virgo comments

Many people think these strange problems are Japan unique. they are not. They just don't make headlines in say NYC. But the trains in NYC have the same wierd hair licking and other strange things happening. Just ask any subway cop in the city. Many people were pushed onto the tracks last year...I will take the hair licking ....

Of course none of this will happen in a 10 year period. The point is to light a fire and get folks moving in the right direction. Americans should be able to get around their region by rail easier. Planes won't go away but the effort for us all to find better ways to manage energy and uses resources will increase.

Luckily the dinosaurs like McConnell in government will be dying off in the next 10-20 years opening doors to the younger more environmentally minded folks who will be taking up the mantle for the country and the planet.

These old curmudgeons have made millions in government at the expense of the people. It is time for government to actually work for the masses more than the corporations.

This won't bomb. I hear soooooooooooo much support for this film. And I am not talking about the black fanboys and family but tons of folks who are intrigued by the character. EVERYONE into Marvel is talking/blogging about it! It is part of the whole Avengers storyline involving several other Marvel characters. And with a stud actor and action not some corny nerd like Paul Rudd, which is the main reason I didn't watch Ant Man.

Those vending machines are long gone...you can buy new underwear, men or women though.

trump between two KKK members! HOW APROPOS!

So we jail everyone who "SAYS" they wanna do something...as if a 60 year old singer is a threat. Don't we have the right to free speech? Remember? We can say what we want ...as we disparage trump a vile person, and you disparage Obama, who at least if he is vile, never showed it around the kids because he respected how the office/position was viewed. She didn't yell "fire" in a building. And I am pretty sure Madonna doesn't have advanced weapons and explosives training. Ha!

As for pepper spray and stun guns etc....most heeled ladies walking home on their cell phones pretty much have to have the weapon in their hand as they walk or a hit from behind...bam! It's useless. If we actually publicly flog and permanently chip and track sexual predators..it would be unjust to many but safer for our daughters and sisters and in some cases moms!

"Just grab em by the .....hmmm very trumpesque this criminal......

For those of you not here in MURICA...this is the new norm. It happens daily. You hear people say things against Muslims and immigrants daily and if you fight against it your a "liberal"...as if that is a bad word. Do yourself a favor...book that vacation somewhere else but here for now.

Cleo you ask why would anyone want to come here? I am here now and unless you have to come for family or work...don't. There is no reason. There is always somewhere else to go. Those of you on the fence about coming here. Don't. Not even worth the hassle. They are trying to make resisting arrest a hate crime against cops in Louisiana.That is what kind of fascist state we are becoming. So don't come here and add to tax revenue for them. And this goes for all of you on this thread who are against this type of authoritarian control. If sCupporting this regime bothers you go elsewhere. If you do decide to come and can't stand this regime...try to go to the areas on the map called blue states or cities. Like NYC for example. A sanctuary city that fights the government on using their police to round up undocumented workers. Or San Francisco. Or if you want to help make a donation to Planned Parenthood.

30 Billion........ so you think (general statement "you") that building a wall is more important than having a better educated public? That learns to creatively think so as to not be made dumb by authorities? So as to be able to always be employable in a new age instead of sucking on the teat of handouts. And waiting for a rich man to bring jobs is just as much a hand out as welfare. But those elites the white working class hates are largely whites and recent immigrants with educations in STEM fields coming out of school with offers of jobs over 80,000 USD. I have many friends making 6 figures wearing comfortable clothes and using their passports not sweating anything if they miss a day of work cuz a kid was sick. Working class whites sold fear by elite whites whose kids (and other's kids) are ready for the new age of automation and technology. Your factory job needs less of you and more of them. Even the new style supermarkets need more tech and less cashiers. Recent immigrants flooding hospitals and tech firms because we import more engineers and med students than ever. Our cities are gentrifying with more upper class degree holders. The gap between integrated urban culture and the rural folks will grow and the fear of the unknown widen.

