Posted in: Fukuoka beat Urawa to win J.League Cup See in context
That was Levain Cup. Not to be confused with J1 league, where Avispa is much lower in the standings and has no chance of winning
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Posted in: Japanese car giants team up to build hydrogen fueling stations See in context
There are still about 30,000 gas stations in Japan (and more is needed according to a recent article), so 160 by 2020 or 180 hydrogen fuel ones by 2022 will hardly sway the potential car buyer to plump up for a fuel cell vehicle. In comparison, there are 40,000 electric car charging points right now. Unless all major gas station chains start to offer hydrogen too, this technology won't take off the ground in the foreseeable future.
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Posted in: Missing Monet returns home to Japan See in context
http://en.rfi.fr/culture/20180227-missing-monet-returns-home-japan has a very different painting that actually corresponds to the title, so probably the image illustrating the article in Japan Today is wrong.
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Posted in: Sapporo becomes 1st major Japanese city to recognize LGBT couples See in context
Good for Sapporo to be more progressive than some of the opinions here. "Falling birth rate" and "budget deficits" are among the most ridiculous objections against equal marriage rights I have ever seen.
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Posted in: Hide the universe under your skirt with a pair of stunning cosmic stockings See in context
for all those amateur astronomers.
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Posted in: Pocket-sized personal transporters could soon be seen on streets of Tokyo See in context
You can see it in action on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS-Bdy6nf80
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Posted in: Membership jumps as Netflix pumps original shows See in context
The only interesting bit relevant to Japan is that Netflix will come here in November.
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Posted in: Low-priced 11.6-inch notebook PC See in context
They come with wired LAN but what about Wi-Fi? Or is it so obvious that there's no need to mention it any more?
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Posted in: Traffic fatalities nationwide down by 260 in 2014 See in context
Hokkaido not even in top five. That's a change.
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Posted in: Man arrested over bomb threat to former Asahi reporter See in context
Maybe a stint in the clink will help him look at sexual slavery and rape with fresh, watering eyes.
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Posted in: Disney to release 'Frozen' short sequel next year See in context
Let it go, Disney, let it go...
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Posted in: Japanese-speaking 'Real Barbie' becomes serious model in Japan See in context
I somehow misread the headline. I thought that a 'real Barbie' has become a serious problem in Japan. Not far off, though.
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Posted in: Coke insists fake sweetener is safe See in context
Tobacco and oil industries followed the same policy of denying harmful effects of their products and branding the studies to the contrary as inconclusive until the truth could no longer be contained. The same will sooner or later happen to artificial sweeteners. Coke is drinkable only because its unpalatability is masked by tons of sugar or sweeteners, and in turn its nauseating sweetness has to be offset by a hideous amount of phosphoric acid.
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Posted in: Truck driver arrested for dumping 2 tons of snow on Sapporo street See in context
And yet it is apparently perfectly legal to simply push the snow onto the road with resulting mounds of snow reaching over two or three meters in height and changing streets into one lane canyons. He shouldn't have done that but it hardly makes any difference to the streets of Sapporo, they are under tons of snow anyway.
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Posted in: Spurred by Japan, California eyes quake alert system See in context
Yesterday's emergency alert arrived about the same time the first, weak, tremors came, so the only thing it warned me about was the severity of the quake. Good luck if you hope for a " tens of seconds’ early notice".
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Posted in: Starbucks Japan reduces amount of brew in some offerings See in context
Ask for "oomeni" to get it full to the brim.
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Posted in: Man jailed for a year over 10 yen theft at temple See in context
In Japan justice is not about fairness or rehabilitation. Here is a very clear example of justice as a deterrent to others, ignoring anything else - the fact that the man was homeless, probable demoralization brought on by draconian punishment, the cost to the public. Even though it is within the spirit of the Japanese law, the judge was obeying the letter way too heavy-handedly. Could it be that Japan needs more prison labor?
Criminal justice indeed.
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Posted in: 90% agree with NHK decision not to invite Sachiko Kobayashi to 'Kohaku' - survey See in context
In that case I won't invite NHK to my home. Who am I kidding? I never invite them anyway.
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Posted in: Storm blacks out 41,000 homes in Hokkaido See in context
basroil, do you by any chance mean Tomakomai?
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Posted in: 15-year-old boy dies after falling off bike and being hit by car in Gunma See in context
If the boys were found to be riding on the bike illegally with the flow of traffic, the driver should have stopped and he would have excused.
Not so sure about that. Most likely scenario - the driver gets arrested and charged with violation of safe-driving practice resulting in manslaughter.
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Posted in: NHK and NHNZ greenlight blue chip series 'Life Force II' See in context
Finally, something worth watching on NHK, but I have a very strong suspicion that the driving force behind the project is NHNZ, and not its Japanese counterpart.
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Posted in: What is a Westerner? See in context
The author gets it a little bit right and a little bit wrong.
First, it is relatively easy to define Western civilization as historically based on the classical legacy and western Christianity, and in the modern era - rule of law, social pluralism, individualism, human rights etc. The border between the Occident and Orient ran along the Aeagean Sea separating Europe from Asia, rather than along what constitutes Western hemisphere now. These days it's much harder to delineate it geographically since Western societies are present in all hemispheres, e.g. Australia; or ethnically since many Western countries are in fact multi-ethnic.
It's, however, near impossible to find a unifying definition of a Westerner. Not all Westerners are white, not all whites are Westerners. Russia has its own distinct civilization, often at odds with Western ideas. Japan has embraced many Western notions - democracy, rule of law, free market etc. But again the Japanese are not Western in the sense that their culture is rooted in another religion and way of thinking that can sometimes trump all of the above. But then, not all white Americans or Europeans are at home with Greek philosophy, or much in favor or social pluralism and equal rights. Are they truly Westerners?
If you look at the outside world from Japanese perspective it's easy to equate Westerners with Caucasians or confuse the West with Western hemisphere, but it would be about as erroneous and perhaps insulting to the concerned parties as putting the Japanese in one bag with the Chinese or Thai.
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Posted in: How your old videogames, books and CDs could help educate a child See in context
Which value are we talking about? The pittance Book Off offers for your books etc., or the much more substantial tag price they ask later? They call it charity, I call it daylight robbery.
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Posted in: Japan Tobacco changes Mild Seven brand to Mevius See in context
Now all they need is a better packaging, maybe those packs with pictures like in Australia.
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Posted in: Modern etiquette: Best of Britain for Olympic visitors See in context
@Thunderbird2 Sir, it breaks my heart to have to explain it to you but I wasn't being serious. Had you read closer surely you'd have noticed. Cheerio.
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Posted in: Modern etiquette: Best of Britain for Olympic visitors See in context
12. Class
Do remember that the British are a class-divided society, where different classes use a different language and, often, vary in customs. Make sure you know who you're talking to. To avoid a faux pas direct approach is usually the best.
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Why should I pay for the train, hotel and entry ticket there? Sorry, but if I should ever feel the…
Posted in: Osaka Expo preparations hit home stretch with 2 months left until opening
Posted in: German car attack may have been religiously motivated, prosecutors say
The container handling facility sure makes for an attractive venue.
Posted in: Osaka Expo preparations hit home stretch with 2 months left until opening
How dare anyone gamble on things beside boat racing, motorcycle racing and bicycle racing!
Posted in: Record number of online casino users detected by Japan police in 2024