Kenyon Ian comments

Aso is not “gaffe-prone”. He says what he does because he knows perfectly well that there will be no consequences.

As someone said, Japanese people have much the same resigned attitude towards politics and their politicians as they do towards natural disasters. Essentially, there is nothing one can do about it. Unless this changes, people like Aso will continue saying whatever they want.

I don’t know what the correct punishment for this girl is, but I am fairly certain that whatever it is, nothing will change on Japan’s roads and pavements.

It is not only police indifference, but an unwillingness on behalf of people here to challenge outrageous road behaviour. Of course this lack of confrontation is generally one of the more pleasant aspects of life in Japan. Unfortunately, though, when it’s combined with a police force who seemingly cant be bothered to enforce the law, what you have is a Perfect Storm.

It’s no wonder that many cyclists, and indeed motorists, do what they do (watch TV while driving, ignore red lights etc etc). Unless one gets very unlucky, there is very little likelihood of getting punished for it, either by the police or anybody else.

I fail to see why a victim of serial philandering, for example, should feel “a sense of shame” about divorcing their spouse. And perhaps these “other cultures” that are mentioned are simply cultures in which Victorian levels of gender inequality (with male attitudes to match) no longer prevail. Admittedly, the pendulum may have swung too far in these “other cultures”, but I would suggest that the rising divorce rate may be related to a belated change here in Japan. Divorce is indeed regrettable, especially when children are involved, but perhaps the boot is finally on the other foot.