Robert Dykes comments

Posted in: Few calls for reform after shooting in gun-loving Texas See in context

"America is returning to the days of the wild wild west" not even. The WILD west was safe. Actual people getting shot in cold blood was so super rare its not funny. Not to mention guns were only accurate to about 20 meters and took about 1 minute to load your good 'ol single action revolver. This little kid probably woulnt have been able to cock the hammer back of an old revolver. The wild west people think they know were fiction from dime novels that got turned into hollywood movies that where 98% of the violence is pure fiction.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Few calls for reform after shooting in gun-loving Texas See in context

I want to LOL over this because I am just so over the USA's nonsense. But yeah, not really an LOL moment this time. Honestly, Japan decriminalizing marijuana is more likely than gun laws changing in the USA. No one is screaming to abolish the 2nd amendment (okay maybe a few are, but most arnt). They are saying lets just change the laws and gun culture we have. na na na na na na na na na na na, not listening!

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Posted in: New Year holiday exodus begins across Japan See in context

"okinawa for me."

Wow. Mr. Money Bags. Did you pay about 2k for 200$ tickets?

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Posted in: Canadian charged with trying to smuggle Y630 mil worth of stimulant drugs into Japan in guitar case See in context

Sorry. Help me with the math here.

1lb of meth is worth about $10,000 give or take a few thousand.

9.8kg is = to about 21.5 lbs which is equal to about $215,000

613,000,000 yen = $5,600,000 USD.

They are overestimating this bust, worst case, by $5 million dollars.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Posted in: KFC Japan says it earned Y6 billion over Christmas weekend See in context

I have real mixed feelings about how Japan treats and commercializes Christmas. Don't get me wrong, the west does it as well. All that being said in my spare time I help host an eikaiwa class with a group of senior citizens and they really help put a lot of things in perspective for me. They grew up post war and explained to me that for one Christmas was a time when they got to eat things that were extremely sparse in those time. I think Japanese Christmas cakes are pretty ridiculous and don't really like them, but think if you had one of those in 1950 Japan?! Also the fried chicken thing is 100% marketing, but chicken on Christmas in Japan is not. Turkeys are not as prevalent and if they were, most people simply dont have the ovens to cook them. So yes I think most of modern Japanese Christmas is pretty ridiculous, it is like western Christmas, born out of tradition, but from post war Japan getting what used to be rare delicacy type foods. Let's not forget that most of USA Christmas is born from Coca Cola and ABC and NBC made for TV movies like Charlie Brown Christmas and Rudolf the Rednosed Reindeer.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Behind bitcoin boom, Japanese retail investors pile in See in context

"My question is that if someone made these bitcoins, can't other clever folks make substitutes? If so, won't that cause bitcoin to crash just like turnips did in that turnip bubble in days past?"

Not sure what you mean. There are currently 1353 cryptocurrencies for sell. While Bitcoin is the largest with a dominance that currently swings between 50 and 50%, there are some other major players. Litecoin, Ethereum just to name two of the other most popular. There are plenty of trading pairs already established at many exchanges like Bitcoin for Etherium.

And yes, you can't mine Bitcoin unless you buy specially made ASIC miner. But you CAN mine from home in Japan even with the high electricity prices with you GPU. You mine one of the alternative or "altcoins". You either keep the altcoins, but many miners swap them out for bitcoin. Which ever you think might make you the most gains.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Posted in: Mount Fuji has become so congested with tourists that it has reached breaking point See in context

"[Insert any Japanese tourist destination] has become so congested with tourists that it has reached breaking point"

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Posted in: Cash-loving Japanese savers opt to play it safe See in context

"Probably another reason why the Japanese are quite keen on cryptocurrencies...."

@Matt Hartwell

No idea why you are being downvoted. I guess people commenting here don't have a clue.

Matt you are right. Japan is bonkers about crypto. The past few months Japan has been the NUMBER 1 trader in cryptocurrency trade volume beating both China and USA. (Korea is jumping on the bandwagon too. Because of the boost of China and Korea recently, that is why we have seen Bitcoin jump from 600$ to 6000$ into just one short year).

