keech2 comments

Here are some links about the trial. In every article, it is stated that the judge found that the prosecution witnesses' testimonies were inconsistent and contradictory. And that is why he found the cops innocent. http://us.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/25/sunny.bell/index.html

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2008/04/26/2008-04-26_godlike_judge_delivers_sean_bell_verdict.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/nyregion/27brown.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&oref=slogin

Taka,

Yeah, she's crazy. I felt more sympathy for the second woman mentioned in the article.

fireant,

I remember the whole Koizumi situation when he was PM. I was talking about the present situation with some people here(I live in Ishikawa.) We all were wondering what would happen with a Yasukuni visit, now that there is such firm and recent precedent. It will be interesting to see if anyone files a lawsuit again.

BTW, I'm a firm believer in keeping the wall of separation high, as high as possible.

Now, a couple of weeks ago, the mayor of Hakusan in Ishikawa Prefecture had to pay a fine, because he visited a shrine. The article was a little vague, but it seems that the major sticking point was that he used an official government vehicle to go to the shrine. According to the ruling, he violated constitutional law on the separation of church and state. What I'm wondering is whether or not these gentleman used private or government vehicles. And, if they did use government vehicles, did they also violate the Constitution?

The full story is here:

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fd20080420t1.html

I love the reason why she wants to have the kid in the first place.

jambon,

Thank you for the quote from the FBI and the interesting philosophical argument, but neither of these posts really has anything to do with why I posted. That is the fact that you got your information wrong. If you are implying that, according to Professor van der Haag' argument, people would kill people more on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, then I have to ask why do states that have no capital punishment, for the most part, have lower homicide rates than states that do have the death penalty? By that argument, states with no death penalty should have bodies strewn in the streets, which I don't see happening in Iowa or Maine.

jambon,

Your information is incorrect. The majority of states in the US that do not have the death penalty have a significantly lower homicide rate than states that do have the death penalty. Please check here:http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=169

While this group is anti-capital punishment, their information comes from the FBI Crime Report. Here:http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/ucr.htm

Nessie,

True, but, for hundreds of years, the Catholic Church has done little or nothing to protect its believers from the actions of the more loathsome members of its clergy. The records from the big trials in Massachusetts and California show that the Church officials were much more interested in protecting the Church's image than actually stopping these predators.Church officials did everything they could to delay the trials and to stop the plaintiffs from getting information about the accused and from getting information about the Church's handling of these priests. Being a former Catholic with many family members, including youngsters, still in the faith, I kind of take this problem to heart.There's a good book about this longstanding issue. http://www.amazon.com/Sex-Priests-Secret-Codes-Catholic/dp/1566252652/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208492305&sr=8-5

I see your point, but I truly believe that it is only window dressing.

It's just a symbol. The Church still stonewalls victims and still protects pedophile priests. it doesn't mean squat.

This is not surprising. I'm sure that if admitting to being depressed or having any psychological problem due to a person's military service had been more acceptable at any other time in history, men who had fought in any war would have reported similar effects.

WhatJapanThinks,

They are on several of the threads. As a matter of fact, I'm looking at one right now. They're probably Google ads, but it still pisses me off. They're big and blue and state that we should get the facts from the Scientology Video Channel. I'm sitting at m computer right here in Kanazawa, Ishikawa.

MOderators and/or editors,

A question that may or may not be related to the new design but I thought I'd ask?

What the hell is with the Scientology advertisements? Are you going to start accepting ads from the Unification Church, the Catholic Church or other denominations or religions? I come here to get news and discuss topics. Not to have to view calls to check out the facts of a cult.

Northlondon,

I was stating that from a immigration/naturalization situation that it was not a problem. From a personal view, I imagine it would be quite difficult. However, considering the fact that Darvish has grown up in Japan and has only visited his father's homeland two or three times, I believe that his choice may not have been so difficult for him. I do like the fact that he is using his earnings to help those less fortunate then himself.

