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The ancient Chinese referred to people from Mongolia as barbarians, and the list goes on.

Among the sillily inaccurate ideas in this article, the authors show complete ignorance when they attribute the word barbarian to the Chinese.

According to Wikipedia,

The term originates from the Ancient Greek: βάρβαρος (barbaros; pl. βάρβαροι barbaroi). In Ancient Greece, the Greeks used the term not only for those who did not speak Greek and follow classical Greek customs, but also for Greek populations on the fringe of the Greek world with peculiar dialects.

The Japanese word 野蛮人 yabanjin is translated into English as savage, or barbarian, and at one time was another word used for 外人 gaijin. Almost every language has its own word for outsider or uncultured person, including the languages of various indigenous peoples of the African continent.

Mongoose busters. We could use some of them where we are to get rid of the stray cats. Interestingly, Amami rabbits are still killed by the infernal internal combustion engine cars running amok on Amami. It may be time to eradicate either the cars or their drivers now that the mongoose is gone.

see https:// www.env.go.jp /en/nature/nps/park /amami/effort. html for more information on mongoose control on Amami

1 rupee from each Pakistani, besting the Silver medalist from India, and a day before Pakistan's independence day, a great success story well befitting even an postage stamp commemorating his accomplishment. Next stop - a world record. Hurray!!!

I put my three children in the local school in Fukuoka when I was living there from 1994 to 1997 and we had both the city supplied and a private tutor coming in after school to help them with their Japanese homework. I think this is a great program and I was happy that it was happening. They still remember fondly their tutors.

Just as well as you aren't going to get an apology out of the US.

This is not so big news. After all, just this spring s US cabinet official visited Nagasaki for the first time. When I was working at the US Consulate in the early 2000s no US Ambassador had visited either the Nagasaki or the Hiroshima memorials, and Consulate officials did not visit in their official capacities, either. It was a big thing when the first US Ambassador visited either place, and it was not that long ago. So, the US makes a policy statement that not inviting Israel is a non-peace promoting position. It is not the end of the world. US Ambassadors will be back to Nagasaki in the future as long as they are invited.

In a sign of how errors played their part in the 2024 final, Oka's score in Paris would only have won bronze at the Covid-delayed Games three years ago.

Almost damnation by faint praise, this is an interesting fact that really could have been omited from this story. Perhaps, if the competition were better, or if the Tokyo games judges were there again, Oka would have performed or scored a bit higher, rising to the occassion. Congratulations on Oka's gold medal and his success in the 2024 Olympics.

One of the main complaints about foreign residents, other than crimes by US military residents, is their ignorance of garbage rules. Garbage separation rules are confusionly arcane and vary greatly by municipality; their vagery is likewise a complaint of many conscientious foreigners who try to separate garbage and live by the community rules. In my city, there are at least four different pamphlets, handouts, and signs at the collection sites, some in multiple languages, that have guidelines for garbage. Frustratingly, the instructions are incomplete or contradictory. Then there are the recycling instructions and collection sites that likewise have vague instructions for the occassional items that are not simply paper, plastic, or pet bottles. When in doubt, it pays to ask.

This attitude and mind-set is not only alarming for foreign visitors, but for some Japanese business owners/operators as well. Suggesting that a dual system is needed can add to the feelings of Japanese businesses that they cannot serve foreigners. I can recall a few times when Japanese lodgings were reluctant to allow me to stay because "what would happen if there is a fire in the middle of the night, how would you get out?" or "we don't have western toilets" or "we only have tatami rooms" or any of a dozen other worries. While I usually think that these are excuses not to allow foreigners to stay, at least some of the foreign-allergy of these businesses comes from the idea that it costs more to host foreigners, or that English-speaking staff is necessary. This anti-foreigner hysteria is less than it was thirty years ago, but is still found in parts of the tourism industry.

What do Japanese women say about the issues? I would much rather read women's opinions than those of men on this issue. With upwards of 1/3 of Japanese women saying they do not see a reason to get married and have children, rather than just suggesting that Japanese men "man up" and "get their acts together" it is thime for the government to get its act together and provide an enviromnment conducive to raising families. And to listen to the opinions of those who would be raising these children for the most part.

These sound like my kind of chips. They might keep others from munching without asking.

