dsanjo comments

I find it hard to imagine chipping teeth on noodles, regardless of how long they were cooked. The people with chipped teeth must have had brittle teeth. My family and I regularly gnaw on bones in our stews. We have never had any trouble. Or maybe they had odd chewing form? Biting at weird angles?

The actual numbers are likely decreasing, in my opinion. More victims are reporting and more BOEs are taking action against offenders. The gap between “punished” and “actual incidents” is likely going to decrease thanks to these measures. Harsher punishments (jail time?) or at least permanently losing a teaching license seems fair.

I used to liked how the FM near my old apartment used to close at 11 PM, even though it was at a moderately busy station in Nagoya. The locals in the area seemed to function reasonably well without it running 24/7. The area was free from loitering, litter, and delinquents at night, too.

Dissenter is an unfitting word for a democracy.

I never see this on the TV news. You know who controls the media.

katsu78

something I can just plug into my TV, and then stream things like Netflix

I use Chromecast for YouTube and my Netflix JP subscription. Plug the Chromecast into your TV's HDMI port. Select the shows from a smartphone, then stream them to your TV in HD. 4000 yen if I remember correctly.

When in doubt, just don't eat it. Don't expect cooks in another culture to accommodate to your BELIEFS. Imagine telling the detention center, "I only eat gluten free bread. Sorry, guys. Bring me another one."

Don't let someone suffer. Help them. I've called the police more than a few times for domestic troubles in my area. The police always came to the scene I reported within about five minutes. Yes, the police asked me questions (on the phone) about what I heard/saw; when I heard/saw it; was it my first time to hear/see it; do I know the couples or have any relation to them; etc. They need details for when they report to the scene. It took about ten minutes of my time, at most, on each occasion, but I prevented a beating, possibly worse, on the other end.

Either we turn them into community service laborers for a few thousand hours or grind them up into pet food.

It's not an apology because it almost always lacks sincerity. It's just a "Yes, such and such has happened. It's unfortunate. We hope it doesn't happen again."

A loud and sharp sumimasen is enough to move folks to the sloth side. It would be better to have signs saying "Left/right lane for people in a rush ONLY." I'm going to ignore this "etiquette" like a decent minded person with a sense of rationality.

Not that it matters, but she was quite the looker. I saw her photo in a Japanese article about the crime.

Start making them a common utility on homes and apartments like hot water and electricity, please. On the roofs or southern parts of building like panels, they would also absorb some of the heat, reducing cooling needs.

four of the boys held the victim down

saying they had the consent of the victim

Are they stupid or bad liars or both?

This biggest problem with the constitution seems to be

enshrined democracy because changing the right to collective self defense despite the nation's disapproval goes against the constitution in more ways than one.

Pointing sharp objects at someone's face makes it hard to argue "accident."

Public intoxication to this level should be punishable by law. Send them and every other drunk to the drunk tank for the night, slap them with a fine in the morning, and you'll solve a lot of groper "accidents" too.

Though I don't know the full details of the story, I think [four year old] and [near street] don't go well together. If your kids are too young to understand the dangers of being by a road, you should harness, carry, hold their hand, or put them in a stroller. If you don't, troublesome it may be, but you have to understand you're taking a big risk.

I've had more than a few close calls myself. I was driving, both hands on the wheel and eyes in front, then an elderly woman on a bike suddenly decides to cross in front of my car without looking. I slammed my breaks and she kept going without noticing, even after I honked my horn a few times. Luckily there was no car behind me. This could have ended much differently if I were driving while sleep deprived, looking at my smartphone, or fiddling with something else.

This happens to me a few times a year in Aichi. It's usually young adults playing on their smartphones or elderly folks though. Most kids are much more careful in my experience. They try to make eye contact with the driver before they cross the roads! Much safer than the no look cross.

How about having international consultants working with (younger) domestic visionaries for what could be hits abroad? I'm always surprised when I see what Cool Japan is trying to promote abroad. The committee is simply insular. Know your market before you try to promote something like chopstick holders.

I would fund/promote more artists, animators, illustrators, game developers, craftsmanship, designers, stationery companies, ornamental gardening techniques, pottery... The list can go on.

Milk, especially raw from grassfed cows, is a super food. If you're lactose intolerant, or if milk gives you acne, it's unfortunate for you. Lactose intolerant people tend to not have as much trouble with raw dairy, especially goat milk.

Calcium for your bones is misunderstood by most people. Yes, you need calcium but most people are getting too much through supplements. If you're worried about your bones, get vitamin D3 from the sun every day or through supplements if you can't get outside much due to an office job. Weighted exercise will also strengthen your bones.

Milk is a healthy and economical source of animal fat and protein, in addition to other vitamins and minerals. Hopefully these kids' school lunches won't be filled with more high calorie low nutrient grains in place of milk.

So this is suggesting real or occasionally awkward social situations in Japan are more approachable in a fake foreign accent?

Playing on the tracks once is one too many times. Yet locals say they often played by/on the tracks. Major parenting and society fail.

I wish there was more criticism of the actual content of the textbooks.

She has three arms. Who cares? It was a mistake. Don't bother with the recall.

If people spend 12 hours at work and an hour commuting almost every day, I can understand why they want time for themselves rather than a romantic relationship. If employers were forcing their employees to go home after an eight or nine hour work day, I'm sure this romance indifference problem would greatly decrease.

To make matters worse, when you factor in Japanese infertility problems and lack of immigration, the future of the nation is hard to imagine. There are going to be some (more) serious problems.

Japan should have its "resources" for foreign tourists translated by a native professional.

I usually have showers at night. Sometimes on summer mornings I'll also have a cold water splash if it was a hot night. I wash my hair every second night in summer, every second to third night in winter. My showers rarely take more than five minutes. I also turn the water off while I'm washing. Not much water waste from me.

Very interesting. We need more veterans speaking out like this. I don't see much difference between kamikaze pilots and radical jihadists (at least terms of end consequence). Both are just people being manipulated, one by a chauvinist government, the other by a radical religious sect.

So you're dating but not getting any action? I guess a will boyfriend means a platonic relationship, aka, "You're in her friend zone."

He needs a good beating. You can't reason with beasts. Rehabilitation has to come second. Seriously! What was he thinking?

MoonrakerJUN I think there should be a formula that takes into account the volume and/or weight of the passenger as well as his/her luggage.

Yes, I've been saying this for years! Weight is weight. Whether it's you or your luggage makes no difference to the strain on the plane.

O-MO-TE-NA-SHI may be the catchphrase for Japanese tourism, but it's clearly A-MA-KU-DA-RI for the Japanese business world. It's embarrassing, really.