But we need that money for a wall....cuz Mexicans are taking jobs. What a joke. if you can't compete with largely uneducated laborers than you have your own issues. I personally know at least 7-8 undocumented workers who work twice as hard as I do, pay taxes but can't get money back after filing taxes. Billions of dollars that the government just keeps by the way. But go ahead and build the wall to make the fascist followers comfortable.

And how many of you here have actually lived in the inner city or spent much time on the streets of one or still do? I will raise my hand...............

So how about some of that federal money going to programs that will get the next 8-11 year old kid focussed on an after school program where he hangs out with other kids like him learning things like programming and coding and actually seeing how a computer works besides games. Something many of these kids know nothing about. The reason why myself and a shit ton of people I know from a city called "Murder Town USA" all made it to uni and avoided jail and gangs because we had after school programs and mentors and all of that stuff. And among my classmates are PHD's, and Masters degrees and lawyers and financiers and many of us have seen the world. And we all grew up within 10-15 miles of each other. And we all had programs that steered us toward education. We avoided guns because we knew there was more because we saw more. So sure send in the feds and shoot up the place and put folks in jail long term. But what about the next group? The ones waiting in the wings with idle time on their hands and soft minds ready to be taken advantage of. Holding the guns and drugs for the older guys because they won't get the time as youth. So yeah...send in the feds..and the fed money....

So the word is he admitted it so no more "alleged"? Someone asked if a lawyer was present. In the US even when they know you did it the lawyers want to protect you and don't want you to admit anything. Recently all over the news a high school kid got no jail time after violating 2 girls because the judge wanted him to experience college normally. Judges/parents/lawyers all in collusion to keep jail time low for their kids who just made a "mistake". No matter how much alcohol I and many men would never have done anything like this.

If he admitted what he did right off with no lawyer, good on him. If he actually did it and wants to accept responsibility why need a slick lawyer?

"To admit we've got a serious problem in no way contradicts our respect and appreciation for the vast majority of police officers who put their lives on the line to protect us every single day. It is to say that, as a nation, we can and must do better to institute the best practices that reduce the appearance or reality of racial bias in law enforcement." This is exactly what Obama said on his FB page Wolfpack.....how is this supporting the idea that whites have it in for blacks? This said hours before as you said. Read the entire page.......you straight out lie.

As a teen, I listened to his music alone for houra as I did several other musicians. His music and many of the songs (many that were not hits but album tracks) had lyrics that had a profound meaning to me. They helped shape my acceptance of other people different from me. They helped me percieve what it was to be vulnerable or different. he was someone i was always interested in sitting down to talk to.

I didn't know him but he affected me deeply. More than many people I knew personally. I was still into his music and had just purchased a few recent tracks in the last few months. My friends followed hime regularly on tour. I can go on and on. many of you are overwhelmed by a profound writer or painter or whatever but music is my thing more than any kind of art. In my expression and in my thoughts an in my emotional healing. Without it I would have grown up another college ball player stuck in one gear of agression. But so many of his songs in particular soothed me and helped me. Maybe Bowie for you, or the Beatles or whatever. There are other artists who helped me also. But Prince was a big part of my life soundtrack for over 30 years. Sometimes a song I didn't even register was transformed by a performance of it, sometimes it was the mood of the melody or the lyric.

His death meant that there would be no more opportunities to hear him live, or being asked certain insights to certain works. Or to write something new that brought me joy. So I was really hurt. It felt like someone kicked me in the stomach. So I would never belittle someones' connection to any kind of art or person that represents that art. There are people I know who deaths will affect me less. Some more.

In many places worldwide there are great daycares with great staff. They usually cost more and are private but there is a need. Everyone who thinks it is just that easy to raise a child and not work is not being realistic. Not every mother of 1 or 2 small kids can afford to stay home full time. Some have full time jobs that allow them flexibility or 4 day work weeks or some very good part time jobs where the kid goes to day care only 2-3 days a week.

All that said, in a good situation the child learns to adapt to many things and many daycares offer good learning centers. Sometimes we pick up the news that it was a parent or relative that has abused a child so there is no perfect answer. The vast majority of us here and of people I know spent at least some time in daycare and lived to tell the tale.

