Dirk T comments

Posted in: Tourists are coming fast and furious from the United States, Europe and South Korea, pushing up occupancy rates. It’s as if we’re in the middle of a ‘bubble’ period. See in context

I am fortunate to have lived in Japan before the internet and mass tourism. I fear the locals will become poorer and poorer while increasingly catering to wealthier tourists.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: Foreign English teacher in Japan calls student’s ability garbage; says it was an 'American joke' See in context

Does anyone remember the days long ago when the very early generations of JET teachers were throwing themselves on railroad tracks? By the sound of things, the quality of English teachers hasn't improved much at all.

-7 ( +15 / -22 )

Posted in: Court rules Japan's dual nationality ban constitutional See in context

Go into any Japanese consulate and you will see signs indicating that dual citizenship must be given up at age 20. In other words, one must decide between one or the other. Yet there is no agency to enforce this as I was told by a Japanese lawyer when I inquired about my daughter who was about to turn 20 while attending uni in the USA. She had to go to the Japanese consulate to renew her Japanese passport in the USA. The staff handling her paperwork certainly knew of her dual citizenship but no one said anything or questioned her in any way. The lawyer just said to keep our mouths shut and we did. Fast-forward to today and she is working and living in Japan with two passports. I have heard this same story from many half-kids. So if you are a parent reading this, don't worry about it. It will all be okay if you keep quiet and never let your child enter Japan on anything but a Japanese passport.

15 ( +16 / -1 )

Posted in: French man says sister missing in Japan since 2018 a victim of crime See in context

Anyone who has witnessed the indifference Japanese law enforcement can show to victims of abuse will not find the story of the missing French woman surprising in the least.

-8 ( +14 / -22 )

Posted in: Japan labor market set for change as huge worker shortage looms See in context

Japan will never have a large demographic of immigrant workers on the path to citizenship because that would one day upset the power structure.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Hollywood blockbuster 'Barbie' opens in Japan after 'Barbenheimer' controversy See in context

@Alan Harrison "Oppenheimer seems to be a remake of a 1980 two part TV movie screened in the UK"

It is not. What would make you think such a thing?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Posted in: Hollywood blockbuster 'Barbie' opens in Japan after 'Barbenheimer' controversy See in context

Oppenheimer is a superb film with a phenomenal cast. I saw it opening weekend. Focusing on the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would have made it a much poorer movie, as would have including the story of women involved in the project and those whose lives were affected by radioactive fallout from the nuclear tests. The movie makes its point and makes it well. It delivers.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Posted in: Aso's 'fight for Taiwan' remark in line with official view, lawmaker says See in context

Japan can barely feed 40% of its population without imports so naturally Japanese politicians are just a little concerned about Taiwan ...

-4 ( +6 / -10 )

Posted in: 3 schoolgirls drown in Fukuoka river on 1st day of summer vacation See in context

Japanese kids have been conditioned not to swim in natural bodies of water so I am surprised these girls did.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Japan boosts cooperation with NATO, aid for Ukraine See in context

Japan is preparing for war as it should be. An attempted invasion of Taiwan by the CCP will be devastating for Japan, a country that can't even feed 40% of its population without imports.

-3 ( +9 / -12 )

Posted in: Japan won't join NATO, but local office OK, Kishida says See in context

As the threat of China attempting to invade and hold Taiwan increases, so will Japanese interest in joining NATO. If you haven't noticed, Japan IS preparing for war.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Japanese Self-Defense Force mulls removing its ban on tattoos See in context

Restrictions for cops regarding tattoos have fallen away over the years because they too have recruitment numbers to meet. And the result? Law enforcement in the USA now has a high percentage of cops that come from the criminal class, just like we saw soldiers recruited for the war in Iraq borderline mentally challenged.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Posted in: Japanese Self-Defense Force mulls removing its ban on tattoos See in context

Japan is preparing for war and so need more soldiers. Other restrictions to enlistment will also fall away.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Posted in: Japan formally decides to downgrade COVID-19 to flu level on May 8 See in context

I will be returning to Japan for the first time since 2019 on May 22. If you see a blond guy maskless, that will be me. And no, I will not care what you think.

-3 ( +14 / -17 )

Posted in: 'Don't blame women': Japan birth rate drive sparks online debate See in context

Of course, the more education a woman receives, the fewer children she has ...

