Soohwan Trass comments

Posted in: Bach urges Japanese to support Olympics See in context

I appeal to the Japanese people to welcome these athletes here for the competition

I don't think it's athletes that people are complaining about.... They'll be supported. It's the committees and organizers that people are protesting against.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Tokyo begins quiet weekend, but some go about as usual See in context

Quiet in Tokyo would still be crowded in most parts of the world...

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Posted in: What’s behind Japan’s surprisingly low coronavirus numbers? See in context

I don't doubt the Japanese culture and the way of life here has been a factor.

I feel safer in this country where I can trust people to sit tight and wait out a lockdown (if it happens).

I have a lot of faith in the people of Japan.

It's the government and their handling of Olympics that has been frustrating. And I hope it doesn't cost more lives.

-4 ( +3 / -7 )

Posted in: Japan, spared mass outbreak so far, now sees national crisis after Tokyo surge See in context

The Tokyo government knows what it's doing. Everyone will still go outside this weekend.

Then on Monday Koike will claim not enough people followed her suggestion and will announce a lockdown of Tokyo due to the people's lack of restraint. This is the Tokyo's government plan to avoid getting blamed for the late decision to delay the Olympics.

4 ( +7 / -3 )

Posted in: What’s behind Japan’s surprisingly low coronavirus numbers? See in context

Stop giving people a false sense of security. The naivety is going to make things worse.

It's not a mystery that every single day since the Olympics were postponed, the situation has been getting worse daily.

The task force set up by Abe, is right now planning for a lockdown. And it's going to happen sooner than you think. They've had this timeline of reacting to the virus planned out a long time ago but had to make sure the Olympics could be postponed as late as possible to avoid any backlash for the delay.

Everything will happen quickly to limit the impact of COVID-19 on Japan, but not too quickly so that the government can avoid blame for acting too slow because of the Olympics.

The local governments of the Kanto area have asked for restraint weekend. Thanks to articles like this, many people will still go outside. This will allow the government to lockdown Tokyo and blame it on everyone's lack of restraint, rather than the government's attempt to save the Olympics.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

Posted in: 'Game of Thrones' to end after season 8, but 7th still ahead See in context

Funny how the people commenting without having seen it think it's being cancelled and taken off air. The story is coming to an end - as it's based on a series of novels. It's a brilliant show and totally raises the bar for television in general. I'm definitely expecting to see a spin-off series based on another time/place in the world of GoT.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Student shuts down 444 school websites to 'remind teachers they are incompetent' See in context

The kid will get hired by a network security company asap. The kid will be fine. Society will be fine.

Don't blame kids for the "direction" you think society is going. Blame the people guiding them.

It's never the fault of the future generation. It's the current generation of parents and teachers who are responsible for future of our society.

And if you're so worried about where society is headed, then do something about it.

3 ( +9 / -6 )

Posted in: LDP to tackle 'taboo' of expanding foreign labor force See in context

One simple solution is for the government to heavily subsidize English education in Japan. This may be in the form of tax breaks for private Eiken companies or cash injections for BOE's.

Native English speakers come from the desirable countries mentioned above. E.g north western Europeans, Americans, Australians, Canadians, and New Zealanders. These immigrants usually come as young graduates filled with enthusiasm, energy and, to be honest, a lot of naivety.

Provide long term contracts that have yearly salary increases and that have bonuses for completion and resigning.

The positives include, more higher paid workers who can be taxed sufficiently. They're not taking jobs from Japanese nationals... Trust me, they're not. English communication will improve across the nation and the Japanese economy will improve.

One other possibility, is injecting cash only to BOE's in prefectures that are becoming ghost towns. Towns where the average age is 50+ can instead have an influx of well paid English teachers who will spend their money at local businesses. Yes, these towns have an insular elderly population. But once they know of the benefits. Small businesses owned by elderly couples will jump at the opportunity.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Posted in: LDP to tackle 'taboo' of expanding foreign labor force See in context

Living in Japan may be a step up for South Americans, other Asians, Africans and the like, but for north western Europeans, Americans, Australians, Canadians, and New Zealanders, living in Japan is - while albeit interesting for a short period of time - most definitely a major step down.