A few folks seem angry that they were ripped off.....yes it happen in Japan...no place is immune. But if you honestly think petty theft happens as much as in most western countries.....maybe you are in that Japan hate mode some get stuck in. I am not a Japan apologist by any means but let's not be all...."they have just as much crime" blah blah. I can count the crimes in my hometown of less than 80,000 with more crime than the entire city of Tokyo...of countless millions. Even the FBI crime list agrees with me so.......I would much rather leave a wallet in Starbucks Tokyo on the average than leave 25 cents any where in my hometown. Or leave a bike...or get robbed...or pickpocketed...or jumped.... Those of us from tough areas love Japans "relative" safety.

That said its crazy how coming back from Japan and you actually hear adults letting kids listen to adult oriented things when the kid DO understand. And the kids sing it! I just sit their dumbfounded....just like that first time I walked into fasion outlet in Yokohama with demure pretty young ladies very polite....with gangsta rap just blaring....that first time it happens your mind just can't put the two together haha!

I can personally relate to most of them and in my travels I find at least half of them to be more Japanese than any place I have been.

I knew I was in Japan too long when i first came home and bowed or said "hai" or "un" to Asian people , usually who were Korean in my area. I had to catch myself a lot...in some situations I had to explain to which they wanted to know "why not Korea?".

Then after longer in Japan I was using Japanese with everyone,..... who then looked at me strange. It becomes so automatic sometimes and I am sure many can relate..

I have been to places that will let you cover a small tattoo. Cool. That said it is still someone else's culture. It will take a little more time, but many of the older Japanese have their set of customs that will take a little more time to fade away. It is not our job to push them. Let Japanese society handle that. Still if a place does have rules for them it is what it is. If you decided to get full body ink, then that is on you. Not everyone has or will be fully accepting of it.

In the states still many people are judgemental of those with full sleeves and body work. A tattoo under your clothes is one thing but you don't see many corporate types with ink on their neck or in places that are frowned upon. We all have our preferences and I myself don't really care, but that said I am not attracted to too many females with full body art. They probably don't care what I think either as I am not in their "tribe".

Again many of us feel that Japan needs to change things in order to fit in with international society etc. We have these discussions all the time. But we cannot expect the world to adapt to us. Some places will never be like home.

I wish every woman's shop had a place for naps. That said, I don't go shopping with women if I don't want to ...period. those days are done. Let them be mad or find a girlfriend. Nor do I get up early on days off "just because they do". great way to ruin a good relationship haha!

From my time in Japan I came across many Japanese who did drugs. Mostly weed but still they were regulars. several good pals. It is much more widespread but everyone still acts so shocked when someone "else" gets caught. There is a serious drug and alcohol culture in the big cities as much as many here want to deny it. Many do the legal drugs aka prescriptions. So many housewives and their anxiety pills. Sometimes the teens get them. I saw so many high on the streets as I was out all night at least once a week for years. Many think that jail will just solve the problem but with the societal bullying and all out pressure, people will find ways to feel "whole". I don't support that but neither do I support the way society in Japan can break a person down to make them conform. All societies have ways of conformity, but in the places most of us have come from we have smaller groups we can survive in even if we are not mainstream. They will market to us and make money off of us too!

Unfortunately for a while her kids will find life difficult in Japan. Even in an elite overseas Japan based school they will be known. What they need is a school that will help them with counselors that will be there for them through the tough times to come. Closer to Asia MAY be better for them AND their mother. She can use her Japanese notoriety a little better for work ...maybe. Small and modeling in NYC don't always go together though she can get print work for a certain age range.

As for NYC I have seen both sides of it in my days there. Rich little snobby a-holes who will be successful because of the connections they form and the doors daddy opens. (Sound familiar?). Also the wierd artistic ones who try to be very different on purpose from all the rest. But they have money to go to the NEW SCHOOL in Manhattan and for those of you who don't know, it produces some of the most successfull creative people in the USA. The main thing is they are not babies. They understand what has happened and will need serious counseling. Japan will wont be the safe cocoon for them for awhile.

