OzKen comments

Not sure about obsolete. I think the price we paid and the time-frame for delivery is ridiculous.

They will be. By the time these are commissioned there will be 2 class generations of submarines developed by other countries. The cost for our own will blow out too, we are only capable of building hills hoist clothelines, building submarines in South Australia is a joke. Building them anywhere here isn't feasible. I think we should be thankful of our location, as isolated as it is, this nation is incapable of making a difference anywhere apart from the Pacific islands.

I think there is an opportunity for Japan to pick up used U.S nuclear strike subs in another 5 - 10 years. I'm hoping Australia does the same. We have these new subs the French are building for us and that will be fine for conventional circumstances but we still lack anything with real teeth.

Ah those beautiful French subs that will be obsolete by the time they are commissioned. A clear demonstration that we are indeed a paper tiger in the region.

This sort of thing is normal in America, it's a cultural thing. Sad to hear but not surprising at all. The only surprising thing is the numbers involved here.

Japan needs to learn from this.

As for Australia; By the time these submarines are built, and if they are successfully built, given Australia's industrial, technological and manufacturing limitations, they will be well and truly obsolete.

smithinjapanSep. 18, 2015 - 05:14PM JST

Japan screwed themselves on this deal by insulting Australia and saying they didn't have the know-how to build Japanese subs domestically. Oops!

Well, it's the truth. Our specialties are clothes lines and whirlybirds. Submarines, good submarines that can stand up to world standards are beyond our capabilities. This potential decision is more political than anything else - to appease unionists and to not lose seats to the ALP in the next election.

Tony Abbott, too genuine for his own good. We are now left with a back-stabbing left-leaning elitist. The only difference between Fraser and Shorten is the fact he isn't controlled by Unions. Shorten is scum. If he ever became PM you can be assured he'd send the country into the 3rd world.

Australia do not have the capabilities to make a submarine worthy to compete with/against the world. I'm Australian and I can admit that. Tony Abbott has made the most sensible approach to this issue. Bill Shorten wants to rial the unionists on this issue and bring up WW2 history in opposition to this view. That shows you the potential damage Australia faces if Shorten becomes PM of Australia. This is one of many examples.

This is a wake up call to all the left-wing idiots in the country who think this problem isn't a problem. Fools!

Hostage takers have not made any demands other than to say they wish to talk to the PM live on radio. This will not end well and there is police activity all over the entire city not only in the CBD.

I wish he was Australian. In fact the whole Japanese B team can do a better job than any Australian player at the moment. We are worse than San Marino and Luxemburg. Such is life Ned.

No disgrace in conceding goals to Brazil's attacking superstars when you've picked a second string defensive line. What was a concern was that Japan had nothing at all in attack. But the biggest concern and disgrace for me was that Australia lost to Qatar. How pathetic.

Can't critisise too much. Australia could only manage a 0-0 draw with the UAE. Very embarrassing indeed. As for the Japan game it is the same old problems for Japan, they have no cutting edge. They may need to play Honda as a striker. I said it should have been done during the WC. They have ten or more world class midfielders but no strikers.Those that have been tried there are makeshift strikers. You may as well give their best player a go there. It wouldn't hurt to try.

One rodent exterminated. There are many more walking the streets that need dealing with.

He warned that any decision to build the submarine overseas would have a broader impact on the economy than the recent decisions by Ford Motor Co, Toyota Motor Corp and General Motors Co to cease manufacturing in Australia.

We are incapable of building submarines. We have had enough trouble trying to build ships which have seen budget blowouts and time delays as they struggle to get them right. Buying these submarines from Japan is the most logical and economical thing to do.

Obama is a lame duck. He has proved this time and time again while in office. The solution to this IS problem is simple; Put a nuclear broom through the region where they exist.

IF Abe or any Japanese politicians think that US will allow Japan to build an offensive jet fighter, then you are all out of your minds. The only reason you are allow to build your domestic diesel subs is because we no longer build diesel subs and you are not allowed to use anything nuclear within your military. You may build a model, or even a prototype. But that is as far as it goes. There are certain industries Japan simply shouldn't touch. US is allowing Japan to sell cars in US. Pay attention to the word allow. It will be extremely easy to "force" Japan to succumb to the pressure of raising the yen significantly if US sees Japan crosses a line. That's the reality. You can play the game and continue to live within the boundary or take a chance and see what happens. Most importantly, after you spend about a trillion yen on just R&D, how will you be able to recuperate the cost base? No one will dare to defy US and EU to purchase a Japanese made jet fighter. That means Japan's military (no longer JDF) will have to pay for it. And how will JDF be able to pay for this? Read my lips, higher taxes. Like I said before, you guys are all patriots, open up your wallet and pay more taxes for the next several decades and you can enjoy your new jet fighters. But do be mindful of the consequences of this. You don't have that many friends left that will take a bullet for you.

