virgo comments

I have to agree with LFRAgain that Japan is mostly safe with an aberrant happening. When we look at the news in Japan and see a crime, sometimes the crime is in Ibaraki or Fukuoka, whilst I am in Tokyo. The amount of crime in Atlanta or Philly, the two largest cities in my regular US life, IN ONE WEEK, is much more than in the entire country of Japan in a month if you just go by the local news. Murders/rapes/gunplay/ etc. I read the happenings of crime on Japan Today or NHK, and realize that this is Japan news...not just Tokyo news. The local news in big American cities has enough crime that it doesn't report other cities crimes unless it was of national interest.

On the local news in Tokyo you can hear about a girl slashed in Ibaraki. In Atlanta you won't hear about a girl slashed on the train in Philly. Each city has enough of its own crime. In Japan rapes/murders/gun play/robberies/ are at a far lower rate. The news on Japan today is for all of Japan. The crime in the top 6-7 American cities alone will far outnumber the entire archipelago of Japan. We read of ALL these stories and think..wow!..high crime...not really..its all relative.

Its a good thing that kids learn to navigate to school independently. But that being said it is the other things that are just as problematic like aberrant cars etc. I would at least part of the time go with the kids to familiarize myself with the goings on and pitfalls of the route. (If you as a parent are able to sometimes that is...no judgement here.) Somewhere along the way though Japanese society takes away the independence with the heard mentality...making it difficult to be an individual. That is the problem...at least as some of us see it. For others that way of life is fine. Its up to you as a parent to decide how much freedom you want your childs train of thought to have.

"Beating on a woman is unforgivable" ......there are a ton of things that make someone else a victim. when you steal something from someone...you have no idea how much it took in personal sacrifice to obtain. It hurts, especially if you meant that object for a loved one. When you hurt someone with words and belittle someone for who they are or what they are about..the pain can last far longer than a punch to the head...when you use someone who really loved you or respected you and walk away.....deeper pain....people kill themselves over pain deeper than a hit.

When you are younger and less eveolved as a thinking educated human you do stupid things with less forthought than today (if you've matured). When I was a kid I hit my sister. The pain I caused myself lasted years because I will never forget the pain and dissappointment she felt. None of us know the man DRE as a father, a husband, a family man...we just know his image. He hasn't been in and out of jail or in and out of trouble compared to so many famous people. So why can't we believe he has changed? Unforgivable? Many of us vote once again for politicians who has hurt far more people...or support those who have used others for years. Yet you say what he did is unforgivable. Don't be a hypocrite. He is a human with feelings and kids. And every dad thinks about what he did when he has a vulnerable daughter to raise. He may not be perfect but chances are in the same situation again he wouldn't punch out his wife. Unless you know mere about his life than he does, you don't have to beleive him or forgive him. But one day we will all be in a position to want forgiveness. When someone says no....see how you feel then.

I think most modern countries are goof places to raise kids and being a little more than middle class makes it easier. That said.....I agree with the comments about the lack of diverse thinking fostered in Japan. Japan is small so same thought patterns can emerge easier. In the states (for example as it is my home country) in a major city with millions of people, there are so many ways of living and thinking even though we are pushed into the left or right just like Japan. In Atlanta where I am at the moment, there are large parks, and forests and lakes short drive away and places to go horeback riding or whatever. Even the average family get's together and drives to the beach on the gulf of Mexico. With a lil money excellent schools abound but in the bad side of town....well you know the deal. Japan is a nice place and I love it but raising kids is harder as the lives of children are so controlled by the schools and clubs to the point that the parents lives are affected (not always positively).

As a person born straight and influenced by many around me that being gay is wrong...I applaud this decision. The constitution is not under attack though in some ways the way it is interpreted by many SHOULD be under attack. Every human being has a right to love and no government or organization has the right to deny that. Even if you think it is wrong. You may not understand it, because you were born and raised different. I don't undersatnd many ways that Japanese view the world but as another human learning their culture, no matter how stupid an outsider thinks something is, that doesn't make it so. Fighting something that doesn't hurt you is just your own fear and insecurity. You may think your way is a better way but the USA is made up of many diverse people. Live how you want at home. If you see two guys kiss, did you feel hurt? Why? Your own fears. The two guys in the picture could have gotten a hot chick.....that was said...but even a straight guy who doesn't want or get your definition of a hot chick? So what. I see people with spouces and loved ones that I find very unattractive to me....but I don't judge him or her. If they found true love...or even temporary happiness...good on em. If they are just boning for a month before their job tranfers them back home...good on em......if they just met on an app for sex that day...good on em...not my business.