Hey remember Nori P returned from a drug scandal. It will take time but Aki will have to scrath tooth and nail to get repect back. I wish her and the kids luck.

The only contract should be how much or work for us not them as in many businesses in entertainment. No contract should force anyone to do anything with their body that they don't want to. If they quit then they quit but a contract should never allow you to force sex....period.

Watching a recent docu in the states it is a similar situation. Young girls just at 18 are roomed together for a family atmosphere and groomed for the "amateur" looking young girl porn. The big thing is there are so many regular people who love porn and put their own films on the net. They have sex with friends and groups to make their own money. Tumblr is now more porn than any other activity on that site. Sex is a fun activity that most people love but after they are taken advantage of it can ruin it for them. Porn sells people false images, hopes and dreams. With so many people voluntarily putting their own porn out there on the web it is difficult to police but young women need to be taught the downside of it, especially from former porn women.

Meanwhile if you sit at many tables quietly in US public spaces you will notice that many low educated whites are saying, blame the immigrants, blame the blacks, blame the government for supporting these previously mentioned, blame the Jews and the government that supports them...blame Obama for things that didn't even exist when he took office, blame Obama for Muslims being in the US, blame liberals for changing history and making the confederate look bad, blame liberals for making the KKK look worse....I can go on and on. There is even a Georgia politician convincing young people that the KKK wasn't that bad! Look it up yourself.

None of what I said is my opinion, just what I hear daily as I am in my hometown right now. And I am in a Democratic state! If we had vids and sound bites here I could play them for you all! And the vast majority of these less educated folk are Trump supporters who think he will make Merica white again! They don't want the Hispanic Cruz or Rubio they say

The current social state in the US is just horrible as white supremist groups tell their supporters that Trump is best to make America more white, as if 12 million people will ever be deported. And why would you want a country that isn't bi-lingual like a vast majority of western white countries? You have people here discouraging their children FROM learning a second language as un-American!? Can you believe it?

And again Trump says on tv we will make America great again.....AGAIN? What like in the 50's and 60's when minorities had to fight to vote? When women had to struggle to be taken seriously? To the 70's when we savaged Vietnamese and got thousands of our boys killed with just a "oops, our bad" and we pulled out? The 80's when the best thing worldwide during Reaganomics to most people was 80's music. Oh wait the 90's when....hell I don't know.

America has always been America......great because of our Hollywood image that never fits reality.

I have no problem with people on the right being against both Dem candidates. BUT, if my major leading candidate was supported whole heartedly by white supremecists and far right christians, many of whom want to change the separation of church and state in many instances, I would not vote for the lesser of evils. I would not vote for that member period. I would be more than willing to abandon my party and vote my conscious with an independent person who, even if they don't win, would not leave me disgusted with myself. Too many GOPers are willing to take the "bad" with the good that they feel Trump represents. But If I voted for someone who disgusted me I would feel for the next 4 years like a piece of S&&t. Like a shower could not wash me.

Sanders wants a more Euro feel type of socialism with the big corps footing some of the bill as costs of doing business. You may not agree with his numbers and the money adding up but he is a humanist in philosophy and though I don't know if I can whole heartedly support him, I would not feel like a piece of crap for supporting him. I hear all over FB to support trump to help the white race in America from dying out and the barbarians are at the gate. Well at the rate of growth of most non white races there is no President that can change the fact that America will be less white in the future but is that what life is all about? With kids all getting a great education and the lower class ranks shrinking, in most places more affluence across the board (along with education) usually means less petty crimes and more happy people. I hardly ever see happy people looking to attack other races.

I would love to see 30-40 million people abandon either major party and support a real outsider by voting their true feelings instead of playing the "your vote for this one actually helps that one" game we play every 4 years. Then the majors would really wake up and the country would really have change.

