Posted in: The price tags and perils of being a prostitute in Shinjuku See in context
It is insane that anyone is being arrested for being a "prostitute."
Sex work is not going to "go away." And more importantly, I would be my life that many of the so-called politicians in this country (and probably any country) have hired the services of a male or female sex worker.
By continuing to see it as "dirty work," by continuing to shame people for paying for it and shame people for offering it, laws should be set in motion, as another commenter said, and sex work should be made legal.
That said, if someone can drink or vote, they should be able to work as a sex worker. Also, they would need to have regular health check-ups. That is only fair to them and their clients. It's stupid to think that one can't catch an STD.
But more importantly, people need sex education and they need to communicate their needs and hopes and wants and desires with their important other. I think one of the biggest problems in relationships is that people fail to communicate what they want and need, and this drives one or the other of them to see companionship elsewhere.
On the otherhand, a sexual experience with a professional can give you a whole new outlook on yourself, your relationship and your life.
Everyone needs to grow the f' up and live in the present not the past. Don't know if it will ever happen.
5 ( +6 / -1 )
Posted in: Musk takes control of Twitter; fires 3 top executives See in context
"The benefit of the doubt"? Are those the same people who were willing to give Drumpf "the benefit of the doubt"?
Musk states in a lofty manner what he imagines Twitter to be. But at the same time, he's willing to let Donster Drumpf back on the platform, where, like the dictator he wants to be, he will seize control and amass his followers and they will do all that he says.
We're doomed.
2 ( +4 / -2 )
Posted in: Japanese student criticized for campaign against excess plastic packaging See in context
The crackers won't "break" if the plastic tray is removed. More importantly, just because "Grandma" wants to have individual "snacks" in case "guests" drop by (I'm sorry, but I thought Japanese in general do not have "guests drop by"), "Grandma" can "update" the way she serves her "guests."
The arguments for all this excessive plastic packaging are pointless. While it may be more "hygienic," it is ultimately more destructive. Where is the plastic going to go? Where, honestly, do people think the plastic goes? IN THE OCEAN.
But I guess as long as people can drink their big plastic containers of iced lattes, with huge plastic straws, and eat their precious little "snack crackers" which are "protected" by tons of plastic so that "Grandma's guests will be happy, then it doesn't matter what other people think. People in Japan should be applauding the student who dared to raise her voice, not questioning her judgment.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Japan's plastic waste problem spurring grocery shopping novelty See in context
It's great that this is being done, but I'm unclear why it has taken so long. Also, in general, my local supermarkets are still wrapping individual pieces of fruit and vegetables. It's insane. I would be happy to take my own containers and reuse them. The idea of a piece of corn being encased in a sheath of air-tight plastic is insane. And the amount of trays, styrofoam, netting, extra bags... it has been this way since I came here 29 years ago. There are a few places where I can sense them cutting back on this stuff, but they need to go cold turkey. I don't need my goya wrapped in plastic. It's not going to make any difference when I wash it off and cut it up. I'm not buying jewelry; I'm buying food.
Japan, I love you, but you cut off your nose to spite your face with all the extra plastic nonsense. I'm glad some progress is being made, but it's taking way too long to implement it across the board.
1 ( +5 / -4 )
Posted in: Will Tokyo become a modern-day Pompeii? See in context
"Volcanic ash is a fine, glassine substance," Shimamura pointed out. "People who normally wear contact lenses, for instance, would be advised to remove them, since friction from the ash can permanently damage their corneas."
I'm sorry, whaat? If Tokyo was covered in "volcanic ash," people would have a lot more to worry about than their "contact lenses."
3 ( +5 / -2 )
Posted in: Biden urges N Korea to right 'historic wrong' of abductions of Japanese See in context
@kennyG You would "revenge"? Against NK? And how exactly would you "revenge"?
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Japan to start 4th vaccine shots for elderly, at-risk groups from May 25 See in context
I love how people come on here and act as if they're experts. No one ever said the vaccine was perfect. Also, it's been stated the efficacy of the vaccine wanes over time, so, having a 4th vaccine makes sense.
In general, though, I am going to believe statements put out by epidemiologists, not be righteous couch doctors who think they know more than anyone in the world about the efficacy of the vaccine.
And also... if there was no vaccine at all, the number of people getting sick and dying would, without doubt, rise. The vaccine was invented to prevent worst-case scenarios. It's not going to be 100% effective, as nothing else is in life.
To those righteous people who say the vaccines weren't necessary -- maybe they weren't for you -- and maybe you've been lucky. But that's not the case for others, and unless you are an epidemiologist, and I'm going to take a wild guess that you're not, then please don't tell us the vaccines weren't "necessary." You don't know enough to say that.
