Japan Today

Roger Gusain comments

Posted in: N Korea abductee's mother vows not to give up as she turns 89 See in context

Feel so sorry for Yokota-san. I am sure the POTUS will do what he can, but North Korea's nukes are the main problem.

She is VERY lucky (as we all are) that Kamala didn't win. The transcripts of the 60 Minutes interview are devastating proof that calling the former VP a bird brain is an insult to birds. It's shocking stuff.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Posted in: Wages in Japan drop for 3rd straight year in 2024 as inflation bites See in context

Been thinking about splurging on a five-star hotel weekend in Tokyo to celebrate our upcoming 25th wedding anniversary. The first hotel I looked at was 100-thousand yen for ONE night. I kid you not.

-4 ( +8 / -12 )

Posted in: Japan, U.S. eye meeting between Ishiba and Trump on Feb 7 See in context

Brown-nosing is the best way to get anywhere with Trump. Ishiba will have to prostrate himself to beg for kind treatment.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

Posted in: Marianne Faithfull, British singer and pop icon, dies at 78 See in context

Broken English is her masterpiece. She played a dancehall in Northern Ireland on that tour -- not the most sophisticated audience. I heard that someone threw a bottle of whiskey at her.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Posted in: In 10-hour news conference, Fuji TV execs step down over TV host sexual misconduct scandal See in context

Bugger me, but it's a bit hard to believe that that is all Nakai's fault. I have some sympathy for him.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

Posted in: Ishiba rallies opposition support in Diet to achieve policy goals See in context

The prime minister also vowed "unceasing" efforts to achieve the goal of raising the average minimum wage to 1,500 yen an hour by the end of the 2020s, from the current around 1,000 yen

Ishiba is gaslighting us. The current National Minimum Wage in Australia is $24.10, or 2,375 yen. The National Living Wage in the UK will be £11.44, or 2,217 yen, from April 1. I could give other examples.

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

Posted in: TV host, ex-SMAP singer Nakai announces retirement over sex scandal See in context

I'm glad that this is being reported around the world without the insulting euphemisms that are being used in the Japanese media. "Trouble"? What an insult to the victim of this sexual predator.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: Recording captured ex-interpreter impersonating Ohtani to transfer $200,000, prosecutors say See in context

Mizuhara claims he blew the $17 million on gambling, but I don't believe that. I bet he's got a stash in a Swiss bank account that he can access after he gets out of the slammer.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

Posted in: U.S. news giant CNN eyes 200 job cuts, streaming overhaul See in context

Nobody watches it anyway.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

Posted in: TV host, ex-SMAP singer Nakai announces retirement over sex scandal See in context

Japan's Jimmy Savile. This case may be the tip of the iceberg. Why isn't this in the crime section?

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: 'YMCA' journeys from gay anthem to Trump theme tune See in context

Trump's devotion to YMCA may be a hidden tribute to his mentor Roy Cohn -- a lovely human being.

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

Posted in: 'Japan First' mindset key for Ishiba in dealing with Trump: president's ex-adviser See in context

Trump doesn't like losers. He will probably wait until the next PM comes along.

-16 ( +3 / -19 )

Posted in: University entrance exams begin across Japan See in context

Todai is ranked 28th in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025, but Waseda is 801–1000th and Keio is 601–800th. The Japanese university system is a joke. The appalling quality of tertiary education wasn't a problem when Japan was rich, but it's starting to matter now.

-11 ( +6 / -17 )

Posted in: University entrance exams begin across Japan See in context

Why do they still bother with these exams? Japanese universities are so desperate they will accept anyone. Would love to see the application ratios. Even Todai is probably 1:1 these days.

-12 ( +6 / -18 )

Posted in: Why are there so many cults in Japan? See in context

Mormons are not all crazed religious fanatics who do their best to annoy the hell out of you. I worked with a Mormon couple many years ago (both university professors) -- they were lovely and didn't even bother trying to convert their cynical colleague.

-2 ( +4 / -6 )

Posted in: Elon Musk helped Trump win. Now he's looking at Europe, and many politicians are alarmed See in context

Starmer has managed to unite the country -- everyone hates him. What is he hiding? I am not sure I want to find out.

