FernGully comments

Japan needs more Texas BBQ.

If China (and all other nations engaged in trade with NK) agreed with and implemented a full-scale embargo on North Korea in terms of food, clean water, gasoline, and other similar things until they gave up their nuclear program altogether, I don't think it would be too long before NK and the government would implode. Can't run a country without the bare necessities.

This just goes to show, there's more to being Japanese than just looking like one.

I don't eat pizza to be healthy. I eat it to be comforted and to indulge.

I may be in the minority here, but I think defense like this is necessary with geopolitical threats like China and Russia. Of course people need to pay for those defenses. That's partially what makes Japan one of the safest nations on the planet.

Other people here have already suggested viable options - one being inhabiting the islands, which is something I would support.

It's easy to blame parents when something bad happens. "They should have done this." "They should have done that." And... Perhaps they should have.

However, considering the other side, it's really difficult to keep an eye on them all the time, especially when parents have to go to the bathroom, cook food, or do one hundred other things they have to do. It gets even harder with multiple kids at once.

Geopolitical relations... So complicated.

It would be helpful if Japan and Russia made amends on their territorial disputes and focus more on China's breaches of power in the Pacific.

I don't mind Japanese content, I just wish they had English subtitles.

About time. The first season was a hit. They should have stuck with continuing the anime adaption.

I guess you could say that Britain is...

puts on sunglasses

Taking a pounding.

I can't believe that these two candidates, out of 310 million Americans, could be the best that America has to offer. Trump is an unhindered cannon, and Clinton is, well... Corrupt and a liar. Damn... This sucks.

4 years for murdering a baby.... The Japanese justice system is so messed up.

Unbelievable situation! Unbelievable parenting! Unbelievable solution!

LFR, don't troll, bro. Mark isn't insulting a 3-year old.

Granted, if you really think about it, 3-year olds really are idiots. Would you play with a gorilla? Would you do a reverse-handstand on the top step of a large flight of stairs? Would you run out into a busy street intersection to retrieve a ball?

The reasonable answer is "No, you wouldn't." You wouldn't because you know the consequences. You're a smart, experienced, and intelligent person. A 3-year old isn't - plain and simple. That's why Mark connected that unintelligence, that inexperience, that idiocy if you will, to the parents and their responsibility for their child.

In the defense of the parent(s), especially if they have multiple kids, it's difficult to keep track of all of them all the time. If that mother was by herself with multiple kids at the zoo, she probably had a difficult time. She's only one person with one set of eyes. Does that excuse what happened at the zoo? Probably not, but it's a valid argument to make.

Wow! Ishikane going for the side-to-side double-handshake. That guy's a pro.

I had a huge conscience when I was younger and told on myself if I did something wrong, and I tried to stay out of trouble. But if I did do something wrong (even if I tattled on myself), I got spanked, probably up until 12 years old. Then my parents switched over to long discussions and privilege-taking after that (taking away video games, etc.). Now, every time I hear the words, "We need to talk," or "let's talk," I immediately think it's about something wrong I did.

I'm surprised that Japanese law allows him to stay in office after this affair. This is a crime, isn't it?

Why is Japan afraid of competitors in this market? Are there a bunch of labor union lobbyists? How do these taxi companies even afford them? How do they make any money? Competition is the epitome of a free market. It provides many potential, quality and low-price choices for the consumer.

Wow... These parents made a huge mistake that may killed their son. Hopefully he is found alive.

Educator60 on May 27, 2016 - 8:17AM JST

Please don't do such an immature thing. The police have better things to do than waste time investigating suspicious items that turn out to be your trash. Your trash that you could carry to your home, place of work, hotel or other appropriate place to be disposed of.

Um... I dislike littering as much as the next guy, but I'm pretty sure that was a joke. At least, I read it as one.

Wow... If I had the money, this would be a steal. Amazing price.

I read this article and I was reminded of the "Japanese Cheating" article that popped up here a few days ago:

http://www.japantoday.com/category/lifestyle/view/heres-what-japanese-men-and-women-think-about-cheating

This is only one factor out of many, but no wonder young Japanese people are concerned about marriage... There's no commitment. There's no loyalty. And honestly, probably not a whole lot of love, either - that's very rare, and, very sad.

Good attitude. Let's see what he does.

Sounds like a good guy.

Yikes....

There are some dangerous sentiments about the U.S. going around here. I'm American, and I'm not saying we're saints when it comes to our history. We've defended slavery and used Manifest Destiny as a tool for imperialism. However, no country is pure, in my opinion. Our countries have all made mistakes. Let's be patriotic, but not nationalistic.

What I want to say is, the U.S. provides a strong and necessary defense for Japan. If all U.S. forces pulled out today, Japan would be too easy for other strong geo-political powers to take over if war were to happen. That can't happen. That's why the U.S. is here.

Yes, there is a history of aggressive military action from Japan in the past. But in my opinion, that's a relic. Japan isn't a puppet-state, it's just really dependent on the U.S., like a child needs its parents. If Japan really wanted to mature, step up its defense, start building a strong military, and have the US start pulling out troops and packing up the bases, I don't think the U.S. would mind. If anything, I think the U.S. wants strong, independent allies, but Japan has to want that, and I think that's why Trump has the attitude that he does. This is my speculation, but Trump doesn't want American assets spread too thin across the world and wants Japan to be self-sufficient.

If charging Japan a higher "rent," so to speak, will give Japan more motivation to become self-dependent, then that is a viable and logical strategy.

I voted "no," because I was unsure.

I feel that the U.S. provides a valuable defense for Japan right now, considering Japan not being able to adequately do it in case of an emergency (I have a feeling that might change later [20-30 years]).

However, I also feel that the United States has the upper hand in military dominance with its positions all over Japan. Being close geographically to China, Russia, and North Korea probably provides them with the capabilities to strike back and defend quickly in case something happens.

Japan needs the U.S, but the U.S. doesn't necessarily need Japan. There's no doubt about that. But, at what cost? I think that's up to the leadership and taxpayers of Japan.

The one thing that the police department is doing in this situation is propagating fear.

1) Fear of men by women. (Men are molestors and perverts.)

2) Fear of women by men. (You can't be alone with a woman because she'll falsely accuse you.)

I wouldn't be surprised if Japanese reporters take anonymous identities and seek to post news about Japan outside of Japan because other countries' laws are less constrained.

Video can be found here: http://nyti.ms/23yD7XQ

Thanks for the video. It looks like the chimp grabbed an exposed wire and then got shocked or electrocuted. He managed to catch himself, but maybe the tranquilizer kicked in and knocked him out, allowing him to lose his grip and fall, hitting another wire and falling violently on the ground.

Dang... I hope that moment of freedom for the chimp was worth it. Zoos must be terrible places to live.