But Matt where you might be wrong is that its the day trading guys and companies already big into investing that are trading in crypto. Same with things like Nisa. Nisa was supposed to suck in common folk, but it didn't work. Crypto is the same. Its just day traders and big companies. Japan has some HUGE banks and insurance companies buying ungodly amounts of crypto. One way you can tell the average folk in Japan have next to nothing to do with bitcoins and altcoins, is you can't buying ANYTHING with BTC. And there are only 13 bitcoin ATMs in the entire country as of last week. Lithuania, with a population of less than 3 million has over 70 bitcoin ATMs. When you can buy street food with BTC in Tokyo like you can in NYC, THEN I will concede crypto has finally been picked up by the people of Japan.

(BTW where to find all 1700 bitcoin ATMs in the world https://coinatmradar.com/)

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Posted in: Japan's recovery not felt at street level See in context

"Sorry Kato-san, the shotengai is a thing of the past. No point waiting there for a better economy, start an online business and then you'll find your customers."

10000% this. I don't know why you are getting downvoted. Japan is merely 10 to 20 years behind the USA. I don't mean that in a negative way. I just mean that the US has set the trend. Big grocery stores then even bigger places like Wal-Mart shut down the corner hardware stores and the greengrocers (the yaoya of the US). Japan is in the this phase. There are too many people and small business that have yet to grasp the fact that Yodobashi Camera's, the growing number of Costcos and Ikeas. People are never going to come back to shotengai. And just we are struggling in the USA. Once people in Japan finally REALLY get onboard with online shopping, we will see the decline of malls and even the Yodobashi camera's. I mean.... come on people, do you really still buy your batteries from a brick and mortar store? Do yourself and favor and check the prices at Amazon Japan. They are close to 25 to 50% cheaper than ANY physical store you will find.

1 ( +7 / -6 )

Posted in: Student arrested for allegedly smuggling cannabis in hotdog buns See in context

Take that war on drugs! I mean let's look at the number here for sec. In 2016 just Colorado sold a measly 67,239,625 grams of marijuana. It sure is a good thing Japan took 0.97 grams out of the global supply chain.

(source: http://www.postindependent.com/news/marijuana/marijuana-by-the-numbers-10-numbers-about-pot-in-colorado-that-dont-include-4-20/)

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Posted in: Alcohol consumption excessive among half of elderly male drinkers See in context

"Wait a minute, the government now sets the limit on consumption of alcohol. Some people have low tolerance some people high tolerance alcoholic tendency is not abortary [sic]"

Tolerance has nothing to do with it. They are talking about detrimental effects on your body. Alcohol is, belive it or not, on the official list of carcinogens as put together THE National Cancer Institute. How drunk you get doesn't effect how alcohol can harm your overall health.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Posted in: Old and deadly: Japan's drive to beat elderly road menace See in context

"One solution might be to offer public transport."

Many of you are living in the Kansai and Kanto mind set. 50% of Japan lives outside of any major metropolitan area where public transportation is very limited. Out in Fukui we have and handful of very sparse local train lines. A few terrible busses and a tram system that only runs about 1/10th the length of the city. Then consider the countless rural cities that have MAYBE a couple buses a day that only run from the city center to the next major city. If you are an elderly person that just wants to go to the store, there simply isn't an option for public transportation. As it is, I know that one major line in Fukui runs at a deficit, but they keep the line open anyway because it's simply the only way for some people to get to and from places like Katsuyama to Fukui city. Have any of you even ridden a train in western Honshu? Or eastern places like eastern Hokkaido. The trains and stations are 50+ years old in dire need of renovation. There simply isn't a large number of passengers, and subsequently the revenue for large swaths of JR to reach the modern levels we know in central Japan. Bolstering public transportation just isn't a realistic option in the vast majority of Japan.

I am really confused why every comment here that mentions self-driving cars is being downvoted. It offers freedom for the people who want it. No one is saying EVERYONE must use self driving cars. I for one love the freedom of being able to drive when and where I want. But we are here debating how to offer freedom for elderly citizens yet grant safety to everyone else on the road. It seems like a no brainer... and its not like its a controversial idea. It is literally being adopted all over the world at record speed, yet isn't allowed in Japan at all due to the complete absence of any legislation or discussion of the topic.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Old and deadly: Japan's drive to beat elderly road menace See in context

This problem has already been solved. Why it's not even being considered in Japan is beyond me. Self-driving cars.