-4 ( +3 / -7 )
Posted in: Kremlin warns of retaliation after Finland moves toward NATO See in context
This is our world, run by stupid, egomaniacs with chips on their ugly shoulders. They want to get back at every single person/country who does not lick their ugly boots.
What are [retaliatory “military-technical” steps]? Is Putrid just going to threaten every country with nuclear bombs?
Human beings have learned nothing in all the years of recorded history. Certain "leaders" are unable to accept that not everyone will kowtow, not everyone is the same. These leaders will destroy others and also their own citizens in the false belief that they alone know what is right.
The survival of the human race has always been on a thread; I do not see any of this ending well.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Man who mistakenly received entire town’s COVID-19 relief money vanishes See in context
First, why isn't this "man" named? Where is his photo?
"Meanwhile, the town realized what they had done and began looking for the money."
"Meanwhile"? How long did it take?
"When they found out where it went, they immediately tried to get in touch with the man but had a hard time." Because...?
This is a pathetically bad joke. Hope the mayor and the town's other politicians and support staff intend to give up their salaries for a year so the people of the town can get their COVID money.
1 ( +2 / -1 )
Posted in: Musk warns Japan will cease to exist if birthrate continues decline See in context
I have lived in Tokyo for 29 years. Perhaps there are areas in the inaka that might vanish, but major cities are still overrun with people, and I see young couples and their screaming, uncontrollable brats everywhere I go. Japan will not cease to exist. But hopefully, one day, Musk will, along with Clownfish, Putrid, Kim Jong Junk, and Chairman Xie.
-3 ( +2 / -5 )
Posted in: Man gets 20 years in prison for kidnapping two young girls See in context
There are so many things wrong with what is reported here that it makes me want to cry. The only thing that's good is that this predator got 20 years in prison. I hope he'll enjoy his diet of dried fish and rice and not being able to touch anyone but his miserable self for the next two decades.
"Ito’s defense team argued...he was... trying to save the lives of the girls, who were unhappy at home and thinking about suicide."
That was their "argument"? He was trying to "save their lives"? If he was trying to "save" them, then why didn't he call a suicide prevention number? Or police? Or demand to speak to their parents? His "defense team"? They should be jailed along with him!
But also: it shows how uninvolved some parents are in their children's lives. This story is sad and disturbing on every single possible level.
5 ( +7 / -2 )
Posted in: After thousands of years in homes, traditional Japanese flooring goes modern See in context
I am planning to see these in person. They are not single-use plastics. And, yes, it is more "plastic" -- but... almost everything we see and touch in this modern world has a connection to plastic. Tatami mats are beautiful and they have that unique "fresh summer smell," but mites burrow into them and then bite your flesh, so... no thank you.
This company is looking at reality and preserving the image of what the tatami mat is, and at least from the photo, their product looks awesome.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Overwork on the rise as pandemic increases load on Japan's essential workers See in context
What do you mean "overwork" is "on the rise"? Huh? It has never stopped in this country. The insanity of making someone work 80 hours is deeply disturbing. They are "essential workers"? Really? How long can they stay "essential workers" working 80 hours a week?
Making people "overwork" will achieve absolutely nothing except more illness, more suicides, less productivity and more desperation to find new employees. Get robots and end this madness.
8 ( +8 / -0 )
Posted in: Taiwan anxiety rises as China's saber-rattling grows See in context
The fact that Trump is willing to sell weapons to China does not mean he is not a "disaster." He is the absolute worst president of my lifetime, and I'm old. But regardless of what Trump does or doesn't do, China is hung up on making Taiwan "one" with China and it doesn't give a FF about what the Taiwanese people want, because it doesn't view them as 1) Taiwanese or 2) having any say in the matter.
This is a dangerous flashpoint and people are totally unprepared. China will happily mow down the entire country, and then, because they are still angry at Japan about WWII, they will mow down Japan as well. All of what we are doing now will be forgotten. China will rule the world and the US will be a footnote in history. And Trump isn't helping anything since his mind only orbits about his "feelings." If he doesn't lose, China will happily take him down as they are not going to put up with another 4 years of his incessant badgering and insults.
3 ( +3 / -0 )
Posted in: Vigilance could have prevented 3-year-old child's death by starvation: expert See in context
She found parenting "a burden" -- so she left her 3-year-old daughter alone in an apartment for 8 days while she "visited" her boyfriend? This is so sad on so many levels, it's nearly impossible to comprehend.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Tokyo prepares foreigners for potential disasters See in context
Dear "Wobot": Did you read the article? It said: "Over 30 interpreters, speaking six different languages, were on hand to help the participants, who hailed from 44 countries." So, uh, they'll have "more than English."
