Category: Japan

6% of Japanese men EXPECT to be homeless in 10 years!

Do you expect to end up like this Korean man?

The subject of where I see myself in 20 years has been a recent topic of discussion (still thinking about it, I blame a society that offers too many choices, not enough guidance). So I found it an odd coincidence that Japan Today has recently printed, with no sense of journalistic responsibility, a shady survey done by weekly magazine SPA! measuring where Japanese men see themselves in 10 years. Go ahead and read for yourself, but I ound this part to be the most interesting:

A generation ago, notes Spa!, a survey like this would have been pointless. Life ran on the rails then; people knew what was in store for them. If you were entry-level in 1975, by 1985 you’d be a “kacho” or section head, making so-much a year, married, living in a house you could visualize as clearly as you could the company dorm you’d be going home to that night — and so on. The predictability was dull but secure. Almost no one would have said, as 30% do now, that they expect to be unemployed in 10 years, surviving on occasional jobs. Still less would anyone have foreseen — as 6% do today — homelessness.

WTF? I’ll admit this is the first survey I’ve seen that asks such a question, who in the hell actually “expects” to be homeless?! I mean, if that was actually a concern of yours, wouldn’t you try and at least DO something about it? Just asking.

Robots relieve us from another dangerous recreation

After reading the terrifying news that riding a bicycle makes you impotent on October 4th, I was relieved to learn just the next day that a Japanese company is developing bicycle riding robots. Finally, the pressure is off. Perhaps this is an adaption of preexisting camel jockey robot technology?

(Seriously, the wrong kind of bicycle seat will make you impotent with too much use. Luckily, the article also says that buying a non-saddle seat will help you avoid those problems.)

Mutant Frog Exclusive: The LDP’s Preamble to the New Japanese Constitution

The Liberal Democratic Party intends to release their proposed new Japanese Constitution next month, at the party’s 50th anniversary. Until then, here’s a leaked version (with MFT’s rough translation) of the preamble:

　日本国民はアジアの東、太平洋と日本海の波洗う美しい島々に、天皇を国民統合の象徴としていただき、和を尊び、多様な思想や生活信条をおおらかに認め合いつつ、独自の伝統と文化をつくり伝え、多くの試練を乗り越えてきた。

The Japanese people have, upon the beautiful wave washed islands of East Asia’s Sea of Japan, while taking the Emperor as the unifying symbol of the people and mangnanimously acknowledging diversity in thought and lifestyle, created and transmitted a distinctive culture and overcome a great number of trials.

　日本国は、主権を持つ民主主義国家で、国政は国民の信託に基づき、国民の代表が担当し、その成果は国民が受ける。

The nation of Japan is a sovereign, democratic state whose government is based on the trust of the people, with which the people’s representatives are charged, and whose results are borne by the people.

　日本国は、自由、民主、人権、平和、国際協調を国の基本として堅持し、国を愛する国民の努力によって国の独立を守る。

The nation of Japan maintains freedom, democracy, human rights, peace, and international cooperation as the fundamentals of the nation and protects its independence via the effort of a people who love their country.

　日本国民は正義と秩序による国際平和を誠実に願い、他国とともに協力し合う。国際社会において、圧政や人権の不法な侵害をなくすため不断の努力を行う。

The Japanese people, faithfully wishing for an international peace based on justice and order, cooperate with other nations. In international society, [the Japanese people] will make persistent efforts to eliminate tyranny and the illegal violation of human rights.

　日本国民は、自由とともに公正で活力ある社会の発展と国民福祉の充実を図り、教育の振興と文化の創造と地方自治の発展を重視する。自然との共生を信条に、美しく豊かな地球環境を守るため力を尽くす。

The Japanese people, for the fulfillment of a free, fair and vibrant society, emphasize the development of the promotion of education and the creation of culture. Making living as one with nature an article of faith, the Japanese people make every effort to protect the beautiful and bountiful global environment.

　日本国民は、大日本帝国憲法および日本国憲法の果たした歴史的意味を深く認識し、現在の国民とその子孫が、世界の諸国民とともに、さらに正義と平和と繁栄の時代を内外につくることを願い、日本国の根本規範として自ら日本国民の名においてこの憲法を制定する。

The Japanese people, while deeply acknowledging the historical meaning of the Imperial Constitution of Japan and the Japanese Constitution, establish this Constitution in the name of themselves, the Japanese people, as the fundamental norm of the Japanese nation, while the present Japanese people and their progeny wish for the creation, both domestically and internationally, of a further just, peaceful, and prosperous era along with the various peoples of other nations.

Cannibal beef

For those who were wondering why Japan has still not ended their ban on US beef, today’s NYT makes it quite clear.

The F.D.A. proposed banning from animal feed the brains and spinal cords of cows more than 30 months old. It also proposed banning the same parts of any animal not passed by inspectors as suitable for human food, any tallow that contained more than 0.15 percent protein and any meat contained in brain or spinal column that was separated from carcasses by machine.

The new proposal would still allow animals to be fed material that some scientists consider potentially infectious, including the brains and spinal cords of young animals; the eyes, tonsils, intestines and nerves of old animals; chicken food and chicken dung swept up from the floors of poultry farms; scrapings from restaurant plates; and calf milk made from cow blood and fat.