Self-driving trucks are already being posed to take over the EU and US highways. Self-driving pizza delivery cars are already on the US roads. Not a peep about self-driving in Japan. No legislation on the table and no testing being done. Yet all this talk about how do we solve this problem of dangerous elderly drivers.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Posted in: Kyoto plans minimum Y200 per night lodging tax See in context

A little off topic but yeah koshinryo is a joke. Why should we have to pay money to do YOU a favor. By staying in a place the landlord doesn't havent advertise to find a new tenant, loss out on rent for a possible empty apt (the one next to is stayed empty for 8 months!!!), Pay for cleaning fee. By renewing a lease we save landlords LOADS of money, yet we have to pay to archaic renewal fee?! It's honestly straight Yakuza style extortion but every just accepts it as if it makes sense. "Oh thank you so much for us saving you trouble of finding a new tenant. Thank you so much for keeping your income steady. Here is some extra money"

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: William Shatner talks 'Wrath of Khan,' new creative projects See in context

Yeah...... but it's not coming out here in Japan.

Did Japan get Poltergeist, Terminator 2, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, or Star Wars original Trilogy when they were all re-released?

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: The TV-streaming paradox: Why you may miss the cable bundle See in context

For most Amazon, Netflix, and HBO is enough. That will get you 95% of everything you want to watch. Thats 32$ a month. And the 8$ for Amazon pays for a lot more than just TV, free shipping, deals, etc. Hulu is all but dead already. I think most people will not blink at Disney unless they have young kids. So... yeah I guess you COULD spend more than 100$ a month on all these streaming services, but you don't have to. Unlike cable. Where packages basically START at 100$. You can't just chose your ten favorite TV and movie channels for 30$. So if you want the choice the to save then you go with streaming services. Its just like the low cost cellphone carrier I have. I was paying 90-100$ a month for Softbank. It was the cheapest voice and data plan they had. Now I am with a low cost carrier, for the same service I was using at softbank for only 20$ a month. I COULD use up to 100$ at the low cost carrier but I don't need 7 trillion hours talk time and 50 terabytes of mobile data.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: Japan's summer holiday exodus gets into full swing See in context

Yea! Triple to quintuple airfare prices for you and you and you and you. You are all WINNERS!

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan asks U.S. to refrain from flying Ospreys in Japan See in context

Yes Goodlucktoyou - We all know there have been plenty of minor accidents with Osprey because they make BIG news. But very FEW "Class A mishaps" which are IIRC over accidents that cause over $2 million in damage and/or loss of life.

I mean wow... You have a list of TEN accidents. Has anyone who complains about the Osprey, I don't know, spent 5 seconds looking at a single other aircraft in service? Take the C-130 for example. It has has over 15 accidents in the last 15 years JUST in the USA. If we include other countries and its entire history we are talking hundreds of accidents.

From my research 36 have died in the entire time the Osprey has been in service. 30 of those were the 2001 prototype version. Not the active service version now in use.

Lets look at the last 40 days... yes 40 days of the c-130 accidents. 136 people dead from 2 c-130 crashes. Thats right. In just the last 40 days 100 more people have died from the C-130 than the ENTIRE lifespan of the Osprey, but of course let's go nuts about the Osprey, because its the only aircraft of any kind that flies over populated land?

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Posted in: Japan asks U.S. to refrain from flying Ospreys in Japan See in context

"This contraption has had way too many accidents.

A flawed design, back to the drawing board."

Utter and complete nonsense. Brace yourself for some actual FACTS!

“In five years of operational flight, the MV-22 (Osprey) has only had two Class A mishaps; the most recent one taking place in Morocco in April of this year,”

"the Osprey has a bad reputation due to the crash record of the pre-2001 version of the aircraft, which was “designed, prototyped and tested with inadequate funds because of the politics of defense acquisition.”

"Safety statistics in the report indicated that the aircraft are slightly safer than the aging CH-46E Sea Knights, which the Ospreys are replacing."

What are we going to do with our opinions now? Now that we have the facts laid out, so you really want the marines to go back to using 1970 era helicopters? Because there are TWO options on the table. Use 50 year old helicopters or the Osprey.

12 ( +16 / -4 )

Posted in: Vin Diesel and NBC plan 'Miami Vice' reboot See in context

Lulz. That's great. I am actually watching the original right now for the first time!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Spate of violence targets people walking while looking at their phones in train stations See in context

In have to admit, I have almost been overcome with an overwhelming desire to simply smack the smart phones out of people hands while they walk. Working at a Uni it is insane some days. Trillions of sumafo zombies. Ahhh smack smack smack.