In the swituations of international marriage, the children,usually, have to choose a nationality at a certain age. This is what Yu did. He could legally use his Japanese passport or, if he had one, his Iranian passport until the age of 20 when he decided to accept full Japanese citizenship. Not a problem. Rjd, what about Asashoryu? Do you believe that he would have been so vilified by the media if he was a full-blooded Japanese wrestler? People made more of a fuss over his lie than of the stablemaster and the three wrestlers who appear to have beaten someone to death? northlondon, those are not Chris Isaak lyrics. They are Cole Porter lyrics.

serendipity, thanks for the tip. I read "The God Delusion". It was very good. "Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism" by Susan Jacoby is a great book. You should give it a look. dat5h, the good news is that the fasting growing religious group is atheist/agnostic/non-religious. Up to almost 14%. Badsey, and the conservatives, especially the religious conservatives, have got it right? They refuse to allow real sex education in schools, relying on abstinence-only programs. The conservatives who won't allow teenagers access to condoms have got it right? The people who would make the government force a woman to have a child and then won't let the government do anything to help her financially once she has the child have got it right? Abortion would be a much smaller problem if people were taught about and supplied with better birth control.

All I know is that the founders of the US must be all rolling over in their graves with all this extreme pandering to religion that has been going on in US politics for the last couple of decades. Remember the US Constitution was called the Godless Constitution. There is no mention of any supreme being, because the power of the state was not meant to rest with any god but with the people. These politicians should remember that. As it stands now, they all disgust me.

TokyoHaze, great picture. Also I love the "double" description. Wonderful way to put it.

I saw the whole article yesterday. I was wondering which of his quotes would end up as the quote of the day. http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20080408jk.html

dr jones actually, in most of the industrialized world, you are twice as likely to be killed or injured by a family member or a close friend than by a stranger. We tell people, especially children, to beware of strangers, but it is the people who you trust that are most likely to get you.

Alfie, you can always try the meat guy(http://www.themeatguy.jp/) or check in a medium- to high-end imported foodstore for meat proucts from a company called Frieden out of Kanagawa. Their phone number is (0463) 58-6120. Very good block and sliced bacon.

Blue Tiger, I stand by my point that we don't know how old his siblings were. If his siblings were 8, 9 or 10, what is wrong with them going to play outside together? When I was 5, I would tag along with my elder sisters, who were 8, 9, and 10 at the time and, even occasionally when my parents forced him to, my brother, who was 13. Until I know the age of the child's siblings, I will withhold judgment. Also, since this took place in Iwate, I don't the parents were at a hanami party. According to the news, it's too early for hanami in Iwate.

Taka an cleo, I agree completely.

smartacus, when you were growing up did your parents know where you were 24 hours a day? Did you never do anything that might have been a little stupid or possibly a little dangerous when you were a kid? If they did and if you didn't, then you must have had a boring childhood. But accidents happen. Nobody's fault, they just happen. I am the first to criticize Japanese parents for not taking safety precautions such as child and booster seats. However, keeping kids on a figurative or literal leash 24 hours a day will not solve the problem, because when they do slip the leash they will have no idea how to act and probably get into a bad situation. Also, we do not know how old his brother and sister are. Possibly they are older and were supposed to be taking care of the younger brother. As of now we just don't know.

Ms. Cleo, a tasteful nipple ring or stud or two can be quite an appealing sight. And can enhance certain aspects of life. If this site had not become slightly more rigid, I would tell you the full story about a female friend, who had to remove a piercing from a certain part of her anatomy, because she was enjoying it too much, just walking done the street, putting away glasses at the bar, skooching aroung in her chair. Almost everywhere. She told me that it had gotten very exhausting and she finally had to remove it. I wonder what she would have done in this situation.

jambon, actually, I always make pancakes or waffles for my daughter's friends when they sleep over, but no super-sweet toppings. Only fresh strawberries or blueberries, maybe a little butter and a little real 100% Vermont maple syrup. The kids love them. I make sure my batter is not too sweet like the snack style hotto kekki. For myself, I agree with Cleo and Taka, except my drink of choice is tea, lots of strong black tea. Nessie, agree with the family breakfast. It's a great time for family conversation.