Posted in: 2 Koreas agree to form first unified Olympic team See in context
@Crazyjoe
Agree with you!
Should SK players that trained for months or years be dropped from the team just to please politicians and include NK players?
While a nice gesture this should not have been done just a few weeks ahead of the olympics on a political decision but on a sport point of view
I lost interest in that Olympics
7 ( +10 / -3 )
Posted in: 5,000 sprint for title of ‘Lucky Man’ See in context
Just to add the winner is 18 and got a barrel of sake
Surprised he can officially get sake from the organizers as he his legally underage to drink
0 ( +1 / -1 )
Posted in: 5,000 sprint for title of ‘Lucky Man’ See in context
No chance to win if not just behind the gate at the start
So I am wondering how they line up. A draw ? Best guys automatically at the start ? Or just coming in early and waiting for hours?
I guess winners and best runners from the previous years have a VIP card to be in front
And the others behind coming for fun
0 ( +1 / -1 )
Posted in: Japanese firm says it will pay part of salaries in Bitcoin See in context
when the Mt Gox scandal happened in 2009, all the officials were blaming this non regulated currency not created by any government and wanted to get rid of it, which was my understanding. I think they were starting to get afraid it strongly concurrences the actual currency, but also because it was use for underground transactions.
Now they did regulate it to also start to get part of the cake. No blame anymore
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Japan pledges $2.9 bil for universal health coverage See in context
This is just pat of the duty and the bill major countries give to the UN, with the money spent under the UN program.
Nothing new here, it's been like that for decades. It is just an announcement affect by Shinzo.
if it's not spent on health it will be for infrastructure or whatever.
Can not complain that Japan provides support for the World population health
5 ( +5 / -0 )
Posted in: Ruling camp finalizes plan to introduce departure tax from Jan 7, 2019 See in context
Will Abe pay everytime he will leave?
14 ( +15 / -1 )
Posted in: EU, Japan conclude gigantic free trade deal See in context
Will the European food be cheaper?
I hope the French cheese will
8 ( +8 / -0 )
Posted in: Police arrest 3 N Korean fishing boat crew for theft See in context
These guys have some old wooden boats, rather small, so first how could they survive about 2 months at sea as they claim before the steering wheel failed a month ago. That's my first interrogation,
Then they have been kept in custody but on their boat so they could try to escape, Hasn't Japan some immigration center where the country keeps illegal foreigners? Is that sensitive as they are from NK so they let them in the boat?
As the boat doesn't seem to have any roof. It must be cold to stay at night over there
7 ( +9 / -2 )
Posted in: Top court finds charging subscription fee for NHK broadcasts constitutional See in context
NHK is for me the best channel in Japan. Not talking about NHK general, too much Japan oriented but NHK BS which has some very good programs and documentaries on nature culture or sports, broadcasting sometimes some BBC programs very well done
The news on NHK general recently in the evening 21h has been better and the journalist gives more his opinion than it used to be, opinions that can be critical of the government too. It has to be listened in Japanese
And they don't have that brainwashing commercials
Don't mind to pay
-4 ( +2 / -6 )
Posted in: JR East to run special train for cycling enthusiasts See in context
I live already in Chiba and won't take that train but it is a good idea and can be popular for cycling enthousiastes from Tokyo where there are no cycling roads in my opinion, though the ticket is too expensive.
Cyclists have money for their bikes but not for transportation, and that's my case actually.
The train is only for 99 persons so it will work for a while but at the end of the day, true cyclists will travel with their bikes in a bag to save money and rather put it on some cycling parts or whatever
I have two bikes one aluminum one carbon slightly expensive. I do not think I would like to put my carbon bike in that racks. I guess the system has been made not to damage the frame by contact during transportation
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Kumamoto assemblywoman causes stir by bringing 7-month-old son into chamber See in context
She knows the rules and should abide. An assembly is not the place to bring a baby,. Next time it will be kids, then relatives....
Then the elderlies we have to take car of.
She should pay a babysitter if she has absolutely to go to the assembly and can not find any other way, otherwise take a day off
she wanted to make a fuss
in my knowledge no countries accept babies in an assembly like that
-9 ( +1 / -10 )
Posted in: 8 men found on boat off Akita say they came from N Korea See in context
Should apply for a refugee status, by claiming the fear of being persecuted once back to NK.
Let's see if they are the lucky ones
3 ( +4 / -1 )
Posted in: Japan pledges to help Philippines rebuild Marawi See in context
rail infrastructure to river defenses
river defenses means cement the river banks
Hope for some natural defenses if possible but that does not make enough money for corporations
rail onfrastructure is in case of Shinkansen building a lot of bridges etc as it works on an elevated track
3 ( +3 / -0 )
Posted in: Aso clarifies comments attributing election win to N Korea See in context
More than the media, the J government itself does increase that fear mongering by putting the J Alert over nearly half of the country for an object flying 2000km overhead and that already passed over when the alert is launched.
Whatever the alert there is not much to be protected anyway and Rocket Man has no intention for the time being of attacking any country. He will never attack first
Anyway watch your head on November 5th when Abe Trump will enjoy their golf
4 ( +5 / -1 )
Posted in: 'Vanishing village' looks to LDP for survival See in context
old beliefs old beliefs in LDP
Not surprising from a village that has provided Prime Ministers, ties with the central government are strong
LDP might support that villagers but the LDP has created a huge ans still worsening debt. Japan would be company it would be bankrupted
Anyway, elderlies vote and most of them for the LDP, that's why it is winning
And they prefer the stability than trying any change
16 ( +16 / -0 )
Posted in: U.S. military helicopter bursts into flames on landing in Okinawa See in context
According to yesterday's evening news on Asahi and a report they got from the army, the helicopter took fire in the air and then make an emergency landing quickly after. So it dit not took fire after landing
1 ( +2 / -1 )
Posted in: Kobe Steel reports wider fudging of metals data since 2011 See in context
Many of these big corporation and their old governance still live with their old minds. They have hard times to face now a stiff competition and search by bad ways, if they can't find a proper one to reduce costs to keep margins and eventually dividends. Same with Toshiba, Fujitsu... And I don't even talk about the gas emission scandal including the major foreign carmakers. I think only Toyota has not been into that scandal up to now.