-5 ( +3 / -8 )

Posted in: Ex-SMAP member Nakai's TV scenes cut over alleged trouble with woman See in context

I always thought he was a slimeball. My least favorite SMAP member.

-8 ( +8 / -16 )

Posted in: Elon Musk helped Trump win. Now he's looking at Europe, and many politicians are alarmed See in context

Elon is shining light into dark corners. God bless him.

-6 ( +3 / -9 )

Posted in: One magazine's sunny view for Japan in 2025, with a few dark clouds See in context

A time machine is our only hope. This may be the worst year for our planet since the early 1930s.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Real change won't happen unless more men step up to share in parenting duties. See in context

Japan needs to start paying women to have children:

"Over the past decade, Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán appears to have realized an old feminist dream: state-sponsored remuneration of women’s (previously unpaid) childcare. Women – or families, to be more precise – are now receiving significant sums of government money for having and raising children."

"Since the mid-2010s, the Hungarian government has introduced a long line of policies offering grants and loans to parents and would-be parents. Those who have, or pledge to have, children, are eligible for a baby grant of 10 million forints (roughly five years’ minimum wage). Families who choose to have three or more children can access especially generous tax breaks and highly subsidized mortgages."

"Parental leave is also especially generous in Hungary. Once they have children, new parents can stay at home for a maximum of three years on full pay." (Eva Fodor)

-7 ( +1 / -8 )

Posted in: Real change won't happen unless more men step up to share in parenting duties. See in context

"Years of overwork, excessive company loyalty, and an aversion to risk-taking are beginning to plague Japanese society. The Japanese government points to the shrinking and aging population as the problem. However, what it fails to acknowledge is that old people are not the problem; old systems are. The shrinking population is not the culprit; Japanese society’s response is. An overhaul of Japanese governance, in areas such as immigration, diversity, labor, and mental health, is necessary to keep the country alive":

Diagnosing and Curing Japan: Why Japan is dying, and how to revive it – The Yale Globalist (2018)

-8 ( +1 / -9 )

Posted in: Bodies of two men, one woman found in Kobe home in apparent murder-suicide See in context

Happy New Year everyone! Don't choke on mochi and don't beat your family members to death!

-3 ( +5 / -8 )

Posted in: 10 tips from experts to help you change your relationship with money in 2025 See in context

My first letter of 2025 is from AMEX offering to upgrade me to a platinum card. I must be doing well.

The monthly fee is 165,000 yen. Hmm...

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

Posted in: 10 tips from experts to help you change your relationship with money in 2025 See in context

My first letter of 2025 is from AMEX offering to upgrade me to a platinum card. I must be doing well.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

Posted in: Japan to greet New Year with ‘Kohaku,’ shrine visits, shopping and heavy snow See in context

This year's Kohaku is cringe, isn't it?

Well, you expect that. It doesn't matter much as 99 percent of the audience have drunk too much to be overly critical. You really need to see it live. I've tried watching Kohakus on NHK Plus after the event, but it's like picking over Christmas turkey leftovers.

-11 ( +1 / -12 )

Posted in: Japan to greet New Year with ‘Kohaku,’ shrine visits, shopping and heavy snow See in context

The presenters are good though

They are all doing a great job. Hashimoto-san is my favorite.

Best lyric goes to K-pop group Le Sserafim

Good dancers but they dress like hookers.

-12 ( +2 / -14 )

Posted in: Ex-Olympus CEO gets suspended sentence on drug charge See in context

I found a great way to manage work-related fatigue -- it's called sleep.

4 ( +8 / -4 )

Posted in: Ex-Olympus CEO gets suspended sentence on drug charge See in context

He said he was working 16-18 hours a day, but he still had time to buy drugs!

-8 ( +1 / -9 )

Posted in: Tokyo Cancel Christmas protest march cancelled by Revolutionary Alliance of Unpopular Men See in context

Four Strong Zeros (4.5 units per can) guarantees temporary oblivion. But your life will still be as miserable when you wake up with a headache the next day.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

Posted in: Suspect arrested in teen stabbings at McDonald's in Kitakyushu sent to prosecutors See in context

It's great that Japan still has the death penalty.

-5 ( +5 / -10 )

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