FireyRei comments

So up again!

Up? You think +2k in a population of 127 million up?! It's miniscule.

Japan has never had it badly. The infected/death rates are tiny in comparison to so many other countries.

I do not find kneeling simple, ever. I do it for something or someone I revere or love. Kneeling to a sweeping group of people who I neither know nor revere will not have me bowing to them. Hand shaking, hugging, saluting, yes I will do these things. Requiring or demanding these things though teaches nothing but the ability to obligate and get what you demand.

When do we normally kneel to someone? God. Gods. Royalty. Proposal of marriage to show a willingness to serve, protect etc. Every person who isn't the same colour as me is my peer, my equal. To kneel to a person means to regard them as higher than yourself in some way. This, surely, is NOT equality. I kneel to no-one equal to me. If that is racist, then the word racist and its definition has certainly been changed dramatically.

15 years back? In Osaka the police put up a website for Japanese people to report suspicious foreigners. A similar period I was stopped three times in a week by the same two officers demanding my passport, ignoring me telling them we do not carry it, instead the ID card: reported them to my consulate who spoke with the chief of police - harassment stopped. I have lots of other juicy stories about myself and friends or colleagues harassed by the police, but why bother? The xenophobia was strong enough to push many a foreigner to leave Japan. Yet so many have not experienced this, so for them, they deny said behaviour exists. Oftentimes foreigners protecting their safety bubble in Japan is worse behaviour.

Back in 1993: VHS videos with Polaroid photos of girls with ages such as 11, 12, 13... For real.

300... How quaint!

Try 5,000 plus daily in your region. Last year we had 10,000 plus daily in the worst hit town in Italy.

Seriously this is still going on?! Obviously 75 years on they are strapped for cash so why not indulge the Japanese government run by the children and grandchildren of the criminals...

Your numbers remain VERY low in comparison to other countries. In Italy we have double the figures with half the population. If you were to hit 10x the number (nope, you won't touch wood, fingers crossed etc.) then you might want to worry. As long as you remain vigilant, you'll have little to fear.

These people who believe they are losing, have lost, and even believe may never again see freedom clearly have little concept of what a pandemic means. These people clearly rely on general media or social media not medical journals nor the empirical evidence provided by and backed up by medical and pharmaceutical professionals. This strain of influenza is far worse than any other currently circulating, and it is rapidly hurting, damaging, or destroying lives. We are temporarily being told to reduce our freedom of movement, temporarily having to be controlled. If you fear this more than the viral threat to yours, your friends or families lives, then you clearly are incredibly self-centred.

One only has to compare national economies: while so many nations are in decline, China's economy has been on the rise for months now. They are profiting.

"Do it"

Not sure if those two words constitute a crime: should you walk around telling people, "Do it", and they do whatever it is they are considering, it's surely in their hands the majority of the consequences.

Telling the driver to speed up, and they do, the law clearly puts the responsibility on the driver.

And maybe we can learn a bit from other countries on how to handle this virus.

Unfortunately, many absolutely do not. Countries of a seemingly higher democracy, or freedom of speech like the USA and UK are more about selfishness, "It's nothing. Why should I wear a mask? They probably would have died anyway. 2020, the year our liberties were taken." Etc. Poorer nations have a higher death count typically from a lack of education or huge population. Wealthier countries do not have these excuses, only "What about my rights?!" It's embarrassing.

The nuking of Hiroshima and then Nagasaki were two of the most disgusting and cowardly war crimes ever committed.

They were little more than a brutal and cynical live human experiment on women and children. The depravity and racism of the US government and military is apparent from Harry Truman's demented giggling prior to his announcement of the mass murders at Hiroshima:

Interesting. I wonder how you feel about the cowardly war crimes committed by the IJA against e.g. POWs under Japanese control? You know they starved, overworked, toyed with the POWs using swords and guns: murdering captured, enlisted men, as well as civilian women and children? Brutal, cynical live human experiments of depravity and racism, hmm? How about the infamous Nanjing massacre? Mass rape of over 20,000 women and girls; horrific murders of hundreds of thousands of innocent human beings: Brutal, cynical live human experiments of depravity and racism, hmm?

Again I say, the two bombs dropped on Japan were an atrocity, however, they only served to make people like you and rest of Japan FORGET the brutality and depravity served by the IJA against millions of other men, women, and children.

Those two bombs were a blessing in disguise for Japan: what do Japanese people in general remember the most about WW2? How THEY suffered at the hands of the Americans, and not how they made millions of others suffer at their hands. As terrible as the bombs were, Japan wrecked far more terror on Chinese, Korean, British, American, Australian, Singaporean... Etc. The bombs mask far more terror committed by Japan.

Risking illness, or abuse, to even death (murder) for 50万... She's either hard as nails, or indifferent. No sympathy from many, of that she can be assured.

To the author, Ben K,

What 'many other countries' have this problem? Any such claim should be backed up with empirical evidence. You have cited no source to this claim.

Until doing so, Japan remains one country alone that this phenomenon is prevalent, and well-documented as such.

Mild is now being proven untrue. Lasting effects from mild to severe are being recorded around the world. Mild cases in some have led to other physiological or anatomical problems. If that doesn't bother you, go on with your 'freedom'.

@Antiqusaving

You are literally contradicting yourself. Your direct response to me is one of, 'everything here is fine and we made the right choice to return to Japan'. In your next post, "My children get tired of it and they should as they are Japanese and citizens."

So are your children tired of labels or not?

My daughter is not, because here, outside Japan, she never gets labelled it. As life should be.

This is the key reason my wife and I left Japan to raise our HALF daughter in a country in which xenophobia and racism is actually illegal. Even as a baby born in Japan we had 50% Japanese people saying how cute she looked while the other 50% grimaced or stared in disbelief. What kind of parents would we be to subject our daughter to such a label? If you can't change Japan, and you cannot, you leave.

Can't understand how people can accept living in such a policed society in which you are always guilty before innocent.

Pay taxes. Check

Pay pension. Check

Permanent residency visa. Check

Japanese family. Check

When are you going home Gaijinsan? How long are you staying?

Check.

Lol?

Too late: the world already believes it and you cannot stop this train.

China will pay.

Told my 7 year old the same thing yesterday, so, do I get in the papers?

Well duh...

The Japanese government would pursue incarceration of the flight attendants? This is stooping to an all time low. If we can't punish a man not yet proven guilty, let's go after everyone else instead. We want our pound of flesh. Disgraceful.

Japanese society simply refuses to change. This culture of blame, bullying, and ostracision should have ended already: too much to ask, clearly.

Osaka: lived there nearly 18 years. Yes there are some rough ish places, yes there is poverty in certain areas, and yes the police can be very, very disrespectful or even criminal themselves. The people... Friendly yes, narrow minded yes, welcoming - depends entirely on where you are and who you are. It's a normal city of good and bad.

Where's my recognition for 18 years of service to Japan?!

Travel to the country that most likely manufactured this virus? No thank you. Visit the country which bans its citizens from communicating with foreigners? No thank you. Travel to a country with low value of human life? No. Thank. You.

Japan dispelling negative comments towards itself. It's unheard of! The world perpetuates this golden view of Japan, why? Because negative comments are erased.

Arrested? Criminal prosecution? Human resources WASTED. Typical complete over reaction by the police on such a minor infraction. A stern warning would have frightened this officer plenty.