Boo hoo...life is so special...

Really? Cuz we make billions of em a year...not so hard. And since we do value life there are many of us who place that value on those who are not a danger to the life and well being of the rest of us. He ADMITTED to it. it doesn't matter if he was the kingpin. He could have walked away at any time but killing kids was ok to him for some "let's get America" BS. I for one don't want to pay for his upkeep and health care in prison. He will never be of any use for the rest of us and he is un-repentant. He murdered not in a act of rage or revenge on someone who for example..raped a loved one, or killed a friend: but innocent passersby who may have helped him in his time of need. He gave THEIR life zero value and helped to take it. For nothing. Thank you jury. Please lets end it soon. I'd rather lock up those who rob and steal and help them learn a trade to enter society for the better. (In theory). People like this guy.....no remorse. You may be against the death penalty..and that is fine. Because the EU doesn't like it means nothing. Those EU arguments on everything vs the US mean as much to us as a pile of do mess. But we still love you. you should still love us. But guess what? He is a dead man walking...good riddance. If there is an afterlife I pray for his soul to find salvation but his human trip is not of value to our society.

Strangerland I am happy for you! Really! You chose well obviously. I just meet too many people who choose on what everyone else says and for the popular reasons to like someone else. I know so many people who can barely spend an hour alone without talking to someone else, and they end up married for so many wrong reasons.

I love "love". But I also love me and my alone and quiet time. And my freedom to do what I want when I want. In relationships I eaze up a little but someone else's insecurity is not about to be my life. So choosing well and communicating early is important. I don't think modern marriage benefits most men unless they are hell bent on having kids, as having a partner and a secure environment is best. Other than that, it is not needed to have a good relationship with someone. You don't have to do it to raise kids in most western countries but pleas everyone don't scream the reasons its better...I just agreed it is!

@Scipantheist.....you are so right. Your pay minus the expenses for the survival of your family (home, food, kids, all the obvious) should be more than 50% left to the major bread winner. No one is saying the other should be without by any means. It depends on the level of finances brought in. If I bring in $20,000 a month and 7,000 takes care of everything....then I should just give $6,500 to the spouse? Heeeeeellllll no.....but she will live well. And want for nothing at my income level. If she wants Tiger woods money go get him..!

If your life resembles even a third of that list...you're a sucker! If you think modern marriage benifits men, you're a sucker! If you let someone control the finances that you worked for all of you're life...sucker!

Now find a spouse that respects who you are and what you beleive in. If you feel you need a spouse. Many men are pressured into marriage. Bad marriages are many men's fault for picking on cuteness and eye appeal. Then they become hen-pecked suckers. Sorry....thumbs down away but to many lads today are natural born suckers who have drank all the 70's feminist kool aid.

Great job Sasha!! One of my old pals from my Tokyo days!!!

@lasolitaria.....Is it the same thing? A blonde blue eyed immigrant with no Kenyan blood? We are talking about a girl with a Japanese mother. We understand the Japanese reaction up to a point...........But there have been years of putting down of groups mixed into Japanese like the Ryukuans/Koreans/Ainu/westerners..etc. Not someone who moved there but one who's lineage goes through Japanese DNA. In African countries...many who have been colonised in the past forcibly...and told they were ugly...to have a blonde blue eyed immigrant representing them would cause some consternation. Understandably. But we as a human race have a long way to go. I for one don't expect the Japanese to be where other places are on the "mixing" scale........but it is good to see there are some people in Japan who are letting nature take its course.

We are all one race...this young Japanese-black girl won't change Japan but it will wake some people to the realities of a future world. And as long as we can keep from the destroying what resources we have left, we will be ok.

