escape_artist comments

That pet phrase how everything and anything can be found to be "unique to the Japanese" is getting really tiresome.

See what they all look like here... http://www.casio.co.jp/release/2013/0110_mw-c12a/

Although "just" movies, these kinds of realistic portrayals do indeed have an affect on people, such as of making such blatant viciousness appear as just another ho-hum aspect of everyday life, feeding many people's already enveloping apathy to the growing militarization & violence around us, and enticing the crazies among us to see torture as moral and enriching when it's anything but. Of course, one can't see any of that unless they step outside the rah-rah military bubble they're in. This movie may not advocate torture but it sure makes it seem normal or acceptable, when it never is and never should be (not in civilized society, anyway).

It's becoming natural that a film like "Zero Dark Thirty" would emerge from the minds of people in the States, who are becoming ever more used to increasing militarization with war after war after war abroad as well as at home, not to mention an attitude about guns that's just plain psychotic. Just because some media folks want their films -- any films, no matter the social effects -- to bring them oodles more money (the obvious theme underlying any corporate executive's rant), and just because more and more Americans are becoming accustomed to militarism as a solution to everything, doesn't mean the rest of those who want a more livable society have to act like sheep and follow them.

No company should ever be able to usurp the laws and desires of a nation or regional group of nations, especially a company from another culture. In the guise of "free trade", we've allowed corporations to control our lives. Enough is enough. If Panasonic can't sell them in Europe, then maybe they should make products that people there do want to buy.

Anyone who says or thinks that the daily assault of violent images from films, TV shows and video games, all termed "entertainment", has absolutely no effect on its users or is somehow enlightening or beneficial to individuals or society over the long-term is living in a dangerous fantasy land. Their fear-based obsession with guns and other weapons is a serious illness, and is affecting all of us. Oh yeah, there definitely is a mental health problem in the States... it's with those who believe in the illusion that guns, guns and more guns will somehow keep them and everyone else safer. The fear feeds upon itself and ends up creating a monster that only becomes harder to control.

Ultimately, though, it's the underlying ethos of violence in America that has to be solved, guns or no guns. The US is the world's number one buyer, maker and seller of weapons, fueling violence not just at home but also worldwide. Weapons makers and the government routinely put profits over safety and peace of mind. America has a president who keeps a kill list and demands the right to assassinate anyone anywhere at his discretion, even American citizens, without any trial or presumption of innocence. Where is the humanity, the common sense, the pride, in all of that?

Basic question.... why? It's also not completely clear whether GMOs are involved.

The latest Terrie's Take highlights this among other cases of bureaucratic ineptitude/corruption in Japan now...

http://www.japaninc.com/tt685_bureaucrats--enough_is_enough

Bullies by their very nature depend on childish & petulant actions to somehow make up for their own insecurities. The Chinese government is nothing but a bully here, as well as on many other occasions (the recent IMF meetings in Tokyo come to mind), and the international community should diplomatically put them in their place. To the Sinophiles here, yes, of course, other countries' governments act childishly too at times, but first, that doesn't make it right, effective, or productive; and second, we aren't talking about the actions of other countries here (like Japan), now are we?

Governments around the world (and unfortunately by extension, the people they represent), namely China once again, need to grow up and earn the global respect they so dearly want. Bullying their way to get it will never work.

A Japan Times article today on this stated how an LDP member who opposed the referendum commented that letting people vote could affect the "national energy policy". Oh my!! Oh dear!! Shudder to think what would happen if the people themselves were allowed by the mandarins to dictate their country's directions. Welcome to democracy, Japanese style (and American style, and other so-called countries' "democratic" styles).

When first learning to use chopsticks before going to study in China years ago, I was told by Chinese and Hong Kong friends that one can generally tell a beginning chopstick user by the way they hold the chopsticks much lower down, sometimes almost near the tips. I can't imagine ever being able to really pick up anything that way, frankly.

