societymike comments

when you have big fat China next door claiming that Okinawa was really China

jackieng: HUUUH!!??

I believe he is referring to China's claim to the disputed island near Taiwan which is part of the Ryukyu island chain, but they are trying to claim it as part of Taiwan because of it's close proximity, however, it's part of the Ryukyu chain, which is Okinawa.

realmindSep. 01, 2011 - 09:10AM JST most of these restaurants make cheap frozen foods processed in China.

No, they don't. There was a show on about a year ago showing the proccess from farm to table for a few places, like CoCo's, Gusto, Saizeriya, etc. It's all from within Japan, but most is put together at a central facility, then frozen, then shipped.

Maehara would have been better.

sooo... they only travel with ONE qualified driver onboard per train? Anyone else see an issue here?

Besides that, he did the right thing IMO.

Such a tragedy. So sad. My condolences to all those involved.

replace his air time with shows hosted with any of the guys from that "007" TV show (mondays at 10pm) and I'll be happy.

yes, 20 people is good enough. The idea is to minimize risk by not throwing in 100+ people that end of just getting in the way, instead, a specialized trained team does the work with minimal people, it's pretty much the identical plan for other countries too. Also, 5 months is about right, they have to be sure everything is under control and stable, plus they have been researching on exactly what areas are contaminated. There are litteraly sections that are perfectly clear right next to areas that are contaminated.

Also, yes, you could technically grow crops again once the top soil is removed. It's been done in many other places around the world, even in Hiroshima where a thriving city exists and that was thousands of times worse than the actual minute amount of contamination that got out from the reactors in Fukushima.

Actually, other english articles in the US said his blood was clean, but he had 7hrs of sleep COMBINED over two days. (not 7hrs straight that night)

The C5 has more useable cargo space from forward to aft, but the AN is a bit wider left/right in the cargo area. Sitting next to each other, they look identical with the AN having slightly wider wingspan. Also, the reported max weight of the AN is the most it can ever carry and it's arguably not safe if it does. The C5 can carry a little more weight under a waiver safely.

We already received one of the pump trucks and this one should be here later tonight.

The government won’t permit supply of emergency items to stranded communities using air drops. (Such drops are in fact being conducted.)

This one was a misunderstanding from the term "air drop". Air drops in military terms, usually refers to the parachuting of cargo from a flying aircraft to the ground. This is in fact, not allowed in civilian areas in Japan as it is somewhat dangerous. However, they are taking supplies by helicopter and aircraft to areas but they have to land first and this is what they are calling "air drops".

Would be a perfect time for Disney to take the lead on alternative energy for their theme park. Incorporate solar and wind (and maybe wave) energy into their grid at the park. This would encourage many other companies to do the same, namely the Government for things like expressway and street lighting, etc.

Utrack at 11:23 PM JST - 3rd April I am Done In.... How is it Possible for a multi Billion Dollar Company to run out of full radiation suits

Lack of available info. to those who don't NEED to know has resulted in comments like yours. In reality, TEPCO actually had more than enough suits available. However, some were stored in a facility close to the reactor site so they didn't bother trying to retreive them as they are working from a remote facility and won't waste time trying to decontaminate the suits (if they are even comtaminated). There were also suits stored in a couple buildings near the reactor but those buildings (which were built higher than 10m) were actually destroyed by the tsunami. Within a couple days, TEPCO had tons of new suits available on site as the US sent a whole plane load of suits and other needed gear to the area.

Downloaded and watched this and I think it will be one of the best movies of 2011 for sure. I loved it, will watch again.

elbudamexicano at 05:19 PM JST - 5th January Yes, it was Joyful Honda, these idiots should be sued! If a nutcase comes into a store to buy a KNIFE and starts yelling at the register to OPEN! OPEN the KNIFE, I think Joyful Honda is guilty for selling this WEAPON to a nutcase.

You can't be serious? If so, you seem no smarter than the stabber.

