Thomas Proskow comments

Posted in: Why do Japanese work such long hours? See in context

I think the economy and the fear of losing one's job has a lot to do with it.

Japan also has a long history of being a stationary culture. One's life is defined by their occupation, which comes before family, hobbies, or other personal/private goals or endeavors. People don't change careers or move around all that much, therefore sacrificing your "other time" for work is not really seen as a big problem.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: First gay wedding held at Tokyo Disney Resort See in context

Bottom line is.... they're married, and I hope this sparks a chain of events in order for Japan to rid itself of the multiple conservative and anti-individualist fears that have held this country in darkness and misery for years.

-1 ( +4 / -5 )

Posted in: First gay wedding held at Tokyo Disney Resort See in context

The "well you're just as guilty of being intolerant of intolerance" is the general non-argument used by conservatives to put up duck blinds and end arguments they usually start.

1 ( +5 / -4 )

Posted in: First gay wedding held at Tokyo Disney Resort See in context

Really, should gay marriage even be argued???

I happen to have friends of the family who are a happily married lesbian couple and have a complete house full of children. Every single one of those children understand their parents' relationship and are living normal, happy lives.

Anyone and everyone, no matter what race or gender, should be allowed to marry whomever they want.......

Anyhow, I long for the day ALL conservative thinking is completely erased from this planet. Conservatism is the true disease that holds the human race back.

-1 ( +6 / -7 )

Posted in: First gay wedding held at Tokyo Disney Resort See in context

It's sad enough this world is so conservative, but it's even sadder to see many homophobes commenting on this........

People need to grow up and realize people have the right to love whoever they want.

2 ( +9 / -7 )

Posted in: AKB fan threatens sarin gas attack over commercial See in context

Pop music...... the ultimate weapon of psychological warfare.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Why aren't Japanese dating and mating? See in context

I think the middle of the article has hit the nail on the head...... Japanese working culture.

Most people fail to realize that their are more important things in life than careers.

Hell, most Japanese men are taught that to enjoy life too much is "being selfish".

Procreation and families mean too much time away from the office.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan’s singletons list kinds of people they’d hate to marry See in context

Asian women have naturally high, wide cheekbones.... and I think it's cute!!

Beside the point, I kinda agree with smokers, alcoholics, self-centered fashion queens, or the jealous type who never allow any privacy or ones that try to control or change you...... I think that goes for both men and women.

Money is really superficial. Money has never meant anything to me when it comes to relationships, but responsibility does. I was once in a relationship with someone who had 3-4 massive credit card debts to pay off, refused to work, and expected me to be the only one bringing money into the house, so she could shop around on e-bay and drink herself into a stupor....... and she continually blamed ME for the fact we never had any money!!! Never again!!!! >:(

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: How to function optimally in Japanese work environment See in context

Exactly..... I think the POSITIVE of being a foreigner with a foreigner's attitude about things is that we're here and doing it for US.

Many Japanese are raised with more of an attitude that their life goal is to be part of a company and sacrifice their individuality for the good of their company. Many decide their life identity based on their occupation.

When we first came to Japan, how many of us decided since after high school our entire life's purpose was to go to Japan and be a native English teacher/mascot at some language school the rest of our lives? That we're a Native English teacher and nothing more? Thought not.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: How to function optimally in Japanese work environment See in context

I think that while RESPECTING certain kinds of protocol are mandatory, some of these don't actually fix problems within a company and just preserve what's WRONG with the workplace.

Cultures be damned, use common sense.

Working overtime is ok, to a limit. However, if it's completely within your contract, and you've got nothing to do, there's no reason whatsoever to do unpaid overtime.

This is not our culture, but I think the important thing about living overseas is to only adopt the positive(beneficial, self-improving) aspects of a foreign culture, but drawing a firm solid line when it comes to the negatives (anti-individualism, sacrifice of your family and well-being for the company, not handling problems directly, etc.)

I think the best way is to know and stick to your own beliefs and finding out how THOSE can benefit a company rather than destroying yourself in the name of blind conformity. Companies in Japan obviously don't hire foreigners just so they can pretend to be Japanese, they hire foreigners to see what they can learn from them.

Life is a journey of learning and self-improvement. Only adopt what benefits you.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Hashimoto blasts education board over basketball teacher lapse See in context

Out of the many other things that disgust me about Hashimoto, he scores one point of redemption here.

Now if only he can ditch his tattooaphobia and other dated ideas.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Which English words or expressions really annoy you? See in context

"butt-hurt", "whoo-hoo! and "onesy"

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Which is considered worse, holding your chopsticks the wrong way, or eating noisily? See in context

In Japan, old people tend to eat noisily. Eating noisily being bad manners is something fairly "last 30 years" in Japan.