Wc626...its' all good. I don't get into 98 percent of today's rap but then again I get nuthin' out of any of the groups you just mentioned. a lot of folks can't relate to black angst but many can't relate to angry suburban white boys screaming with non rhythmic music. now i know you will disagree with that statement and that is OK. But i still can't understand why my niece's high school classmates get into justin beiber. A lot of music sux to someone else. Most of that indie band folk that passes for rock nowadays? Yeah I can dig the old school rock and blues you mentioned.

But trust me...Kendrick and Justin and taylor and Beyonce don't make music for us ...so they don't care.

These things are acted out in every major city every day in every major country. Sadly....

Wc626...obviously you don't listen to much black cultured music. I can go back to records from my childhood more than 30 years ago with many Black artists singing about their live or what they see around them. When he wrothe much of his lyrics are you sure the BLM movement was even popular yet? So glad you talked to him about that huh? I don't even partake but his cd was one of the most popular in the US and Canada and has been since last year. Why? Why don't you ask his millions of fans. Your opinion to them isn't needed. If an artist touches someone then he/she has done at least some of their job as an artist. If the audience asks why? Then he did his job to some degree and you asked why didn't you? HAHAHA!

Weather its why did he do it or why did he write it or why did he feel this way...he had and impact on some guy who posted on a Japanese based forum about it! Gotcha!

During "Jim Crow" and the turbulent 50's and 60's, Blacks were taught that they should'nt look a white person in the eye, stay away from white women, avoid all white police, sit on the back of the bus, the back of the line etc. All the while thousands of Blacks were lynched, beaten, smacked around, their homes and businesses burned including entire towns. You can google all you want, I don't need to provide all the links for you. Malcolm X was a "freedom fighter" with words. He never attacked or encouraged wanton attacks on white people. He called them devils for what they were doing. He advocated self defense and self reliance. He said if the devil hits you then hit him back. The white media couldn't stand for that and vilified him, making whites fear anyone like him while placating them with MLK, the peaceful "N$332r. I have nothing but the utmost respect for Malcolm X and his legacy.

Law enforcement knew he was to be excecuted. He realized that Islam was quite different than what he was led to believe. He was far to dangerous as a world figure to "white supremacy" as well as "Black separatism". Read his auto biography for his own words instead of "media says". I respect Beyonce for her stance as most entertainers won't take one. Albeit she chose a time when her wealth and status are secure enough but who can blame her.

The original Black Panthers were founded for community self reliance and to "police the police". I shouldn't have to explain why in 1960's Oakland. Do your own math. There were bad apples and those who went beyond. They attacked police as they felt justified. There were bad poice who attacked them. They also felt justified. We can go back and forth with our opinions and most here haven't experienced anything but watching from the outside. BLM movement has been hi-jacked by those who scream it at every oppurtunity

Someone said hot food? I never noticed that in Japan. I prefer all my food at the hot temp. For me and much of where I grew up that is norm. Can't believe that is the issue. But I wish him the best and hope he gets the best doctors for this issue!

SmithinJapan...we agree on this one.

And why would someone want to draw children..(And I don't mean young looking women or late teens)...we are talking pre pubescent kids. drawn in sex acts...for someone's private touching himself pleasure...

Why in hell would you even WANT to provide that to an audience???!! What kind of problems have you not told your therapist about...cuz you are not "right" in the head,

It is amazing how people try to defend this under "censorship". There should be some censorship in life. Adults can make all of the depraved decisions they want, but having a market for this stuff that involves people not yet able to make mature decisions is abhorrent. They see it, are influenced by the adults they make happy, and are potentially led down a path that they don't realize is ruinous for them. We are not talking about movies, and guns and such that we all see. This is the stuff that peopl keep "secret". Twisting young minds with"don't tell". Sickos buy this and there will always be those that can't control the urge to really do it. Why help them out? If you see it, burn it. Do all you can to stop its proliferation. And yes there is a limit to freedom of expression publicly, or at least there should be. People seem to think 'freedom' is do whatever you want. Damned the others you hurt or offend.

For adults that may be viable. Defending this tells us all something about you.