SaikoPhysco comments

Even 10% will not be enough. Japan will still not balance its National Budget and it will continue deficit spending. Not that they want to, but Japan's infrastructure costs a lot to maintain along with healthcare. The idiot running the USA is increasing Deficit Spending despite a very strong economy. No one seems to care about increasing government debt anymore. That said, it will all come crashing down at some point... but my guess is it could take another 20 to 30 years before that actually happens.

Me.... I'd rather be a Foreigner in Japan than have to abide by all the Cultural Norms the Japanese have to put up with. You ever wonder why so many Japanese are shut in's? Because Japanese Society and Culture is hard!

@GoodLuckToYou.... you're probably right about the overall design of the plane's skin and such, but the internal electronics is always something other countries enjoy acquiring.

Regarding the Trains.... a friend of mine who had been in Japan for about 2 years. He said, nobody sits next to me and I said "because you're doing it all wrong". As he sat there with his legs wider at the knee than at the hip... I said "you need to take the width out of your sitting posture. I'm on the fatter side... but people sit next to me right away all the time. Why? Because I make myself as small as possible, which is what a lot of Japanese people do themselves. It is only the bums that sit there with a wide posture. So if you think they're getting up because you're a foreigner.... you're probably wrong. It is because you do not give them space like others do.

Overall there is very little outward discrimination in Japan... at least that I've seen in the Tokyo area. Every once in awhile I do get some idiot make some remark while I'm out walking but that is like once a year and I chalk it up to his ignorance more than anything else. More than discrimination what bothers me are all the petty rules and regulations that stifle any sort of business growth.

A true "Stealth" Fighter Jet.... you can't even find it.

Typical Japan..... just watch Japanese TV, they constantly tout things Japan. I think Japanese TV gives many Japanese a false sense of superiority.

Number of workers dropping, wages dropping but One thing is going up and it will never be paid back. Japan's National Debt. It now sits at $12 Trillion. Or about $90,000 debt for every man, woman, and child in Japan. Japan miracle.... they've written bad checks for the last 30 years to keep this economy running. But you don't see that on the news.

Maximum payload weight.... 45 lbs. These guys are about 10 years and a whole lot of funding behind private U.S. companies.

The picture does make sense. Ultimately light will not even have the ability to escape a Black Hole's gravity. So what we might be seeing is light escaping from objects that have not yet impacted the black hole itself. Therefore light around a black center.

Wow..... Japan Incorporated at its ugliest.

My peeve with Japanese drivers..... just stopping on actual busy roads to read a map or answer a phone. Pull off the road! Pull into a parking lot but don't just clog up traffic. I've seen some very dangerous situations when they do it on a road with a bend. You're driving around a corner and all of a sudden some idiot just parked there reading a map or something. With narrow two way roads there is very little room to react. I almost got killed once because of just that. Fix that Please!!!

For the most part I only need a keitai now..... I use my Suica off of that and I keep a picture of my Gaijin card on it.

Ohhhh.... I so want to become a Police Officer now that their uniforms are so cute!!!

And you wonder why so many women remain unmarried.

This is what Governments do when the might have something to hide themselves.

Just close 50% of the stores after 10PM and reopen them at 6AM. That would be a 16.6% reduction in labor.

I've rarely ever heard of pick-pocketing being rampant anywhere in Japan. Where are these thief's coming from.

Ghosn wasn't going anywhere and he was a threat to no one.... or was he? The plot thickens.

"Call me what you like, just don't call me late for dinner." Also, its not like there are large families with recognizable surnames that much anymore. People have left the inaka in droves.... so what is the use of using one's family name first.... know one knows anything about these families. And its not like reversing the trend will lead to a reverse of individualism in Japan.

If you asked me, more than even sickness, these excessive hours affect families in a negative way. Far too often kids barely interact with their fathers. The burden of bringing up children relies solely on the mother. Young boys who need a father figure have basically none with the exception of a few hours once a week.... if they're lucky. It would be great if dad could get home from work at 6PM and spend some time with the kids and maybe take a little pressure off of mom. And cut down on the tenkin, where dad leaves the family for a year or two while mom stays behind with the kids. Far too much of that crap too.

I know what the Era will be named but I have promised I will keep it secret until 11:30AM. After that all bets are off.

They should have cut the landlord in on a piece of the scam.... amateurs.

They can end it.... but it will not be easy. Japan, probably more than any other country worldwide, throws more layers of plastic packaging and more individual packs for food items than I've ever seen. Per capita, I've got to believe that the Japanese use more disposable plastic than any other country in the world. And it has probably gotten much worse in the last 20 years, when you consider the number of single individuals that buy individual food portions that are all wrapped in plastic.

Good! Arrogant and sexist institutions.... how dare they decide the paths of others. And think about this. The percentage of women staying single in Japan is quite high, so were they really protecting the profession from a high early retire rate or just being sexist.

When you consider Ichiro's overall stats.... you could easily put him in the top 10 players ever. If I were to have my choice of picking the best players throughout history, Ichiro would be my lead off hitter without doubt. One of the best outfield defensive players ever and a rifle for an arm and could steal bases. Ichiro is a member of the to 10.

What a joke..... at what point do the point the finger at themselves for not kicking her out of Japan.

World Cup Soccer and the Olympics.... seems like it might be pretty dirty business at the top levels.

Probably some real stupid flunky bosozoku / Yakuza wannabees that were just too wild and brain dead to make the cut. I'll bet the people that know these two were probably worried they'd do something stupid.

A lot of good stories to tell in Japan.... but Japanese Directors don't seem to want to add real meaningful emotion to them. Just a bunch of muted drama.