Also, talking with your mouth full is something Japanese people tend to do a lot which I find extremely irritating. At dinnertime, conversation is seen as being almost as important as the food, and I've even occasionally been shunned for being "too quiet and untalkative" during dinner parties. Personally, I enjoy meals in silence and solitude....

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Posted in: Romantic potato chips See in context

I'm sure lonely overweight singles who just want to try both flavors will be the number one buyers.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Cuteness overload in Japan See in context

I wish Japanese/Asian women would realize that they are naturally born with a cute physical appearance: high cheekbones, almond eyes, button nose, pouty lips, and baby smooth skin. No matter what they do, or how they dress, they will always look "cute".......

Sooooooo, now that it's out of the way, they can focus on developing their behavior to be mature, sophisticated, sensitive, kind, and intelligent. So that they can finally graduate out of being merely "cute" into being "beautiful".

Acting like a three year old is not beautiful and a turn off for most foreign men.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Posted in: Ishihara, Hashimoto announce 'third force' in Japanese politics See in context

Are there any liberals left in this country??? Or at least any to call out and seriously OPPOSE the right wing fascists??

Let's see who to choose from....... conservatives who do nothing and refuse to budge, or conservatives who are total nutters and want to turn Japan back to the feudal age.......

With a wide range of choices like this, is it any mystery why Japan is so far behind in global politics?

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Some ways of dealing with fatigue can make things worse See in context

Work culture is one HUGE source of stress here. It's been something that's been building tirelessly from many sources in history, but especially since the Showa era.

Conformity, workaholism, everything described in the article......

However, even a stressful workweek can seem less overwhelming if we're doing what we love.

A huge problem with modern culture is the pressure to fit in and be who you're expected to be, rather than who you want to be. Therefore, people work themselves into misery and death through lifetimes of doing what they hate or feel no passion for, rather than what they dream of doing. It's always the pressure of having to choose your lifetime career fresh out of high school, from a limited selection, and being stuck with that identity the rest of our lives. If it's something that doesn't suit us, which we can't really know until we've had experience doing it, then we have a lifetime of burnout hell to look forward to.

The answer??? Bring back individualism and encourage ourselves to take the reins of our lives. If the source of misery is a career we're dissatisfied with, one that makes each day an ordeal where we constantly wish we were somewhere else, we should DITCH IT, and get into something we truly love doing.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Transsexual denied recognition as father See in context

The problem is that the government is run by crusty old conservatives who are stuck in two extremes: 1. of not wanting to change, and 2. simultaneously wanting nothing to do with Japan's culture, art, an heritage. Like some sort of ultra-static backward modernists.

They want to do everything in their power to keep Japan a "salaryman's country". No equal rights for gays, transgenders, buraku, or foreigners. Simultaneously cutting the budget for anything artistic or cultural.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: New 'Star Wars' movies - dream come true, or cosmic yawn? See in context

Well, there were originally 9 episodes written back before the first "Episode 4" in 1977, so I guess it's just tying up loose ends......

To be honest, the thing that captivated me about the first 3 movies as a kid were not the stories, nor even the characters, but the alien/monster designs, as well as the robot/droid designs........ both were quite revolutionary for late 70s sci-fi.

The prequels simply demolished the story and what redeeming qualities the alien/robot designs could have had were rendered cartoonish and unreal by the overuse of CGI.

If they can go back to animatronics/puppets/costumes, the way the Thing remake did, I'll be impressed. As an avid fan of horror/sci-fi/fantasy, monster design is always something I take very seriously, and honestly..... working with a life-size model gives the movie a far more "real" feeling than playing with shadows in a green room.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: 7 romantic things that only happen in movies See in context

They always tend to play romantic music in supermarkets.......

I suppose that makes sense if "Mr. Right" is a brand of maple syrup.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Ishihara: Unrepentant Japanese nationalist See in context

Reason for Ishihara's popularity..... being an outspoken bigot in a country where bigotry is not only praised, but institutionalized. Simple as that. And many may try the Ishihara approach and tell me "if you don't like it, get out!" and leave the xenophobic to be xenophobic and leave problems unchanged, just the way I like it.....

However, I think the duty of foreigners with families here, as well as the duty of Japanese who've woken up and recognized the problem is to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT and change the bloody country!!!

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Posted in: Twitter comment starts online debate on working overtime See in context

Whether Japan's economy is flourishing or not has nothing to do with overtime. Overtime work is why family life is dying here and why art culture here is so stagnant, also why there are so many suicides and reclusive lunatics.

Work culture places emphasis on quantity and not quality....... time spend busy instead of time spent actually producing.

