SwissToni comments

coffee and shoe-cream

Try not to disrespect the delicacy, it’s choux…Choux Cream. Shoe cream is a whole other, deeply unpalatable product.

Perhaps Sobata resigned to take responsibility for his staff members comments unscripted comments. If so, a rare and commendable action.

owzerSep. 26  08:23 am JST

Motive? Wanting to have fun. It’s a prank.

Dont like pranks, someone is always made to look stupid. In this case it was the kids, so all’s well that ends well.

I’m glad he’s managed to clear his name. As happy as I’m sure he is, I imagine his family is quite relieved too. A murder conviction can ruin a family name for a long while.

It’s going to be impossible reparate this man’s lost years and torture.

It’s not like the peaches imported into the UK are desperately poor. Paying 80 sovs for 3 peaches shows there’s still more money than sense in the UK.

A case of style over substance in my opinion. The building would be no less attractive if the power to the glass was cut full time. Might save a bob or two as well.

Sven AsaiToday  09:25 am JST

completely useless waste of money and resources, better had used it all here on earth for the people in need

Really?! Just a very few of the benefits of space science:

Improved communications.

Improved meteorology.

Improved agriculture and crop yields.

Better electronics.

Better healthcare.

And then there’s the plethora of products derived from space tech that have created benefits for people, jobs and wealth.

I know you’re just stirring, but some people actually do reject science as a waste of time and money. The last 500 years has delivered untold benefits to humanity. Stop it.

Hawk: I'd even go so far as to say that only allowing Muslims to use them would be discrimination on the grounds of religion and therefore a violation of human rights.

Im not a lawyer but I have employed many people over the years. Religion, gender, sexuality, disability etc are protected characteristics, there’s generally a level of allowance for exclusivity in the rules to accommodate them.

Don't see what harm a private prayer space causes. Would be even less upset if the spaces were multi denominational though.

USNinJapan2 good link, the video is very clear. The much smaller car travelling against the oncoming traffic pretty much bounced off the bus. The report says no child seats in use at all.

Still have sympathy for the woman’s loss but she demonstrated a lot less than her best for her kids.

Sweet and savoury I get. But sweet and fish…nah, doesn’t appeal. Japan, you’ve gone too far this time.

Antiquesaving: your experiences have clearly left their mark on you, and your position is understandable but a perfect world is unrealistic. Most people do the very best they can with the resources available to them. Most people also make mistakes. Whatever error or omission the mother of the two children has made, if any, she will now bear the consequences for the rest of her life. It’s a tragic story.

When I finished college in the UK there was 15% youth unemployment. It was a worrying time until I got my first start. It takes a while to overcome massive debt, falling production and a collapse in construction. I hope those kids can get past it.

Antiquesaving: This may be true but that is why children need to not be in just the car's with just the seatbelt.

If they are in appropriate child seats that are correctly installed then the danger is greatly reduced.

I agree and what you say is particularly true for rearward facing baby seats. However there are limits to what can be accomplished with padding, shells, load bearing straps and more lately even airbags. I’m sure it’s not beyond engineering to design products that will provide near 100% protection but we live in the real world where affordability is also a factor. Even when getting everything right, no ones safety can be guaranteed. It’s a tragedy when the compromises we make impact kids the most. Irrespective of who’s to blame for the collision, my thoughts are with the parents.

The car is a good monocoque design, with little body deformation it clearly has done its job well. One of the disadvantages of smaller cars in a head on collision is the rate of deceleration. Kids aren’t as robust as adults and even strapped in are particularly vulnerable to sudden stops. A smaller vehicle colliding with a larger one will bear the brunt of the stopping forces due to the larger vehicles extra mass. And if there’s any level of speed involved the forces are greatly magnified. K cars are absolutely built to exacting standards but you can’t overcome physics. It’s a tragedy, the only way to avoid this situation is drive well and stay in the correct lane.

It’s likely we all agree it’s immoral to take the life of another human being, worse if that life is taken in cold blood. Why do we think it’s acceptable for the state to exact revenge in this way? And in my opinion the way Japan does it on the short notice whim of the justice minister is inhumane.

Given the number of errors and miscarriages of justice, it’s a mistake to give the government the authority to end life purely as an act of revenge.

The death sentence is an unlikely deterrent given that most killings are unplanned. Even those that are planned are often committed by people who have lost their grip on reality.

In states with a decent justice system, the death penalty doesn’t save money. Murder cases are never straightforward. They take a huge amount of resources with pre trial investigations, the trial itself, multiple appeals, death row facilities etc.

The point of a criminal justice system is to protect the public by stopping further offending and punishing the perpetrators. Putting people to death might feed a base desire for revenge but it can’t bring the victim back or take away the families grief. The deliberate taking of human life degrades us all, allowing the state to do it for us abrogates our collective responsibility to that life. Punishment yes, state sponsored killing, no thanks.

Very few are going abroad for ¥60,000. How does the (today, not so) weak yen reduce budgets?