The famous american Cal Ripken broke the baseball Iron Man record for most consecutive games. That man is Sachio Kinusaga. He is a "haafu" with a black father but I had no idea and many of my students did not. It seems if japanese people want to they can deal with it. Especially when they want to champion an achievement. Some of the old timers new but left it out conveniently. This girl will be OK. And she will be an inspiration to younger generation girls that they can stand tall too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachio_Kinugasa

http://weareallmixedup.tumblr.com/post/53810157970/multiracial-june-flashback-sachio-kinugasa

As I sit here looking at a Japanese govermnment approved statement in an English Japanese dictionary given to me in Japan........it says..."there is no single Japanese race. Science reveals the people of Japan to be a mixture of peoples from Southeast Asia, the Korean peninsula and the Ainu race." Now as we know that we also have to add in millions of Ryku islanders and other pacifics who were absorbed....the Chinese/Mongol connection through the Korean penninsula as well as others....it is easy to say she is Japanese and thats it. She has other blood in her but if we were to take a million Japanese and test DNA...not all of them will have Yamato lineage or are from the Jomon people who were here first. Some may have more parts of their DNA of Mongols...some this, that, or the other thing.

Part of the problem is that Japanese people (in general) are taught that they are all the same and that there is a purity to being Japanese. I wish someone in the Japanese Heirarchy like the royals would make a statement contrary to this nonsence. As for the 98.5% that number is an outright government misleading quote spread like a virus. There are millions who are counted among that number who were not born as Japanese citizens and many who have less Japanese blood born to a Japanese mother. To promote this number as "racially" Japanese as I have seen done by many officials in discussions of immigration is a falsehood. People I met who were ethnically Koreans who changed their identities to Japanese names to hide and get passports and blend in hipped me to the "scoop". I then learned of many who were haafu or mixed who looked japanese enough to "pass". This whole Miss Japan thing is needed to help move the country forward. In this new millenium..no country will be immune to the effects of multi-culturism..multi ethnics and so forth. With every passing year it becomes more of the norm worldwide. People are crossing borders in record numbers. No one is trying to force Japan to change......it is happening whether they want it or not. the old guard is dying off and younger generations of humans lean more toward acceptance. Thank God...(or 7th dimensional beings looking down of us like in the movie Interstellar.)

WOW! How stupid. A human being has to eat and PM or not if he wants to go into his wife's spot and grab a bowl of stew he should be able too. What a bunch of nonsense if anyone cares.

One of the problems is that people all up in arms over "haafu" are not for the most part haafu. Do you know what ists like to be mixed race? The terms gaijin and haafu if changed to another term won't change the derision from the people who don't like mixed race people. I am a mixed race person. Most haafu people I have met don't decry the word its the attitude of those who don't want mixed "Japanese" around. You can make any word a negative. I can say "white" people in a conversation in such a way as to make anyone in earshot think I have no respect for them (whites). The same as a white can make "black" people a negative.

This girl winning is a positive step. One day many Japanese will see that being "half" of what they consider Japanese will make no difference if the person was raised in the culture of Japan. It will take a while but the same as any country especially in the west....many bi racial people are called half this and that (race wise.) The parents raising there children as not to let the word hurt them and letting their kids realize that they can use it to some advantage as well as a sense of pride in their dual heritage should be applauded.

@ Laguna..I hope people see what you mean!

But what do we owe Bibi...or Bobo or whatever his nickname is? Nothing. What do we owe Israel as a country? Nothing. Will American blood be shed if they are attacked? Of course. Will they do the same and send a few token boys if we were in a bind....yeah right. GTFO Booboo!

The fact that someone outside of your own is highlighting a problem that is world wide, and stopping by to hang out with your first lady is only good on bringing attention to a good cause. I can't believe how so many people look for the negative in everything. Every first lady shops, spends and travels. If educating and raising the level of women gets brought to the table along the way ...(hopefully it will be furthered by others after the fact) that is a good thing. Cambodia always needs help and why not stop for some good will along the way at our allies house? The point is her budget is already set. Your paycheck taxes, and road repair taxes and social security have nothing to do with the first lady travelling nor do you even know how much she reaches in her own pocket.

And Jackie O? Besides being into fashion and being the wife of a womanizer who did have a good heart for the people...who the hell is she? No more or no less than any of the esteemed lady's to serve as the first lady.

If you want see why education for women and raising their chances in life is important why don't you read this...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/03/asia/india-rape-comment-outrage/index.html

Education gives people better choices. You should be all for anyone bringing it to the forefront even if its someone you try to hate on.

So @bjohnson....where is the abuse. Has any president or his wife NOT travelled the world furthering American interests? At least in this case she is furthering interests that will affect women. What ..you don't have any in your family?

