back door, however. The Tories want to be able to offer juicy contracts to their mates in healthcare and pharmaceuticals.

Ever been to a Japanese zoo? Tells you a lot about how much priority is given to animals here.

Imagine being an adult who cannot work out what is burnable trash and what isn't burnable trash. They even send you pictures each year with the free calendar! Unbelievable.

Surely they’ve suffered enough over there?!

They can always print more yen, so you will get your pension -- the problem is the currency won't be worth anything by the time we get to retire.

So glad I can pay into the UK pension from Japan. I can live on a combination of the Japanese and UK pensions.

Honda's employees work at Honda and make all engineering work for Honda, yet they are not Honda's employees.

Yep. The last thing a company like Honda wants to do is actually pay their staff directly, since then they will be on the hook for health insurance and pension payments. I work for a company where most of the workers are on crappy haken contracts with zero stability.

Also, all the people saying "reduce overtime"....do you not understand how Japan works?! The only way to make any money in Japan is to work overtime!

Maybe if more Japanese companies paid a living wage as opposed to a survival wage, people would feel like having kids.

Great time to be a Vietnamese “skilled trainee” (vegetable picker, factory skivvy) though!

Fukuoka is definitely one of the more aesthetically pleasing Japanese cities. I know that isn't saying much, but still....

This photo just sums up so much about Japan. A man working well past retirement age, in a crappy factory, for probably 250,000 yen per month before taxes and other deductions.

No salary raise at my company since 2017.

Police issued a warning against him the same month and banned him from approaching her

They sure told him, didn't they?! Hmm, I wonder why this didn't work?

Good luck trying to get a nice photo without power lines and some ugly tin-clad building in the way.

Snitching is very widespread in Japan. It is a common way of getting ahead at a Japanese company, my own included.

They should just be abolished and workers employed directly, and given that 30%.

Far too simple. Also, the companies would then have to pay 50% of their employees' shakaihoken contributions, and they certainly don't want to being doing that!

If you need any more proof of Japan's race to the bottom, just check out the job adverts proudly boasting how they offer 950 yen per hour!

So the lesson I learn from this story is that medical malpractice basically goes unpunished in Japan.

¥5000 per month?! That'll solve all the problems!

Imagine being THIS desperate to want the job. Does the man have no shame?

"jointly won the bid"

Good ol' price fixing the norm in Japan.

Good grief. Talk about end-stage capitalism.

With mental health treatment in Japan still in the Dark Ages, we can expect more of this sort of thing for years to come.

Trebles all round!

One thing I hate about Japanese towns and cities is the lack of proper zoning. They all look so grotty and messy. Throw in all the above ground wires and cables and it's such a mess.

Man, what I would give to be a stay-at-home dad. Beats sitting in a Japanese office all day long pretending to work.