And you complained about raising the temperature? According to Godwin's Law you already lost the argument by pretending sexual assault is not something worth arresting the criminal because it is the same as genocide.

Bingo! Let’s not forget, the potential charge is indecent assault, not sexual assault. A much more serious charge indeed, raised by you and one of the exaggerations I’m calling you out on. Was my example too subtle?

To show a kiss on the cheek is indecent assault a sexual intent has to be demonstrated. Otherwise, one kiss on the cheek is inappropriate, more than one is harassment. From the information we have, the police will find it hard to get evidence of sexual intent.

if your point is about an arrest having too big consequences, then argue about that, not about ignoring the victim and reducing her value as a person to "solve" the problem.

It’s pretty clear, I’ve made that core to my position amongst all the exaggeration, fake outrage, accusations of misogyny, lack of empathy and of ignoring the girl.

So you think more drunk old men would think they can get away kissing girls against their will when they read about the arrest than if they did not read anything at all?

> that makes no sense.

No it doesn’t, you’ll have to stop putting words in my mouth. I’m referring to the potential for further crime by anyone laid destitute by arrest and detention for the length of time allowed in Japan. Creating criminals is not in the public interest.

girl_in_tokyoToday  07:55 pm JST

Nobody? Look back at the comments. More than one person has suggested the girl has accountability.

Just did, can’t find one.

Kazuaki ShimazakiToday  06:33 pm JST: Well said!

virusrex

virusrex, piling it on doesn’t make the man’s offence any more serious.

Which is not the intention, he committed a crime, so he has to assume the consequences.

Except that you raise the temperature of your rhetoric and devalue your argument. In Nazi Germany it was against the law to be Jewish. Do you think it was reasonable for the consequences to be a can of Zyklon B?

My Issue isn’t that the man should avoid the consequences, it’s that whether charged or not the man will suffer unreasonable consequences. All the people involved are human beings, no amount of projection changes that. Justice is demonstrated by stopping further offending and having the punishment fit the offence.

Allegations of encouraging profit over punishment, or choosing the criminal over the victim are crass. There’s no public good to come from ruining a man’s life for a kiss on the cheek. In fact I’d argue the potential for further offending.

girl-in-Tokyo, you’ve made your agenda clear, more than one repeat constitutes nagging. Nobody has said the girl is accountable at any level. The point you avoid is proportionality. The allegation is an unwanted kiss on the cheek. As unpleasant as I’m sure it was, if the girl is as level headed as most, I’m sure she’ll get over it in pretty short order. Even if the man is released without charge and the case doesn’t go to court, the perpetrators life is now likely wrecked.

virusrex, piling it on doesn’t make the man’s offence any more serious. Considering the harm done, I think Kazuaki Shimazaki’s suggestion of forcing the man to accept responsibility and make an act of contrition a very sensible one. Better the girl gets an apology and some damages than the courts.

girl-in-tokyo, if you’d said there’s no context in which a person may touch another without their consent, you might have made a better point. But you’ve made your agenda clear and diluted your argument.

The context under discussion is about the level of accountability the man should face, and this should be in proportion to the harm done. Even without court and a fine, the man could lose his job and make getting another very difficult. That’ll change the rest of his life. That isn’t a proportionate punishment.

virusrex, surprised at you. You generally post some very level headed arguments, but hyperbole? I think you can do better, the man has not been arrested for sexual abuse.

*girl-in-tokyo: There is no context where any man can kiss any woman who is a stranger to him on the cheek *nonconsensually.

Didnt say it was ok did I? I said, all things being equal, arrest for indecent assault was too much. The context I pointed out was about proportionality. It all depends upon the circumstances of which we’re all unaware. If the girl isn’t a child the man’s action, kissing her on the cheek, was definitely inappropriate but I’d argue not indecent.

Inappropriate behaviour for sure but arrest for indecent assault is an overreaction. Unless the girl was in her very early teens in which case the man might need to be on a watchlist. Context is everything.

Been through it all and shrugged it off mostly. The vast majority of microaggressions comes from mates in some wicked banter. But I give as good as I get.

There’s no place for gunplay in a democracy.

Time respect and civil discourse are reintroduced to our divided politics.

No, I generally punctuate and avoid abbreviations. Stabbing away with stubby fingers does lead to some interesting spelling though.

Now that’s an idea we can all get on board with.

NB; except that the south obviously feels threatened, or they wouldn’t be seeking support in the form of collective defense. It’s the same as the DPRK has done with China and Russia. What you think about Japan eat al appears to be irrelevant, they’re going to do anyway.

Didn’t do that well did I? Anyway;

MB: Korea has never exerted any expansionism throughout its history.

Recorded history suggests otherwise. There isn’t a country or territory on the planet that hasn’t flirted with, and been the victim of empire at some point. The Three Kingdoms and the Empire of Korea’s is well documented.

Glad you acknowledge the threats from Russia and the PRC. Now ask yourself if the DPRK isn’t showing signs of totalitarianism and the desire to reclaim the south.