All these Japanese keitai games are absolute trash, nothing amazing, graphics are from the 90's, and none of it is "forward thinking", especially when you compare it to just about ANY game available on the Android Market or iphones iTunes market.

smithinjapan at 11:43 AM JST - 15th December They had a report on this some time ago, and it was featured on a variety show, when half of the 'tarento' admitted to having minor surgery (eyes, nose, etc.), and for which everyone was shocked. Wish I could remember what show it was.

There was also a Korean show last year that had Kara and a couple other K-pop groups on and it was a game like "guess what parts were changed". Every single girl had something facial done, most had atleast eyes and nose.

jason6 at 03:49 PM JST - 4th December marrying by phone?? how do you do that?

It's actually more complicated. Lot's of paperwork, including a "power of attorney" and a witness on each side. There are agencies that deal specifically with this proccess. IIRC, she doesn't have family in Japan much anymore and felt it better to stay with his family for support. Her case was big news at first when they were trying to get married because of the law. It's very sad and somewhat ironic that now after all that, he has been killed.

What a GREAT concept/idea with the girls in suits... my gawd...

Maybe he is just testing Honda's new proto-type invisible F-1 car.

^^ I live close to the base and happen to know someone who knows a few of the kids involved. He said they were "screwing with the bosozoku" when it happened. I know.. here-say, but, it is what it is.

Not that it matters for the ruling, but the scooter rider was a part of a large group of noisy bosozoku riders that were going up and down the street that day/night. Most likely none of them were wearing helmets. Again, this doesn't matter and this kid got what he had coming to him for being an idiot.

For those condeming the parents, yes, it is partly their fault, but as a parent, you can not watch your kids actions (especially teenagers) 24/7.

I for one love me some high ball, and making it available in a can is just awesome.

I have a Sony digital picture frame made with "Swarovski elements". It's a joke, just some plastic looking shiney "bejewels" glued on.

tomatoflight at 12:26 PM JST - 31st October How come this kind of stuff doesn't exist in the states?

It does!! In New York City, there is a huge move to grow on roof tops and inside buildings. There are a few chains of gourmet and casual resturaunts there that do the same thing, grow and harvest most of the food in their building and prepare it for customers.

dang, mom and daughter can go shopping together and probably fit into the same size clothes and be "best friends forever"

@elbudamexicano

Koreans, but they seem to have better internet connections than Japan

Not true. Korea only has "more average coverage" per capita of broadband and fiber connections, mostly because of so many living in "mansion" style towers where the entire building is wired up. (and a big government push) However, their fiber speeds are nearly half as capable in speed, bandwidth is slightly less, but most importantly, the stability of the broadband in Korea is severely lacking. Japan's fiber network is super stable and consistent. Interestly however, most Korean ISP's are using fiber and equipment made by NTT Japan.

First, send in AKB48 to hold a 10hr telethon/dance-off/karaoke special to raise awareness. Then send in a bunch of talents and actors to sample dishes and food made in the area. Next, send 4 comedians in to live on the islands "survivor" style requiring them to live off the land, but are allowed microwaves and lighters. Finally, send Exile and SMAP to host a live concert and write songs about the beautiful islands. This will surely win the hearts and minds of the people and make everyone finally believe the islands truly belong to the people of Japan.

jeez.. i've been here too long

To all the fellow passengers on our flight back to Tokyo Saturday... "SORRY!!" but for how much it sucked for you, it sucked for us 100x more!

(our 10 month old twins screamed non-stop for the last 3hrs of the flight, it was the single worst experience we've ever had)

My initial impression was "there goes a combined IQ of 80".

Papigiulio at 12:11 PM JST - 24th September Im suprised noone mentioned Lost In Translation.

Agreed, there are so many little subtlties in the movie that give a hint to what life here is like.

A friend who lived here for 10+yrs told me before I moved here, [i]"They are either totally into something, or not at all interested. There is no in-between."[/i] Now after 11yrs, that statement was the most accurate thing I've heard.