Also, a fun game we students all played then with our new Chinese hosts & each other was to sit in a circle (like around a usual Chinese meal!) and pass one peanut from person to person to person around the table using only your chopsticks. Hard at first, after a while you really do get the knack of controlling the hashi so you don't drop the peanut.

Nowadays I find chopsticks pretty versatile and prefer them for most foods except those I really need to cut or spoon out.

9:00 to 10:30 p.m. EDT = Japan time PLUS 13 hours

JAPAN dates:

All take place from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. JST on the following dates:

Thu, October 4 -- 1st Presidential Debate

Fri, October 12 -- VP Debate

Wed, October 17 -- 2nd Presidential Debate (Town Hall)

Tue, October 23 -- 3rd Presidential Debate

Yet another sign that disposable anything is just not sustainable over time and a mentality that needs to go. Like electric toilets with needless geegaws, are these things really necessary? Convenient, yes, but at what overall cost? Not all new technologies are worth the trouble to use, even though the branding folks and marketing wizards sure want you to believe they are.

Cowards

Huge waste of money. Again, priorities are twisted with people more worried about appearances instead of taking care of the harder tasks like all the many still in shelters.

Who cares about "branding" anyway, especially oneself? Does everything under the sun have to be commoditized. No, of course not. People are not products.

I don't think it's so much a matter of people not thinking drinking tomato juice isn't healthy anymore, but more that they just don't want to be seen as being behind the times, or not following the latest fashions/trends/fads. Worrying about how one is seen by others, and especially not sticking out too much by daring to follow your own trends, are both endemic here in Japan from what I've experienced.

Daytime TV shows in Japan have an enormous amount of (undeserved) influence, but themselves have to stay "legitimate" to their loyal followers (and economically afloat as well) by continually pushing new fads, constantly reporting on what's "new" even if's really not, and breathlessly going on about how the most mundane topics are so vitally important to our lives. I suppose one could argue this is the same with these kinds of TV shows everywhere, but it does seem more sheep-like in Japan compared to my home country.

Anyone who trusts anything from TEPCO is a fool. And that applies to anyone or any entity involved in the nuclear business in Japan (or anywhere!), like Kanden. They have all proven themselves over the years to be liars and only concerned with making money at everyone else's expense.

This and all other recent meetings are all a sham. These idiots clearly don't care about Japan's future. The majority of people in Japan have said "no" numerous times to restarting any reactors, and these puppets of their nuclear overlords still ignorantly carry on, as if "safety" can simply be willed without actually doing anything. And Japan is said to be a democracy? Say again?

Sounds to me like perhaps being able to build nuclear weapons quickly & quietly has always been on the minds of those in the nuclear industry and their govt handlers. Why else would Japanese govt & industry keep forsaking common sense and giving the rest of the world -- and her own people -- the finger?

"cool Japan" is nothing more than empty ad copy.

Bias in Japanese media 101.. Last Thursday another major English newspaper in Japan, in their online version, had a headline related to the above story that still reads "Anti-nuclear terror training facility opened to press". Not sure if the word placement was intentional or the editor is just clueless.

Just a quick "thank you" to zichi and some others for their helpful & thoughtful posts. I like following a discussion where I can walk away feeling like I've learned something.

@gifu...

If the vast majority of nuclear plants are offline now, isn't Japan already nearly nuclear-free?

It definitely needs to remain the long-term goal, IMO, but being truly "nuclear-free" won't happen anytime soon for those that use/have nuclear power. Even if all plants are shut down or decommissioned, the fuel rods will still require some sort of power for decades or longer to stay cooled, until such time their radioactivity has decayed enough to dispose of in a safer manner. This doesn't even address the ongoing problem of what to do with the growing amounts of radioactive waste.

This is why building such plants in an earthquake-prone locale like Japan has been amazingly short-sighted and just plain idiotic, a gigantic boondoggle in other words, from the very beginning. We've all been hoodwinked to have faith & believe that nuclear power is "clean", "safe" and "cheap" when it's never been any of those in reality. And based on its history, likely never will.