All the guys behind data falsification or accounting "errors should be severely condemned.
8 ( +9 / -1 )
Posted in: Municipalities hold workshops to drum up interest in hunting See in context
Hunting is from an other age.
it used to be necessary to feed people but not anymore. This was mainly concerning people living in the countryside and the skills were transmitted from generation to generation. This is not the case anymore, population decreasing in rural areas, and food being largely available at supermarkets.
And, how can we find any pleasure to killing living species in the wild.
Though I love deer meat, I won't kill it.
My family used to hunt up to my grandfather generation, not anymore
In my area in France, deers became more or less protected and have multiplied bringing lot of ticks associated diseases such as the Lyme disease
-2 ( +8 / -10 )
Posted in: TEPCO starts freezing last section of ice wall around Fukushima reactor See in context
@since1981
The water does not flow directly into the ocean, it is pumped before reaching the sea around the reactors. They have released into the ocean when she storage capacity is full.
@Disillusioned
Freezing wall is a proven technology. It has been used for years in mining to prevent any water inflow into some underground mines
2 ( +3 / -1 )
Posted in: Defense ministry seeks record Y5.26 tril budget See in context
Inflated budget
Always asking for more
4 ( +5 / -1 )
Posted in: Japan's factory output up in June See in context
A monthly change does not show much. It might be down next month.
It's just good for the government communication
Let's wait for the quarterly, bi-annually figures
0 ( +0 / -0 )
Posted in: N Korea claims to have tested its first ICBM, reaching altitude of 2,802 km See in context
2800km altitude looks pretty high to me for such a short flight
Again a lie from NK or the superpower from Kim
Many sites among them Wikipedia mention the max altitude is about 750 miles or 1200km
1 ( +2 / -1 )
Posted in: Beer, butter, postcard prices go up See in context
Whiskey,Chu-hi, Shochu, all that far too cheap alcohols that make people quickly drunk and are a gate for alcool addiction should be increased with a high price hike
-1 ( +0 / -1 )
Posted in: Japanese essayist, TV newscaster Sawako Agawa announces first marriage at 63 See in context
In Japan, married couples are required to share the same family name. (The man can take the woman's name.)
Unless the spouse is a foreigner. In that case it is not a requirement
4 ( +4 / -0 )
Posted in: Dozens join hunger strike at Japanese immigration center See in context
Worth to be noted
This news was related in Yahoo Japan top news yesterday
It is not often that the mainstream media relates issues related to immigration centers
6 ( +8 / -2 )
Posted in: Music label Avex failed to pay hundreds of millions of yen in overtime See in context
They never failed
They were aware of it
2 ( +2 / -0 )
Posted in: 34,247 bicycles left abandoned at Tokyo train stations in 2016 See in context
As far as I know, shops require to register the bike when buying it. For used bikes it is better to register to change the ownership just in the uncommon case the police becomes zealous and decides for some controls. It never happens anyway. Registered my used bike 15 years ago just for that
Used bikes used to be shipped to North Korea that was recycling them to use the metal. I think this has stopped due to the international sanctions
1 ( +1 / -0 )
Posted in: Foreigners in Japan face significant levels of discrimination, survey shows See in context
After 17years in Japan I have never faced any discrimination. The only discriminating thing I could mention was to have its ID checked st a camping ground in the countryside that was empty just because foreigners caused trouble before. It's not really what we can call discrimination. Never been to a real estate here and never had any problem with the banks except to get a loan as I did not have permanent residency at that time, but being a full time employee in a Japanese company helps, as being a European Living in the countryside I can just say that people do not think much and speak naturally Japanese while in my experience in Tokyo it is not always the case But I have heard many times from friends the refusal from real estate
1 ( +2 / -1 )
Posted in: France, Japan back free navigation in Asia-Pacific, Abe says See in context
@Yubari
France proposed its experience and help to cope with the Fukushima disaster and some experts came here to assess the situation but at the end of the day Japan kindly refused any assistance and just accepted a water decontamination unit which Japan said does not work. In addition to giving jobs to the locals Japan just wanna use Fukushima to develop its own technologies then in a few years will try to get some decommissioning tenders overseas
3 ( +4 / -1 )
Posted in: 78-year-old woman hit, killed by train after pushcart gets stuck in tracks See in context
Street surveillance camera footage showed the elderly woman fall over after her pushcart got stuck in the tracks minutes before a train was due.
I wonder how many minutes passed. I don't know that area but I am surprised nobody was around for minutes. Must have been an isolated area or very quiet area in the middle of Toshima ward
3 ( +4 / -1 )
I blame the superficial nature of humans for this.
Posted in: Tourists in Kyoto cause chaos at railway crossing near Fushimi Inari Taisha
Posted in: Trump tells prayer breakfast he wants to root out 'anti-Christian bias' and urges 'bring God back'
Posted in: Trump tells prayer breakfast he wants to root out 'anti-Christian bias' and urges 'bring God back'
Posted in: U.S. judge blocks Trump buyout offer for government workers until at least Monday