Roppichan comments

Probably there is a lot of information missing here. A bloke robs 5 people in one night and besides his part time job he is a truck driver. Lovely; probably the usual shabu head. But shabu is seldom mentioned, because we all know that Japan has no particular shabu problem.

Donald Richie, that great interlocutor of Japanese culture and elder statesman of the expat literary scene. This is so pathetic, it hurts. Yes we all know how pretty Tokyo is and that it is an outstanding " Megacity ". By the way; Mr. Richie is known for some things but where comes this older statesman from? But anyway I wish him luck and all the best. Hopefully he will reach the sales target of 750 books worldwide.

This is a great idea and I am behind this because I know that my tax is well used. Imagine; you could use the drones here in Japan to prevent crime. I see them flying already over Hanaten, Osaka to spy on those criminal kids who dare to sit outside the station in front of a 7/11. These young hopeless teenagers are proned to become misfits. The drone could check if they ride a bicycle with a mate on the back, even worse, they might drink alcohol and then ride. With the high resolution camera on board everything will be exposed. I even suggest machine guns loaded with rubber bullets to get rid of those homeless bastards who live unrightfully on the streets. What did I say ? Rubber bullets ? Live ammo, that´s the solution of the not existing problem. The next step of course must be that private organizations and companies can purchase such drones. How beautiful, flying over Matsushita Kodama, having the software of the already existing RF chips in the employees company tags, could be shot while having a cigarette outside the warehouse. I know what you all think of me, but believe me or not, I know for sure that there are some people who really light up one WITHOUT HAVING THE PERMISSION.

Yumimotosan - you are right mate.

jinjapan - right you are mate, but then it will be another fish and then another .... I am a bit surprised about the japs this time. They lose the old market spirit. Bluefin is going down worldwide and they know it; so here is the chance. Make it 10 times more expensive and make silly money while the Bluefin will recover. This they would have done a 100 years ago. But good old Japan is not anymore, they lost it. sharky1 .... I agree with you when it comes to fish farms (there are a few exceptions though = tiny 0.25 % market share of " ethic/bio " farms. But a Bluefin tuna you can not farm. I once caught a 10 kg (Southern Bluefin Tuna, small though but still legal) in NZ and it took me 2 hours by kayak to get it. The Southern is nothing compared to the Bluefin the jap market is used to, because it is much smaller. So whenever you eat some lovely sashimi, think about this beautiful strong fish and do it only on special occasions (not the thinking mate, the eating). If the japs would do this the same way (like they have done for many centuries) then there would be no trouble with the Bluefin stock/population/fishing rate. Peace

Solitary abolished? In Japanese prison only the gaijin and the so called "Hanjos" are getting solitary. It is a privilige! Beelzebub: What is an autopsy? What is an autopsy in Japan? What is an autopsy in a Japanese prison? Mate I am with you, but it is not so hard in a Japanese prison. I have done three years in Osaka and it was OK. It is not OK for sick/old/mental people, because they suffer. Same as in the jap society. No big difference between inside and outside. Inside the weakest commit suicide and inside the weakest suffers the most. Inside is a lot of cruelty commited by persons with power and inside there is no progress. What about outside? Enjoy life mates and do things different.

nemoflow-right you are. I am a bloody German and it makes me sad to see that they do a German version as well. But then again, everybody has a right to be stupid.

Some call 119 very often, others talk to their Mamasans, many live like zombies in their kaisha and so on. Lots of nutters around, like every other country. What makes me wonder is this : How come that Japan has so little mentaly ill people in its statistics ? So few facilities for people with special needs ? Go and check by yourself on the net. One reason could be that already many are straped down and get pumped up with pharmaceuticals in lots of " private institutes ". Just places where you can drop somebody for little money and get rid of her/him. Out of the streets, out of sight and more important out of the statistics. Prison in Japan is compared to those institutes a holiday spa.

Not only the US is paying attention. Here in Germany the media hype is quite amazing. But then again, nothing will change anyway.