But I just calm myself and start starting down at my cell phone again ;)

5 ( +8 / -3 )

Posted in: Nuclear plant must release contaminated water See in context

"hree Mile Island began removing Metric Tons of Melted Nuclear Reactor Fuel within months of meltdown and was finished within 7 years. Why does Japan allow TEPCO to delay removal of Melted Nuclear Reactor Fuel?"

Its not that simple at all. Three mile island was like a tiny zit. Chernobyl was like the flu and Fukushima is like cancer.

Chernobyl is only HALF way finished with the clean up and decommission and its been 30 years. The new dome they put on it Chernobyl only marks the halfway point.

Fukushima is worse for one main reason, and a good one. Safety precautions. Russia sent hundreds of people to their death to being clean up. They just jumped right in head first send people in. Japan and the rest of the world now has MUCH MUCH stricter safety regulations which is slowing things to a crawl. But I 100% agree in that they need to get their butt moving. While they have more precautions to take, it seems they have spent 6 years doing nothing but walking circles about this thing with ZERO plans on how to procedure. Even once they do we are looking at 50 years at least until Fukushima is decommissioned, cleaned up, and put behind us.

and BTW I love how whenever I post FACTS, not opinions, of things that can easily googled and verified like my above comment and this one people still downvote me. Lovely people. Really.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Posted in: 'SNL,' Westworld' lead Emmy Award nominations with 22 nods See in context

Fan of the original Westworld and new series, but for me Stranger Things came out of nowhere and hit the 80's nostalgia button right on the head for me. I watch a A LOT of tv and Stranger Things was by far my favorite show of last year.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Nuclear plant must release contaminated water See in context

"I'm not a scientist so my question my be stupid....Can the contaminated water be frozen and then shot into space where it will remain frozen forever?"

A million times no. It costs roughly $1000 per lb to send something to outer space. We are talking 770,000 metric tons of water. It would cost more money than the entire world has combined. Like the man said. Overall, its not much radiation. Its just a lot of water.

The same goes for nuclear waste. Its too dangerous to send into space. If their is an accident it will send waste raining down into the atmosphere, which did indeed happen. Its one reason why we no longer send nuclear reactors into space (we do send different nuclear material into space, but its much safer, they are Thermoelectric Generators, like the mars rovers use). Back in the day Russia TRIED sending up a few reactors and one failed spectacularly and it rained radiation over much of northern Canda. Kosmos 954

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Dentsu to face open trial over high-profile overwork case See in context

"I know some bosses that work very hard to help the employees in small companies, and the employees also voluntarily work overtime checking that. That's the good image of Japanese company I'm proud of..."

Is this a good image though? To me this is just a way to force people to work to hard so the boss's boss gets more cash.

Company A and Company B does the same thing. Company A has 15 employees that are happy with life and work balance. They get their jobs done at 40-50 hours a week.

Company B does the same job with 10 employees. They work 70+ hours a week, because they are unhappy and tired and their efficiency goes down so mistakes are also made. Their work life balance is horrible. BUT WAIT! The CEO gets a bigger bonus because he pockets the money saved from the 5 less employees.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Half of students find primary school English education less than useful: survey See in context

Based off my old days as an JET ALT, my guess is that in elem school its is almost entirely a CLT approach that is used and then in junior high they begin the exam centered approach.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Posted in: No culling of animals again in Kanagawa in 2016 See in context

This should be the front page news story!!!

This is fantastic news! Japan culls 500 cats and dogs every single day! This is just one center, but it's a step in the right direction.

7 ( +7 / -0 )

Posted in: 3 former members of SMAP to leave talent agency See in context

Free(will) at last!

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Posted in: Koike to decide on fish market this week See in context

"NNearlt a year to decide this???"

Ummm. Try 20 years!!! They have arguing and debating and deciding to move the market since 97 or 98!

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Posted in: Caffeine overdose cases rising in Japan: survey See in context

I am not saying it is right or wrong. I honestly have no idea. I am merely voicing my concern, but I see countless teenagers, children, even babies drinking green tea in Japan. Green tea has a good amount of caffeine in it. Teenagers all over the world drink some form of caffeine, but I am genuinely curious if there are any negative effects to giving children and babies caffeinated green tea at such a young age. People build up a tolerance to caffeine very quickly. In a matter of only weeks the effects of a fixed amount of daily caffeine begin to taper off.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

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