-1 ( +0 / -1 )
Posted in: Madonna still shocks at 60 See in context
Why is she applauded for continuing to be vulgar and tasteless? I have never understood her appeal. The only songs she ever performed that I thought had some truth and value to them were "Papa Don't Preach" and "Live to Tell."
She can't sing her way out of a paper bag; her "beauty" is ice princess cold; there is nothing warm about her. The fact that she can be "provocative" or let her ass hang out of her chaps... so what? Does that make her "talented"?
She's clever, I'll hand her that much, and she certainly has staying power, but she believes that to be pertinent in today's society she still has to maintain what I always felt was a vulgar and unappealing persona. Why that is supposed to make us applaud at this moment in time, I do not know.
That said, she has said several powerful things through the years that I remember: "I have the luxury of being alive" (in reference to all the gay fans and people she's interacted with who have passed on from AIDS) and "When are we going to get that we are all connected?"
In this way, when she makes intelligent observations gleaned from a life of nearly 40 years in the public spotlight, I do applaud her. When she simulates sex acts on stage for shock value, I don't see what her point is. Anyone can do that; it doesn't take that much talent.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Fatally abused 5-year-old girl wrote notes pleading with her mother, stepfather to stop beating her See in context
I hope these "parents" spend the rest of their lives behind bars. This is so tragic that it makes me physically ill. But as others have pointed out, for these adults to have arrived at the point where they did these things, they obviously went through their own hells. It is just unfortunate that they could not step back from them long enough to stop this horrific situation from ever starting.
1 ( +2 / -1 )
Posted in: Crack found in bullet train could have caused derailment: JR West See in context
"the company has vowed to make safety its top priority" -- really? is that why they are going to wait until "the end of January" to check the undercarriages? Are they giving employees "time off" to enjoy O-Shogatsu? What is their logic?
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Take cover - but where? Japanese helpless over N Korean threat See in context
If NK were to lob a missile at a major city in Japan, unless it could be shot down, there is no place to "take cover." Unless you are already in a "sturdy building" or you are already "underground," the likelihood of you being able to get to such a place in the time left before impact is laughable. Also, even if you were in such a place, it doesn't mean you would survive.
Because of the events of WWII, Japan is essentially a sitting duck. I have lived here for over 20 years. It's my opinion that Japan be allowed to possess nuclear weapons and point them at the head of Kim Jong Un 24 hours a day.
It's great that the authorities can turn on a siren. But other than that, what else can they do? Nothing. It is time to arm South Korea and Japan. Do China and Russia really want to lose the rest of the world over NK? Because that is what might happen.
I suggest that all Japanese take cover in government buildings, pushing out incompetent politicians and hunkering down until the laws of this country reflect its current dire circumstances.
3 ( +15 / -12 )
Posted in: Man arrested for beating up karaoke companion See in context
Why is it that they ALWAYS list how long it will take for the victim's injuries to heal? Why is that essential? Do they include the psychological treatment the victim will need in their accounting of his recovery?
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: 19-year-old arrested for beating grandmother to death See in context
Name this POS, shame him, jail him, and then, as punishment, have someone bash his face in with two fists so he can feel the pain his poor grandmother did.
I didn't get along with my grandmother when I was a teen, but I learned to keep my mouth shut and tolerate her ways, which were not mine. But no matter how upset I got, I would have never under any circumstances hurt her.
People may not have guns in Japan, but they have fists, or knives or lighters, and they get the job done one way or another. This "19-year-old" is old enough to be named and shamed, and no matter how old he is, he will never become an adult, since he proved that he has the mental capacity of a sick 8-year-old on drugs (which maybe he was -- on drugs, that is).
0 ( +1 / -1 )
Posted in: Tokyo gov't teams up with Japanese rapper to promote roller coaster subway system See in context
I lasted about 28 seconds. There is something profoundly fake about a Japanese rapper with blond hair singing, "yo" as if he grew up on the streets of the inner city. Maybe he did, but his flat, dull, uninspired robotic voice did not remotely enhance this video.
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: Nissan announces 9,000 job cuts, slashes sales forecast
Posted in: Global leaders congratulate Trump, but his victory looks set to roil the world -- again
One of the first things that Ghosn did was to TRIM the workforce by 21.000,
Posted in: Nissan announces 9,000 job cuts, slashes sales forecast
Posted in: Biden urges Americans to 'bring down the temperature' after Trump's U.S. election win