@Richard Wood.....but you have a choice to not get your kid educated in inner city American schools if you go back home. I was educated and learned to read, write and think critically! That led to an education at a public Ivy. Thinking for yourself and challenging allows you to take control of your own learning. I love Japan but not enough of that ids done here. the lack of common sense is scary sometimes.

@ Harvey Pekar.....agree.

For those who think India is being picked on I personally feel otherwise. Of course I know of many women who travelled in India/Bangladesh/Pakistan and all felt safe....because they took more precautions than they would at home. On the travel blogs I frequent advice is given to feel safe in these places as women are not respected to the same degree as in western countries no matter how many politicians or female leaders you can point out. Look at the English blogs and media from India and see what the LOCAL women say. Sexual assault is a problem everywhere but in India where the average guy doesn't get it easily, like most any guy in a western country with liberated women who sometimes decide to "do you" when all you did was say hello. Talk to local in India who are western country experienced. India is not sexually liberated as a whole the way we are. Many men are inundated with internet porn making you think that women outside their countries are so easy. This is a country where revenge rapes and honor killings are still common (though outlawed). I can tell you of times where Indians tourists show up to a friends hotel room hoping and expecting to participate in sex with a girl who thought it was only one guy. And they automatically thought it would be OK. I live in a large metro are in the US. Over 4 million. I watch Asian girls here for English school and country small town white girls walk/travel through so called ghetto areas with dangerous reputations and while and occasional rip off/purse snatching or mugging may occur.......rape of a tourist/ foreigner/outsider is rare. Because these guys get laid daily if not weekly. (Sure thats just a partial reasoning) Education around here about sexual harassment etc is very good actually. I would feel safer with my female loved ones travelling alone in many places.....just not India and the like.

Wow! Anyone even remotely supporting ak48 gets voted down. Just like Bieber and Kardashian millions of people love these girls. Cute is part of Japanese culture to a degree. As said many of these girls are over 20 and every guy who likes a pretty girl in her late teens up to mid 20s is not a pedophile. That being said there are many types of medium in Japan which the rest of the world considers borderline. and we can all see it regularly from manga to young teens in bikinis at 12-13 years old. Agreed. but Our countries all have a dark side and having the girls perform ALONG with other acts and representatives of Japan that may be popular in a few years would not be the worst thing. A few minute melody segue-ing into another act? Relax...I don't think Japan will lose its quirky reputation any decade soon and having an idol group dance and 'sing" wouldn't be the end of the world. I am sure the commitee will think of a good mixture of things Japan is proud of to open the ceremponies. Art and culture some find boring who are in Japan is not as widely known to non Japanophiles and findu=ing a healthy mixture of it to show MAY include another popular teen group if not the AK girls. It will be OK. Japan's reputation and existense will survive an opening ceremony that millions like me don't watch closely. Its just something on TV until we get to the sporting. The most important part.

From Probie... I've seen many people say "Je suis Charlie", who have:

1- called people racist just because they took the side of what the facts say in the Mike Brown case etc...

2- for what happened with Paula Deen saying the "n-word" 30 years ago and getting her fired.

3- getting Don Imus fired for a dumb joke.

The Facts in Mike Brown? What consistent facts? Prosecuters across the US criticized the prosecuter in the Mike Brown case for manipulating the "facts". We don't know all the facts at all because of misinformation. With so many witnesses and stories and even different autopsy specialists and physics professors challenging the "facts" we were given...It's like trying to say who and how Kennedy was shot. The facts aren't all "FACTS".

Paula Deen was said to have used the N-word more recently. Only "she" said it was 30 years ago. Of course! She is the accused! It was more about fostering an environment where people were made to feel inferior due to race or creed etc, not because they sucked at their job. Her son also was involved. So if this person represented your brand it is up to you to decide if your brand is worth that person. And the public has a say when they do the buying. The price you pay for being fake to get people's money when they lose faith in you.

A dumb joke from Don Imus. Yeah its free speech to say that a group of mostly black women are nappy headed hos huh? Don Imus is old school and grew up in the days where saying blacks were nappy headed as a way to show they were inferior to straight haired whites was common. Talk to many who grew up in the 40s and 50's. For women that is hurtful more than most guys. We go bald. Women link some of their beauty to hair. (For many not all) its hurtful and personal. He called them hos. A street vernacular for whores. I never heard him say "those hos are fine" to describe a pretty group of women he liked? Have you? If your daughter was among the targeted you would at least want an apology right. Young college age women. An age where we all are discovering ourselves and learning to deal with how the world sees us.