Hmm, he is about the same age as the two clowns vying to be the next POTUS. I hope they do not have cries to "lock him up" and instead get him some help. I should take my little chain saw and go help him if he really needs to cut down things.

I can see a market for using Soiuth Asian mothers' milk here if the regulations allowed it. Wonder how the people would see wet nurses here.

I love visiting Himeji castle and walking around the grounds both outside and within the keep. Its history is fascinating.

This is the second such trial balloon floated recently about charging external tourists more. I think the proposals should be framed differently and they might get better traction if actually implemented. Raise the standard admission rates instead to ¥4000 for all adults and offer discounts to those who have certain IDs, with the signs only in Japanese for the discounts. Discounts of 75 percent for those who pull out residence cards, for example, from Hyogo Prefecture. Discounts for seniors and students. Put the onus on those who want the discounts to provide their IDs rather than on those who "look foreign" and it will hide the two-tier system and not annoy those who are willing to pay the regular admission price. Any foreigners who want to argue that they should get the discounted price would be free to do so by pullint out their residence cards or senior citizen cards.

Insane. ¥4,000 entry fee for foreigners. How will they decide who is a foreigner? Most foreigners will stop visiting if there is a two-tier system. Visitors would have to prove their status every time. The local economy depends on the visitors to the castle.

What a lifesaver. I have taken statins for well over ten years. I started taking them for cholesterol control and once I changed my diet, my doctor suggested I keep taking them for their heart benefits. Now I have low cholesterol and am not worried about heart health, either. Thanks Dr. Endo. I hope I live as long as you did. Bon voyage.

So, if Japan reworks the Sado mine site to explain the involuntary importation of Korean workers and portray history of Japanese colonization of Korea in the 1800s, this might somehow qualify as a World Heritage Site, but why would it be so without a real discussion of the Korean workers?

The makeshift fence appears to be a temporary measure, as the pre-existing concrete half-wall dividing the pedestrian path and the motorway hasn’t stopped people from hopping over to the road. In July, however, officials will install a permanent fence measuring 1.8 metres tall, which will likely put a stop to the dangerous action. At least, let’s hope it does, before the government decides to go and build a colossal barrier around Mt Fuji itself. 

The 1.8 meter high fence is a far cry from the viewblocking black barrier. Why not make local revenue by fining illegal parking and jaywali/king? That would pay for at least part of an extended walkway so pedestrians are lnot running across the road.

How about society get with it and ditch the suits and ties?

The city hall I work at has announced cool biz wear suitable all year round as of April 1 this year. Polo shirts are acceptable dress for both men and women.

Regarding parasols, it is entirely appropriate for both men and women to wear hats, which are much more handy than parasols. If the parasol manufacturers would work for more stylish and lightweight hats, perhaps this would obviate their need to try and market parasols for men.

I think this survey is based on "strangers" rather than on foreigners, and the survey would show vastly different results if it was based on helping foreigners.

Japan as a country has really changed in the 50 years since I first visited. There was a sense of community that existed then that has largely fallen out of favor now, and the newer privacy laws and breakdown of this sence of community are evident in most metropolitian areas. The concepts of kankeinai or betsuni have replaced the sense of community and unity. Japanese are not really keen on helping other Japanese outside their circles unless the Japanese are working as police, at information desks, or in similar service positions.

While people often stop to help foreigners in Japan, the same courtesy is less often extended to other Japanese who are looking lost while walking around unfamiliar places. The good samaritian story fits perfectly in today's Japan.

Wish I could play the piano, this looks like a nice change of pace. I'd think about three days of playing would be just right.

we used to drink a small glass from one squeezed orange. now, the food industry has you drinking a giant glass with twice the calories and 3-4 oranges. would you sit and eat 3-4 oranges at a time?

buy an orange and a 99 yen orange juice thingie. stop being a glutton.

I live in Kagoshima and we have many different citrus fruits down here. I can easily eat three or four fruits at a time, albeit the sour ones not quite so many at once. I also make citrus marmalades and zqueeze my own juices. There are many citrus trees down here that are not harvested, or that the fruit just falls to the ground. It is too bad. Sometimes we can buy 10 fruits for 100 yen when in season, although they are more often 100 yen each. Still, the juice is fine freshly squeezed without the added sugar. JA should concentrate on distributing more of Japan's home-grown citrus products.