100% true. Had they made policy changes 10-15 years ago, Japan would have been able to attract highly skilled workers from said countries. But with taxes going up and economy going down. Skilled workers will look to go elsewhere. Other countries in Asia pay 1.5 to double the salary that Japanese businessmen make. Very soon Japanese people will have to make the decision between staying and helping Japan or moving overseas to the benefit of their families and their children's future. So we may well lose highly skilled Japanese workers as well as immigrants.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

Posted in: LDP to tackle 'taboo' of expanding foreign labor force See in context

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to focus on drawing more women... into the workforce to fill the gaps, and has made raising Japan’s rock-bottom birthrate a priority

Sorry ladies in Japan, Abe the economic saviour expects you to do both.

shonanbbMAR. 06, 2016 - 11:11AM JST Robotics is the answer and cure for all the ills here. This country is brilliant at robotics. Top in the world.

The problem isn't a lack of workers. It's a lack of people earning an income so they can send a chunk of it to the government to help pay for pensions and elderly care. Unless you think we can make robots pay tax and help stimulate the economy by buying their own equipment and paying for their own maintenance then you'll destroy the economic cycle.

Remember what you learnt at school? Company A pays worker A who spends money at company B, who pays worker B who spends money at company A. Replace workers with robots and you destroy the cycle. Beneficial for major corporations in the short term but companies will gradually fall apart and the world suffers for it in the long term.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: New Zealanders choose silver fern design as possible new flag See in context

Drawing the current flag at primary school wasn't a joy either so kiwi kids are used to spending time on their flag drawings - Japanese kids have it so much easier lol

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan needs immigrants to boost population: minister See in context

Finally, a minister making sense. The longer you avoid immigration the harder it will become to attract skilled workers from overseas. People talking about technology and innovation, can technology pay your taxes when the workforce shrinks? As someone who majored in geography and understands demographics. No one ever looks at the size of a population. The key is balance. To maintain balance in Japan through increasing the birth rate will take at least 2 decades, as mentioned by the minister. Right now, the last of the baby boomers are in their 60's and on the verge of retirement. If you think the number of retired people is big right now, there's about the be a huge surge of more economically dependant people needing their pension and help from those who have to pay tax. At that moment, good luck attracting immigrants. They'll all prefer to go to China, Korea or anywhere else. At the same time, you'll have skilled Japanese graduates going overseas to also avoid the tax burden and create a better life for their future families. I worked at one of the best high schools in Japan and all ambitious kids want go study and work overseas. There is no more time to waste. You have about 5-10 years. You'll have a record number of retirements in that time. No one is talking about mass immigration, but you need skilled workers to help with tax burden. You can work on the birth rate at the same time. I first studied this topic 11 years ago at high school and nothing has been done about it. This problem has been around and predicted for decades, it's time to fix it before it's too late. I hope Japan has more ministers like this guy.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

Posted in: Gov't targets boosting birth rate to increase economic growth See in context

Everyone focussing on immigration is correct. Those wanting to make pregnancy-related healthcare free aren't thinking about what that actually means. Who pays for this cheaper healthcare and education? The taxpayer, or more accurately the workforce. A workforce, that is getting smaller by the year. So your solution is to increase the tax burden on a decreasing workforce. Kids born this year will be the same economic burden as those who are retiring this year. The current raising of taxes is just the tip of the iceberg, it's about to become a real nightmare. Not only will the population decrease because of birthrate, but Japanese people/families will have to leave. Either taxes will skyrocket and/or the ederly will be left without pensions, healthcare/education won't be affordable and crime will increase dramatically as people/families become more desperate. You think you'll get any immigrants at that time? You're more likely to get an apocalyptic wasteland with abandoned cities. The ONLY solution right now is immigration, and it has to be NOW. As mentioned in the comments above, this problem isn't a few years old, anyone studying geography at even a high school level has known about this for around 2 decades. I learnt this 12 years ago at high school (geography is now my major). If any Japanese government during that time was smart, there would've have been a healthy influx of highly skilled immigrants looking for a better lifestyle. Now, the situation is a lot more dire. Japan needs any immigration to increase it's workforce and help carry the impedending tax burden. Only after that happens can you even start to plan raising the birth rate. The most important point when looking at demographics, like anything in life, is balance. You must have a balance between workforce and economically dependant. Right now, Japan's workforce is too small. Raising birth rate now will increase the number of economically dependant dramatically for at least the next two decades... Which is a disaster. Yes, immigration can bring its own problems. Had the government encouraged highly skilled workers and high income families everything would've been fine. Now you need any immigrant you can get. You can always tighten immigration policy when you have enough. But for now, you need immigrants. Forget birth rate right now. Don't make a situation worse with a solution that might sound right. It will create a living hell for everyone in Japan.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Posted in: Macho man idol group makes their debut in Shibuya See in context