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: 'Don't blame women': Japan birth rate drive sparks online debate See in context

^^^ then they look at how hard their mothers had it and don't want any part of that, either

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: 'Don't blame women': Japan birth rate drive sparks online debate See in context

Japanese women are intelligent: they grow up observing the miserable working lives of the men in their lives and naturally don't want any part of it.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Japanese Americans who won redress, now fight for Black reparations See in context

How much white DNA would be permissible if reparations consisted of direct payments to individuals? Would a Black American with no white DNA get more money than a Black American with green eyes and lighter skin? This is why direct payments will never happen. The white power structure is kept in place by denying Americans affordable healthcare, gerrymandering, voter restrictions and NOT lack of reparations.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Posted in: Japanese Americans who won redress, now fight for Black reparations See in context

Ask American who supports reparations how much money they have already given to the cause and how much of their future income they will commit and see how they answer. While I don't deny that slavery has always been and continues to be a cancer eating away at American society, these supporters of reparations are not serious people. Having a sensible, reasonably-priced healthcare system along with a safety net for children would do more for Black Americans than any reparations.

8 ( +12 / -4 )

Posted in: 1.82 million foreigners legally working in Japan, gov’t says See in context

"For any of the reasons that people like Japan, that matter to people who aren't single-mindedly focused on money money money. And it's not like salaries in Japan are third world - it's the third biggest economy in the world after all - there is just potential to make more elsewhere. But then you have to live in that elsewhere, and not Japan."

Sure, but then they would not be high-earners, would they? A high-earner, by definition, is single-mindedly focused on money.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: 1.82 million foreigners legally working in Japan, gov’t says See in context

I read on the Japan Times website today that the Japanese government will be issuing special visas to attract "high-earners" and graduates from prestigious universities. Why would a high-earner work and live in Japan for the long term? Why would a high-earner in his prime earning years be in Japan?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: 1.82 million foreigners legally working in Japan, gov’t says See in context

Posters don't understand that an entire class of successful legal immigrants with full citizenship would threaten the Japanese power structure. Imagine what happened in NYC when the Jews, Italians, and Irish ousted that ruling class happening in a major Japanese city. Do you really think the Japanese government would let that happen?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Kishida warns Japan on brink of social dysfunction amid falling birthrate See in context

Immigration, at least the way other countries do it, will never happen in Japan because it would threaten the power structure.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan ruling bloc OKs tax hike plan for more defense spending See in context

The geopolitical situation is rapidly changing. Calling it "protection money" or some other term doesn't change the reality of the world.

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Posted in: LDP eyes shifting 1% of income tax payments for 'defense tax' See in context

So laf - so many gaijin in Japan who think geopolitical realities can be escaped with a little online outrage.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

Posted in: Sagawa, who killed woman, ate her flesh in Paris in 1981, dies at 73 See in context

More details here: https://murderpedia.org/male.S/s/sagawa-issei-photos-2.htm

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Sagawa, who killed woman, ate her flesh in Paris in 1981, dies at 73 See in context

"The Dutch are guud eatin'" - Sagawa

-7 ( +1 / -8 )

Posted in: City employee kills wild boar with spear on elementary school grounds See in context

Years ago in Iwaki-shi, Fukushima-ken a thin, elderly lion that was part of a sad Russian circus escaped from its cage and made its way to a sunny ledge nearby. An elderly man out for his early morning walk first saw the beast snoozing in the sunshine and soon a helicopter was buzzing in the sky and the local police were warning all citizens to stay inside and lock their doors. A little later a group of local hunters was recruited and en masse they blasted the lion off its perch and into oblivion while TV cameras captured the dramatic incident. By the end of the day, every person in Japan seemed to know about the dangerous lion and the courageous men who saved the lives of potential victims of this ferocious predator. In fact, I got phone calls from people all over Japan checking on me to see if I was safe in Iwaki.

The lion never moved off its ledge.

16 ( +19 / -3 )

Posted in: Kishida says Japan urgently needs to strengthen its military See in context

@OssanAmerica - a democracy isn't incompatible with being a military powerhouse, which Japan already is.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Kishida says Japan urgently needs to strengthen its military See in context

Japan has been diligently working on again becoming a military powerhouse for a long, long time. Recent geopolitical events are only going to accelerate the process.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

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