There is someone with blue hair, though, and no one with a long or high nose.

This is such a stupid poster because it is written especially, but not exclusively, for foreigners but the sentiment is cryptically vague for the same foreigners. The poster would be much better if it said, "Take off your backpacks and put them on the overhead racks as well as any small suitcases than can be lifted so that you aren't bumping others with your luggage." "Handle your luggage with others in mind" is so vague, but Japanese who see the poster and then see any foreigners who are not getting the vague point can assume that the foreigners just don't care, rather than don't understand Japanese expressions and sensitivities. Let's be kind to everyone, and make posters that have some meaning! (See the little red heart in the upper right of the poster, where the English is so small)

How about seeing which rikishi can charm the baby the best, or make him laugh first, or even put him to sleep. This just looks like plain cruelty.

Gov Kawakatsu is my kind of man. Make Japan Great Again! /s seriously, though, there are many civil servants who retire to lives of growing and selling produce. I did for ten years after I retired from central government work. Now, in my doddering age, I have come back to work for the city government for a few years. I still grow vegetables and work my field after work and on Saturday. It is a way to meet all the neighbors walking by and keep in touch with grass-routes opinions and goings on. Sorry for the common people of Shizuoka, though. I am sure the gov'nor is not the only person who feels like this.

As well as writing wills, we can dispense to our descendents while we are still living of any of our wealth that appears to be more than we need to be comfortable for the rest of our lives, including transferring real estate to a child who chooses to live with us to take care of us. Estate planning is not just for tax purposes, it helps us to keep our children and grandchildren from squabbling and breaking ties at our deaths. Family unity is the most important inheritance we can leave behind.

Interesting that this issue of Japan Today contains this Kinugawa Onsen article and the Naruko Onsen article, two diverse examples of Japanese onsen culture and the bubble economy.

Urban explorers should be aware it is illegal to enter any property including abandoned and derelict ones.

The temptation is so strong though to imagine what some of these places were like in their heyday. I have enterred abandoned buildings in both the United States and in Japan. One in the Aso area closed after the earthquake and subsequent mudslides. I enterred and reminisced on how nice it was when I stayed there when it was operating. Yes it is trespassing. And it is dangerous. So is caving or backcountry hiking and exploring - dangerous that is. It is a shame when some of these once interesting places close. One I went to in near Niseko still had hot water flowing in the yubune but I was afraid to try it out. When I went back a year later it had been bulldozed down and had a for sale sign on the vacant property. The old inn was so quaint ...

Again, where are the pictures, or at least a link to them??

Luckily, I have to manually search for them. Here it goes:

https://photo.tepco.co.jp/en/date/2024-e/202403-e/240318-01e.html

Thanks. This is a most useful link.

One of the most crucial issues facing labor and humanity, and he has long seen that productivity has been orthogonal to pay for nearly 40 years, with the lion's share of the gains going to investors and not labor.

Interesting use of the word orthogonal. I listened to CSPAN coverage of the hearings this morning and the discussions of productivity advances in industrial production and the arguments for four-day work weeks sound good in places where productivity is not dependant on manual labor. Restaurants and some service industries do not see the same increases in productivity as other areas, and these small businesses would be most impacted by shorter work weeks, as they would need to hire more workers to maintain their current workloads. I recommend the CSPAN podcasts for anyone interested in this discussion. It was a unusually useful and educational hearing.

Wonder how big a bundle 5 million pesos is. the largest common denomination is 1000 pesos so that is 5000 bills, or a hefty shoebox full. I remember having a shoebox of Ghanaian currency which I gave as a wedding gift when I was living in Ghana, USD 700. It was a heavy box. I can't imagine carrying USD 90,000 in cash. We had a fellow come into the city hall in Kanoya the other day and he had a pocketful of 10,000 yen bills, I think about 100 of them. It really worried us, so we gave him an envelope to put them inj so they weren't as obvious. Bank transfers are the way to go, even if the banks charge commissions.

Guess it is time to ski at Furano. I like Niseko in the summer better than in the winter, but it is a shame how built up ( except for properly planned infrastructure including transportation and water supplies) the area has become. 20 years ago was much more interesting.