These things you say were witch hunts but I say proper reactions to free speech that insults or hurts for many people to come out against them. Killing someone over it is a bit too far. Free speech is important but teaching your young children from an early age the golden rule of treating others how you yourself would want to be treated is more important. Maybe humor shouldn't be censored, but many use it as an excuse to hide their predjudices behind. I am sure there were many like that at Charlie Hebdo. But they deserved their free speech and they deserved whatever ridicule that was thrown at them as a result. But they also deserved to live

Pharrell has been pretty famous in music for over a decade. Some of you not into American pop/hip hop/R&B may not know but he has a huge award shelf...I remember some of his big hits under his production teams in the late 90s. And the video was cool. Stop looking for negativity everywhere.

I am surprised by your remarks Cleo. As long as you have been in Japan it seems you are losing your western "freedom" gene. You know as well as I know that you don't (especially more so when he came out of school) have a whole lot of choice with employment contracts in Japan. There is very little negotiation. If it wasn't him it would be some other 22/23 year old just out of school to fill the ranks. They would not fire anyone either...just move them around. BUT...this time they got someone who knew he was worth more than the system teaches here. By bucking that system it gives other young creative minds hope. Lifetime stability is fine, but choice is another matter. You were not raised on this system but you seem to have come to embrace it. What about your progeny? For all of you with kids there is much to think about. Risk has rewards...not always but you have to be in it to win it! Or will you teach your kids to be "hammered down"?

Another insensitive off color joke by a Japanese politician. No Frungy he shouldn't be fired...he should have to answer to his public if that is how he was put in office. It was stupid yes....defines his whole character? We don't know. Does it suggest mass rape? That sounds like the deep end at the other end of the pool. Besides....did you actually take seriously that this would be done on a mass scale? I have heard of "poke the hole in the condom" situations. Actually happened to a friend of mine. They use a needle like a sewing kit. The odds of a pregnancy that way are so tiny...mass rape..really?

Always had a soft spot for Utada....but her English singing is not exceptional by any American standards. At All. Still has cute J-Pop tunes though.

LFRAgain I agree with you all the way. I know many unmarried partially for similar reasons. I want in my life to do and go how I please. After living several years in Japan I realized that marriage goes beyond a good supportive wife and even a kid or two...but into a territory where the husband is just the ATM machine in the eyes of many in Japanese society. I am happy without kids. I am always open to a good woman who matches up to me in all the good ways blah blah blah....but who wants to work for years just to be a drone. Family life is sold to us as the end game. I am happy for those who have a good one...but it ain't for everyone. I agree with what Dan West said because in Japan I know many men feel that way. In the states many men feel that way about marriage, but they still have relationships in most cases. There are many articles in American publications saying similar things.

Oh gosh......such vitriol over sports! First of all the games mentioned are great. B-ball can be played by any inner city kid and will never lose its popularity because they have easy access. No field needed. Courts everywhere. Jordan is like a God in the states. American Football ....which came out of rugby but with our rules...started out as a college men's game(not a kid's game) and was very rough. Blood and injuries. Americans have a love of that type of thing. Young big boys may not be good for soccer but their massive strength and power gets an outlet in American football as well as smaller quick runners and catchers or skilled fast athletes. The American Quarterback is the most popular "stud" in American High schools and colleges. (not always but typical.)

Baseball.....not as great to me per se but in the old days it was a way to relax and watch the boys play. It was a pastime as Am-Fbll was seen as a lout sport of brutes. (That changed).

Soccer was starting to grow at the turn of the century. There was a push by those in power to develop sports that were specific to Americans to lower the influence of England and other Euro countries on the populace. Study the history of soccer in America and you will find this out. I have seen the documentaries and articles about it. But in recent years we care so much more. 20 years ago my friends would laugh at anyone into soccer. In 2002 I mover to Japan and was exposed to international players and really watched how great their athletic ability was and I fell in love with the sport at that level. When you follow individuals (as we DO in the states as said) and watch their youtube vids and see the skill you realize how far behind we are because our best athletes make a ton of money to play BBall/Amftbll/basebll/and to a lesser degree hockey. (especially in the eastern and colder regions).

