Heather Hopkins Clement comments

I like the idea of staff having them for their own protection. I once heard this older Japanese male passenger berating two younger female staff. His tone was just nasty. I finally stood up, turned around, and stared him down until he shut up. I felt so sorry for these young ladies; nobody should be subjected to that.

At the end of the day, only Naomi has ALL the information to know what's best for her at this time. People that haven't suffered from depression themselves often have difficulty fully understanding it. It is not a weakness. It is not a character flaw, and it is not something she can just snap out of. Good for her for setting boundaries and doing what she needs to do to take care of herself.

Not me. Paid personal and corporate taxes as a business owner in Japan since 2015, but my residency expired on 4/19--just days short of the cut-off date, so I got NOTHING.

This new center doesn't even provide a way to email or message someone. What about the current entry ban on foreign residents? How are they supposed to get help? It seems they are not even on their radar screen. We don't need to waste tax money on window dressing. The government needs to act NOW to assist it's TAX-PAYING foreign residents whose lives and livelihoods have been destroyed with this discriminatory COVID-19 immigration policy. If you haven't already done so, please check out this petition and add your name as a signatory if you feel so inclined: http://chng.it/HZqkk9bFZc

It would also help if they would give non-family and non-Japanese more opportunities to foster and adopt.

These are horrible. Clearly they did not get any feedback from their target audience before releasing. They really don't reflect well upon Iwate. They should retract the right away and try again with feedback from native speakers from the start.

So, how does this differ from JNTO's Goodwill Guides? http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/arrange/travel/guide/guideservice.html

So, randomnator, how many times have you been compensated as a volunteer at the Olympics?

I think people are missing the point. The Olympic Games are usually staffed by volunteers. That's part of the Olympic spirit. Many of the athletes themselves are essentially volunteers themselves forgoing lucrative professional athlete status to maintain their amateur eligibility. My father has been a volunteer at dozens of Olympics around the world. He has never received any monetary compensation and has always paid for his airfare, lodging, meals, etc. There's a reason why he does it time after time. It's an experience unlike any other.