Meanwhile, Unit 2 at Fukushima Daiichi hit 82 C [176 F] earlier today and is still rising. Tepco's boric acid and water fixes don't seem to be working. And somehow this is supposed to make us all feel even more eager to put our trust in technology and the same folks controlling it? Yeah, uh-huh.

I hope these protests get bigger and bigger, and spread all over Japan, to the point where those who seem to hate democracy like Ishihara will be forced to listen.

I find it rather telling that a source from outside Japan is reported here as the first word about the protests. Surely the Japanese media are reporting on it too, no? And no doubt differently, as well? Can these sometimes be translated and reported here, be they Asahi or Sankei Shimbun? That would be a lot more interesting it seems than what likely is mainly a gaijin viewpoint here (considering it's AP), at least in this kind of story where there's often a clear polarity between what's being reported & reality.

@Disillusioned

Where were these protesters 40 years ago when Japan instigated its nuclear program?

Why are you so, um, disillusioned? That was then, this is now. It's become increasingly clear that nuclear -- using whatever newfangled technology that's of course more foolproof than everything before -- doesn't jibe with the sustainable, safe and careful use of earth's resources, i.e. with life on the planet as we know it. Any attempts to get rid of it and gradually shift, or evolve, to safer alternatives should be heralded and supported. Sure it's later than it could've been, but but it's better than waiting another 20-30 or more years.

@zichi...

Instead, they pursued the line of clean, safe and cheap.

Those last three terms should be in quotes methinks.

Maybe more Japanese are finally waking up to how they've been lied to for so long, thanks in large measure to social media like Twitter...

http://ex-skf.blogspot.com/2012/01/slow-and-rude-awakening-of-japanese.html

As usual, the Japanese MSM twisted the facts here to purposely make the citizens attending look bad or at fault. The public attend a public hearing? How dare they!

These meetings have long been just a formality, with just the image of public outreach or participation. The powers that be, especially those connected to the nuclear industry, have never had any intention of letting anything as unpredictable or uncontrollable as public sentiment get in the way of their what they want.

The fact that the govt has to ask a company's permission here shows who is really in control. And it's sure not the government. Reminds me of Kyushu Electric recently saying simply "No, we don't want to" when asked by the prefectural govt there to submit a report on their recent problems. WTF? Is this a democracy or a corporatocracy?

Upton Sinclair comes to mind at times like this (which seem to be many recently!), be it Fukushima or TMI... with a little added wording...

"It is difficult to get a man to understand [or be truthful about] something when his salary depends on his not understanding [or being truthful about] it."

i.e. if the money is to keep flowing, the charade must go on.

@GW... totally agree, and I have the same problem at home whenever I mention anything Fukushima/Tepco-related now. It's frustrating to say the least, especially when she says she can get all her news from TV, namely NHK. :-|

I guess I muttered something because it just was so surprising and irresponsible that they'd be so blatantly advertising a big shipment of Fukushima salmon right at the front of the store. The savings actually didn't seem so great to me, either, maybe a couple hundred yen by weight. This isn't Seiyu or some other lower-priced market here, where housewives pinch yen to save 20, 30 yen overall. So a couple hundred yen difference doesn't seem like much to me given the store.

@smithinJapan... thanks for the elaboration. You're right, being cheaper is only part of the dynamics going on. We have long bought, and will continue buying, only Norway salmon (not to mention a lot more foreign foods than before too, and we're in Kansai). Assuming we can trust the labels.

Saw Fukushima salmon in a Seijo Ishii store a few days ago in Umeda, Osaka, commented to others nearby that one would have to be slightly crazy to buy such food and was met by stares of amazement and subtle scorn. Not sure if it was because I simply spoke out or that those who heard me truly believe eating possibly contaminated salmon is A-OK. Lots of denial around here, apparently simply because such food from Tohuku/Fukushima, especially near offshore (where I'm guessing the salmon is from), is cheaper.