You love what you grew up with. No sport is boring to those who know it and grew up following it closely. Soccer is growing in America but American Football/basketball/and Baseball will dominate for many years to come. Many Hispanics (a growing number of our population) have their bigger boys playing American Football, many play Baseball already with leagues in Mexico an the Caribbean, and a ton of Europeans compete yearly to make the NBA.(Basketball). Soccer will grow but as you can see the typical European names you are used to will get replaced by more Latin sounding names. I guaranty for the rest of my lifetime, our big three sports will still be. Hockey admittedly does struggle to grow an audience though...

I lived in Tokyo/Yokohama (but worked in Tokyo) for 6 years. It is hands down still on my top cities list. 2 days is enough to look at buildings sure. But this is a dynamic city and I NEVER ran out of things to do. Some people just don't like big cities but as big cities go they do a lot of things well! And I still love New York (5 years working there), and Bangkok (lived there), and one of my new favorites New Orleans. I love Singapore!. You get it, I love big cities.

As for Asia, I recommend to all my fellow Americans that Asia is a great tourist destination. Going somewhere where things are way different than your everyday piques my curiosity. Culture/history/food.....some places cheap some not! Tokyo is nowhere near as expensive as people think. Those local can tell you! A website said 12 eggs were no cheaper than $3 but the usually sell in 10 packs as you know and I always pay about 150 yen and my local grocer. We don't live Forbes magazine ex-pat businessmen salary packages so those surveys can be so wrong. If you plan and prepare visiting Asia/Japan/Tokyo is soooo worth the money!

Incest comics banned to minors. Makes sense but not strong enough. All of Japan should follow this law. All sexual comics should be adults only and NEVER involve kids. That is a well established opinion from westerners here. I must say that in 6 years of living in Tokyo I rarely saw people on the train with that material obviously visible. I DID SEE many sexy scantily clad women in sports newspaper adds.

Where are the parents views in all this in Japan? Do mothers peruse their kids manga in their bedrooms to look for such topics? Are parental controls on the phones and computers strong? In the US they are mediocre at best. And as another poster said INSEST sites are popular worldwide. Huge in the US. That is a topic for another day, but this is a small victory in Tokyo that will have consequences and reverberations outside of the capital. There are many in Japan who realize how these things affect kids and hopefully we will see further action. The fact that most shops have plastic seals on the mags in most combinis was a huge move years ago,

Yasukuni is NOT "just a place for war criminals". It is actually a beautiful setting in the middle of Tokyo that is a peaceful place to chill out and reflect. As a westerner going there is more about the education. There is a museum there with interesting artifacts from the war. Those from the US who decided to fire bomb 100,000 citizens are no different than war criminals in my eyes but that would not stop me from visiting a national cemetery in the US. The kid deserves criticism for many of his behaviors but in this case people are jumping on him just to bandwagon. I understand many Chinese are a little miffed but to expect a western entertainer to have deep knowledge and feelings about a Sino-Japanese feud is silly and the boy should be given a pass. Just going in the place does not mean you support one side or the other.

Kim Seong-hwan (2004). 일제의 침략 전쟁과 병참기지화. SaKyejul. p. 173. ISBN 89-5828-032-8. Of course I can't read the Korean but according to someone who can, over 450,000 Korean males were forced into the war. Kuniaki Koiso was the Japanese Governor General and it was his plan and idea to force them. That is pretty much written by many sources both Japanese, Korean and otherwise. I don't understand Nigelboy why you can't seem to get this.

I'm with hiding out on this one. My life in Japan is/was nothing like anything I read from the whingers here. I'm a big dude also and always had people sitting next to me on the train and no one in my towns avoided me. it was the other way around. I was invited places and did last minute stuff. No planning. Japanese say some things that wouldn't fly in western countries. DUH! It's called cultural differences. When you sit down and explain that to Japanese people who matter in your life most will understand, but it may take some getting used to. Hmmmm...sounds the same when I tell folks of a certain color in the states the things that bother others and they reject it as PC. Give the crying a rest. It is their culture for moms to be narrow minded? Only in Japan? Really?

maybe because so many Japanese we hang out with are music folks like many of my western Tokyo friends things are different but I had many through teaching that are always open to many non planned things. This article has its merits but I can't agree more than say....30-40 percent. I find many of my friends of a certain ethnic hue to have more adaptation issues in Asia. especially the females. But that is my own experience. YMMV.