[…]

Michael K. Hansen, an expert on prion diseases at the Consumers Union, called the proposed regulations “completely inadequate,” noting that Britain “took many halfway steps in their efforts to eliminate mad cow disease and failed to stop it.” Only when it stopped feeding mammals to food animals did they cut the cases down to less than 10 a year, he said.

Watch your language

First, the story as reported by The Japan Times:

Police arrested four members of a rightwing group Thursday on suspicion of defaming the chief priest of Meiji Shrine last autumn by claiming in loudspeaker truck protests that he had embezzled money.

Toshio Takahashi, 60, head of Kokubo Doshisha (Group to Defend the Country), and group members Kei Sasaki, 69, Shin Sasaki, 34, and Osamu Nakagawa, 33, were arrested on suspicion of slandering the shrine’s chief priest, Katsushi Toyama, 73, police said.

Investigators believe the acts were connected to Meiji Shrine’s erroneous failure to use on invitation cards the appropriate honorific language to describe a visit by Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko last April.

The shrine, dedicated to Emperor Meiji (1852-1912), used the phrase “ryo denka” (“their highnesses”) instead of “ryo heika” (“their majesties”).

The shrine’s mistake drew criticism from various nationalist groups. A senior member of another group was arrested in February for allegedly breaking windows at Toyama’s home in Setagaya Ward.

According to police, Takahashi and the other three paraded in loudspeaker trucks in the shrine’s vicinity last September and October.

Their speeches featured slanderous claims, including that the chief priest had pocketed income from Meiji Jingu Stadium, investigators said. Between last September and February, the group paraded near the shrine in loudspeaker trucks some 150 times, according to police.

What exactly were the right wingers so upset about? What do these titles even mean?

Meiji Jingu accidentally referred to the Emperor and Empress as ryou-denka. (両殿下) Denka (the prefix simply means ‘both’) in modern usage is a proper way to refer to the princes and princesses of the Imperial family. In earlier times it was also, beginning with the time of the Emperor Daigo (reign 897-930), used to refer to the Fujiwara clan regents who held much of the political power, and eventually by the Shoguns who ran the government during the Muromachi and Edo periods.

The term that the shrine should have used is Ryou-heika (両陛下). Heika is the correct term of address for the Emperor, Empress, the previous Emperor’s wife, or the Imperial Dowager.

According to various Japanese language articles, there was also a second reason for the right-wing protests.

In august of last year, after some sort of quarrel (I haven’t read about the details), the Meiji Shrine withdrew from the Jinja-honchou (神社本庁) in August of last year. It was actually at that time that the right wing groups began their campaign of harassment, which they were ordered to stop by the courts in October. The Jinja-honchou is the nation-wide Shinto organization that was established following the post-war dissolution of state-Shinto. Approximately half of all Shinto shrines in Japan currently belong to the association.

For reference, here is what one of the trucks from one of Japan’s other fascist organizations looks like. Notice the large Japanese flag on the right side, and on the left the chrysanthemum seal of the Imperial Family with the character, 自( short for 自由, meaning ‘freedom’) in the middle. The slogan on top reads ‘Establish an independent constitution,’ which of course means one that does not limit Japan’s military activities, and I would hazard, also isn’t so hung up over protecting the civil rights of Japan’s foreign population.

Beneath Japan’s Cuteness

Yesterday Roy posted on Census-kun, the Giant Baby whose cuteness will compel all ethnic Japanese (and from the look of things, quite possibly Daniel Carl) to participate in counting Japan’s declining population, which is expected to peak at 127.74 million in 2006.

Not to be outdone, today I’d like to introduce readers to a valuable online resource that is not without its own brand of cuteness…The Ministry of Finance!

That’s right, The Ministry of Finance.

Seeing Census-kun reminded me of a user-friendly tax brochure the Ministry of Finance put out several years ago. The brochure, called “Let’s Talk About Taxes,” featured a cute claymation-like family of six who explores the wonderful world of government income and expenditure.

Who us? Cute?

Who, us? Cute?

Don’t let the cuteness fool you however. The contents of the brochure are excellent and provide a great introduction and overview to Japan’s current fiscal situation that most people might otherwise shy away from if it weren’t for the cartoon characters. Think of them as sugar coating on a bitter pill, or the lime wedge following a tequila shot.

But worry not dear reader, for the cuteness doesn’t end there. In visiting the MOF site I noticed a curiously cute button just above the one that takes you to the aforementioned tax guide. I clicked on it and the next thing I know I’m in Finance Town!

Go! Go! Finance Town!

In Finance town, visitors join the Finance kids, Noboru, Wataru, and Hikaru along with their two mouse-buddies and a lazy-ass cat called Doranyago, who wears a cape and superhero get up and apparently never pays his taxes. You can go fishing, perform high-flying acrobatics on the trapeze, or play dodge ball. Play the games, learn about the importance of paying taxes, and then go take the Finance Quiz. Perform well and make Doranyago pay his taxes!

Here again, don’t let the cuteness fool you. I actually learned a few things from the quiz. I don’t want to reveal too much for those of you who haven’t taken it yet, but I had no idea that there was 入湯税 in Japan, or that the symbol for a tax office on a map is patterned after the bead on an abacus!