Landscape is clearly changing. The US are losing grip on geo-poitical affairs. The rise of China and the belligerence of Russia is something the US is finding hard to cope with and it will eventually be beyond them. They've fought wars in the middle east and Afghanistan and attempted to influence politics in those regions for no gain at all. The population is war weary, civilian and military.

The US won't interfere in Japan's affairs. Not like they have before and the Japanese won't stand for it. Japan are breaking out and feel the need to be less reliant on the US on the back of China's rise in power. I think you should appreciate that given the circumstances.

This has been a long time coming. It is about time Japan tests its expertise in military avionics on the world market with a genuine indigenous design and this is a true fifth generation fighter jet. I have read about the ATD-X for quite a few years now so look forward to what the testing brings about. From what I've read it is supposed to be at least on par with the F-22. They are supposed to be designing electromagnetic discharge weapons for it also. Perhaps they should do what America has done to them in the past - if the US wants in on it then show them the money.

Confirmation that it was a pro-Russian separatist act. How people could have thought that it wasn't always going to be the case is baffling. There really are some ill-informed people with poor judgement around;

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/world/prorussian-separatist-commander-igor-the-terrible-strelkov-allegedly-appears-on-mobile-phone-video-of-mh17-crash-saying-that-was-a-blast/story-fni0xs63-1226993406156

Zaccheroni has been there for four years - a full cycle from last world cup to this one, not many stay for even half as long - and the end product is the team has performed worse than the one that performed in South Africa. It mustn't be forgotten though that he led them to Asian Cup success and he has picked up impressive results against quality teams in that time as well.

But his main objective was to get the team right for the world cup and he failed to do so. A lot of factors went into this - players being short of a gallop due to long-term injuries, and players out of form or down on confidence due to their plights at their respective clubs. But he must take blame for some poor tactical decisions he made particularly in the game against Greece which were inexcusable. They still may not have been good enough to get out of their group, regardless, but he could have done things much better all the same to improve their chances. Overall, in his four year tenure he did a pretty decent job though. Much better than many managers that preceded him.

But it is time for a change. Change in methods, change in tactics, change in personnel. The team needs a fresh start and outlook to prepare for the Asian Cup.

Here's a thought bubble. How about you play them both? Dropping one or the other is a ridiculous notion. They are two of Japan's best players regardless of current form. Zaccheroni has capitulated badly and has shown up his inabilities in the WC. Dropping Kagawa against Greece was ridiculous enough, the game had to be won at all costs, but during the game Zaccheroni kept Kagawa on the bench for ten minutes after the Greek player got sent off. That is a clear sign of his distinct lack of tactical awareness and willingness to change things up.

Osako, and Okubo in particular, aren't up to the standard of the international game. Okubo didn't even feature in the qualifiers and most friendlies but yet he seems to be the first picked now at the WC. Why hasn't Okazaki been considered as a frontman where he has scored 15 goals playing for Mainz in the Bundesliga this season. Or even put Honda up there, as a false 9 as he was played in South Africa to decent success and stack the midfield with extra creativity/bodies (Kiyotake and Kakitani). Zaccheroni has self-imploded with his decisions. The guy has been in the job for 4 years and the end result for that is stupid tactics. What a waste of time.

The pen was justified. Just like the one in the Bra/Cro game, you simply aren't allowed to have your hands on your opponent. I am glad that the referees are being consistent on this one. It has made for a cleaner game and we're seeing so far the best collection of world cup matches as a result. As for Pepe. That guy is a clown. And he has history. His carry-on is irritating, he's always been like that playing for Real Madrid and now it has come and bit him at the WC playing for Portugal. His petulance let his whole team down and all Portuguese fans who watched that match.

Like apologies? No, tina, Honda said Japan will surprise the world. If he meant, we'll do our best, he should have said that. I don't say "I love you" if I don't mean it, and don't say "I'm sorry" if I'm not. Are you suggesting Honda was insincere? On the contrary to Honda, for example, was the coach in question, who stated that Japan had to get its act together after several less-than-optimal friendlies against countries worse than Cote D'Ivoire, and he was absolutely correct. Honda, on the other hand, merely helped give Japan a surprise it certainly did not want. Don't blame language for Japan's performance. How many times have you heard the media here say Japan will make it to the semi-finals? Do you seriously wonder why people are disappointed?