Shows that Japanese music is all about seeing rather than listening. But hey, it's entertainment and producers only make what the customers want.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

Posted in: Japan rebuffs outcry over new history textbooks See in context

Isn't the the Nanjing confusion because of this... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanking_Incident and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanking_Massacre

They're two separate events

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

Posted in: Japanese journalist indicted in S Korea for defaming president See in context

Japan are ranked 59th on the 2014 Press Freedom Index, 2 places below S. Korea. So criticize S. Korea all you want, but Japan is just as bad.

-5 ( +6 / -11 )

Posted in: Japan sends Hello Kitty into space See in context

I agree with @gogogo

This "government-funded mission" is a waste of money... There must be better ways to use it...

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Lowest number of elementary and junior high school students ever as birthrate continue to decline See in context

Everyone is focussing on the wrong there here. Increasing the birth rate suddenly is not a good idea. You will just increase the number of economically dependent in Japan. That means taxpayer money going into healthcare for both children and the retired. This only increases the burden for those of working age for at least 15-20 years.

The main focus right now must be to encourage skilled foreign workers to come to Japan. How many foreigners will come when the tax sky rockets and there are many more appealing options around Asia and the world. Japanese people are very loyal to their country and won't leave to find better places to live. But how many parents would want their children to grow up in increasingly difficult economic situations. If not now, but in the near future young Japanese students will encouraged to find a better life overseas. These factors will increase the burden dramatically.

Unfortunately, the Japanese government doesn't want to upset their 'older' voters, who are the majority. Therefore, most of the government policies we see are short-term solutions which cater for the population that votes. You could say the younger generations should vote more, but they are both outnumbered and uninformed when it comes to politics in Japan.

When there is an imbalance to the population structure of a country, always look at the working age first. They're the ones that need to make money to help support those who are unable to work. Create a balance from that, and the country will become a more wonderful place to work, live, raise children and retire.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

Posted in: Soccer fans knock back coffee, energy drinks after snore draw See in context

Haha Japanese people aren't good at the early wake ups huh? Coming from NZ, every major football match meant waking up early (also All Blacks playing in South Africa/Europe) I've gone to high school and university without sleeping just to watch football or rugby. I now work 9 hours a day but for the past two weeks I've been waking up at 4 or earlier EVERY day to watch the world cup and my country isn't even there! I haven't really needed energy drinks/coffee either.

And I'm disappointed that fans will not watch because they believe Japan will lose. If you're a true fan, you'll watch them no matter what. Too many bandwagon fans in Japan, only support your teams when they're winning... plus Colombia are exciting to watch, so it'll be good either way!

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Posted in: Parents in Russia request ban on 'Death Note' See in context

A) it's a story. B) teach your kids how to absorb information C) look at the way you treated your kid before blaming everyone else

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Posted in: New Zealand votes to legalise same-sex marriage See in context

I recommend watching this - from the New Zealand Herald. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCDEiaoEP2U

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: New Zealand votes to legalise same-sex marriage See in context

@BurakuminDes 1893 - New Zealand - With the extension of voting rights to women in 1893, the self-governing British colony became first permanently-constituted jurisdiction in the world to grant universal adult suffrage. Suffrage previously having been universal for Māori men over 21 from 1867, and for European males from 1879.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: All Black Carter denies Japan deal See in context

Even if he came, Japanese people unfortunately wouldn't care. Same as when SBW came over. Both these players are like the Cristiano Ronaldo's/Messi's of the rugby world and the average Japanese person - and other non-rugby fans - wouldn't recognize them despite their unbelievable talent and skills.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Corporate giants ready to back Tokyo Olympic bid; public support up to 70% See in context

I guess spending money on the Olympics is more important than helping out the Tohoku area. Shows where their interests lie: Money. There are many more important things in Japan to spend money on, rather than a sports event which would only temporarily boost the economy.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Posted in: Girls, girls, girls See in context

The cars must be pretty bad...

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Posted in: NHK suspends announcer for 3 months over groping incident See in context

Suspension? More like a 3 month holiday....

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Japanese high school pitcher Otani opts for MLB See in context

Sorta sounds like the story from the anime, Major.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Recent Comments

Popular

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites


©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.