The key to a healthy society is a balanced life. Time spend on oneself and developing your interests outside the workplace. Work/eat/sleep cycles of mechanical living are a sure way towards societal collapse, which I can see Japan heading towards anyways, due to the inclusion of corrupt politicians into the equation

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Posted in: Law making it illegal to download pirated music, videos goes into effect See in context

Well, for those who have vented on here saying that the laws in Japan are going to far restricting creativity and freedom in a country run by greedy old salarymen, I am in perfect 100% agreement. Laws against dancing in clubs, internet downloads, and even tattoos are all just thinly veiled attempts at tightening the government's control and suffocating Japanese culture by making it the most conservative country on earth, infinitely worsened by the fact that Japanese culture revolves around compliance, respecting your superiors and avoiding confrontation.

Now about downloading and it's moral implications, I tend to treat music downloading the same as tape-trading of old. I do not listen to mainstream music, so the "Japanese music industry" do not and will never have to worry about me DLing their stuff, because I don't buy it any of their stuff anyways. As for the music I DO download, it's mostly rare/out of print stuff that isn't available anyways. I still buy CDs, still support the underground music scene, and only DL stuff I CAN'T buy!!! I am also not opposed to DLing sources for sampling or using for creative purposes, as long as they either A. acknowledge the source, or B. alter it enough that it's not a complete rip off.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Posted in: Law making it illegal to download pirated music, videos goes into effect See in context

From what I understand, people will only be prosecuted if the artist/owner of the copyrighted material files a criminal complaint.....

So basically, if some famous J-pop artist finds out someone's been distributing their stuff for free online, the offender will be persecuted, but stuff like Soulseek, etc. will probably still be completely off the radar. Worst that could happen is Soulseek or other such P2P programs could be blocked somehow from any access from a computer in Japan if, say, some famous Japanese artist or label found their stuff on there....

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Posted in: What you shouldn't use for your cell phone wallpaper See in context

People who look over your shoulder at your cellphone wallpaper are creepy anyways, so whatever they think is simply hypocrisy.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Posted in: Politics - American wives vs Japanese wives See in context

Knowing the mount of work the "average" Japanese person does, I highly doubt a politician would ever have time for their families. They simply show them to show the people they exist, that there is some flicker of normalcy or humanity in their mechanical lives, when there isn't. Politicians only have wives and kids merely to exist, the relationship ends there.....

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: 7 things all Japanese just gotta say See in context

I' not really bothered by it because I'm really not so social in the first place,

One thing that persistently bothers me though, is the "race = nation" mindset most Asian countries really haven't grown out of.

There are countries out there loads more xenophobic than Japan, but I really just wonder what fuels this sort of us vs. them mindset in the east as opposed to the west.

Europe has had a very similar history of war and territorialism like Asia has, but you really won't find the same "race minded" attitude there like you would here.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Posted in: How to survive living in a small town See in context

Now that we have a survival guide for living in the small town, how about one for living in Tokyo oor Osaka??? Especialy for those of us "lucky"(used in a VERY broad sense) to have the Japanese definition of a "full time job"???

To be honest, I probably wouldn't mind getting a job in the countryside for a while. I tend to be a bit of a recluse anyways, and the isolation and privacy needed to work on my hobbies is what I definitely need right now. I guess it depends on if you're a private, introspective, creative person, or someone who likes to be more social. The city is great for meeting people and finding places to go or things to do, but be prepared to always feel like you're working.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Posted in: Young Japanese women becoming less interested in sex, survey says See in context

People are either too overworked to care about life anymore or the opposite:

Young people waking up and starting to wonder if there's more meaning to life than just work, sex, money, alcohol, and material possessions.

Really, since World War 2, the youth of this country have had ultra-materialistic values shoved down their throat telling them that their individuality or happiness doesn't matter, and the only thing to live for is their career. And what is their only escape or release from their day to day mechanical lifestyle??? Vice. Pure and simple Vice. Drinking, sex shops, other sexual perversion, TV, pachinko, cigarettes, and video games. It's not constructive behavior, nor is it truly relaxing or spending quality time with their friends.

Maybe nowadays, there's a new breed of Japanese man emerging who's tired of the miserable loop of salaryman life, an is looking for answers elsewhere. ....... and perhaps there's also a new breed of Japanese woman sick and tired of the loneliness of the prospects of being either a housewife or a sex object of said salarymen and pursuing the same answers.

I think this new brand of Japanese youth will rediscover love and sex in time, but not until they've had a moment of time and peace away from all the noise of modern society to discover themselves and the TRUE meaning of life.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Posted in: New study finds diverse beliefs in Muslim world See in context

There is never just one way to interpret ANY religion, and those who disagree don't even study their own religion.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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