Why don't you be quiet until Japan's destiny is determined.

smithinjapanJun. 14, 2014 - 12:45AM JST OzKen: You fail to take into account the other bad calls he made, like dismissing the elbow... I mean, since you are so against physicality and all that.

Neymar received a yellow card for the elbowing incident. Sufficient for me. I've seen worse let go.

JimizoJun. 14, 2014 - 12:05AM JST@OzKen I've played football since I was a kid in England. That's not a pen. I can only assume you've never played at centre-half or never played the game. I'd have given away a pen every time I'd got close to a forward trying to turn me. If you've played centre-half well without putting your hands on a player, you must be telepathic or as I suspect, never played centre-half.

By the letter of the law it was a correct ruling. You cannot interfere in the process of a player taking a shot. Simple. Read the rules. You can argue that it may have been a soft pen but that is all you could argue. And no, never played centre-half. I used to play as a number 10 hence why I am in favour of this ruling being exercised more strictly. Physicality in the game doesn't interest me. If I want to watch a really physical game (which I do from time to time) I watch rugby league. I watch football for a display of skills, and because this rule isn't applied particularly in England I think it makes it worse for spectators who favour skill over physicality.

I think these Japanese 'soccer' fans need to learn the rules of the game. Perhaps they are just part-time followers. The rules are simple - you cannot impede a player in the act of shooting. The Croatian defender had his hands on Fred. Yes, Fred made the most of it but the ruling was correct. Now all we need is consistency and ensure this ruling is applied everywhere.

I thought the ref had a decent game apart from the penalty he gave but from where he was situated on the field he would have seen Lovren's hands all over Fred and he consequently conned the ref into giving the penalty. Players need to keep their hands off players - we see it all too often and they get away with, on this occasion he didn't. Thems the breaks.

SCAP65Jun. 11, 2014 - 11:49AM JSTYes, an American alliance with China is entirely possible. America was allied with China against Japan before. It can happen again. Things change quickly. Japan is way out of its depth here. It has been a pacifist country for 70 years now. Also, the Japanese rightwingnuts seem to forget that it would only take three nuclear weapons fired by China to wipe Japan off the map. Military competition with China is a waste of time, Japan loses no matter how many times you play out the scenario.

Clearly you have little idea of what is going on. China's peaceful rise is showing up to be a complete load of rubbish, they have begun attempting to change the status quo in the region. Have a look at what is going on in the South China Sea. What they are doing there will eventually sweep across into the East China Sea which directly affects Japan. That is why Japan are acting. That is why relationships and partnerships are forming within the region that alienates China. I would have thought Japan's foreign policy is quite clear.

China knows it can tread on the toes of countries like the Philippines and Vietnam without little consequence to it at this time, but a more assertive Japan working closely with these nations in the future are what causes China concern. Japan are beginning to boost and open up its military industrial complex which will encompass and aid these countries concerned. It will continue to watch closely China's strengthening military might and build up accordingly to counter that. Eventually Japan will need to become a nuclear armed state (we all know they are already unofficially).

Japan's foreign policy is to not allow China to dictate and reshape the region geopolitically by the use of force.

Graham Arnold was on a hiding to nothing with this basket case of a football club. Nobody at the club bought into his ideas; Arnold wanted to bring the average age of the playing squad down by buying youth and developing them which happens to be his strength, and he wanted to move on a few of the over 30's of which there are nine and who took up most of Sendai's salary budget. The club has no scout, the guy in charge of buying and selling players is a former kit man of the club. All the players he has brought in are rubbish. Arnold wanted to bring in the best young talent in the country but was told by this former kitman that there aren't any. The club had no gym, the players turned what was once their gym into a games and relaxation room. Graham Arnold did the right thing and changed it back into a gym and rehab room. Most players didn't buy into his ideas, all the older ones refused to comply as they were set in their old ways and tried to alienate him by not communicating with him or even look him in the eye. Hence all the poor results. They wanted him out and now they've got their wish. I hope they get relegated.

Word is the Chinese are looking around in the wrong place with technology that is about 20 years behind, and this premature announcement they have made to make them look good has backfired and instead will make them look like absolute fools. Looking forward to the excuses they will need to make to save face, especially to their own population who think they are at the forefront of the world.

White woman's syndrome? Get a grip, and don't bring race into this. You are pathetically uninformed, not unusual for this site. She is fragile emotionally. The only people to have prospered from this are her siblings after years of incarceration. Ironically one of them may have caused her to be there. And all got cosy with indigenous Balinese at one time or another. But yes, if she did the crime she must do the time. Again.

And how will the flow of Capitol be plugged or better yet, who will do it?

I'm sure Europe will fall into line with the US's rhetoric and risk cutting off there supplies of gas and oil from Russia. Not!