Jappanica – Page 11 – Mutantfrog Travelogue

Nakajima Miyuki says “NO” Declines to Appear on Horie’s Nippon Broadcasting

Tamori, Kuramoto Sou join the singer… A major impact on future programming

Singer-songwriter Nakajima Miyuki (53), who was a popular personality on Nippon Broadcasting’s late-night ratings gem, “All Night Nippon,” talk-show host Tamori and others declared on March 24 that they would boycott appearances if Horie Takafumi’s (32) Livedoor grabbed managing rights of the TV station. The channel has submitted this in writing to the Tokyo High Court.

According to the document, besides the above-mentioned tarento, Emoto Takenori (57), a news analyst who has worked for the station for 23 years, cameramen Kuramoto Sou (70) and Ichimori Hajime (57) have submitted that they will stop work, and if all the signatories leave Nippon Broadcasting at one, it will be a major blow to Horiemon (Horie’s affectionate nickname).

“All Night” began broadcasting in October 1965. Besides Nippon Broadcasting President Kamebuchi Terunobu, famous faces such as Beat Takeshi, Akashiya Sanma, Kuwata Keisuke (of the Southern All-Stars), and Matsutoya Yumi have worked as personalities on the show in the past, and even now Ninety Nine is hosting the show and it continues to receive high ratings.

In the document submitted to the Court, Nippon Broadcasting stressed, “A talent boycott would mean lower ratings and lower our value as an advertising medium.”

Biker gangs a thing of the past? After 11 years, “Bosozoku” disappear

Via ZAKZAK:

Hiroshima Prefectural Police announced Mar 18 that their Bosozoku/Youth Crimes Division, which was responsible for controlling the activities of “Bosozoku” or Japanese youth biker gangs, would merge with the Youth Development Division on April 1 to become the new Youth Crimes Division. Most of the gangs have disbanded, creating less of a need to monitor them.

Since installing the Counter-Bosozoku Office in 1994, a Division with the word “Bosozoku” in it will disappear from the Prefectural Police after 11 years.

Bosozoku clashed with riot police in 1999’s Ebisu Matsuri (festival). Since then, a movement to eliminate the Bosozoku came into being, with a Bosozoku Banishment Ordinance and other measures. At the end of last year, membership in Bosozoku had decreased to under one third its peak number (in 1999), 119 people.

My Comment: I knew that Bosozoku were out of style, but at this rate maybe they’ll disappear entirely within a few years.

Kawanishi’s Human Rights Ombudsperson Reports

From Mainichi Local:

Complaints about family, friends on the rise

Kawanishi, Hyogo’s Children’s Human Rights Ombudsperson, the first such 3rd-party moderator in Japan, will release its yearly reporton Mar 19 at 1:30 PM at its general office in Hidaka-cho.

According to the report, last year there were 179 complaints, and a total of 504 since the ombudsman was installed. The content of complaints was (in order from most to fewest cases): family, friends, mental-phyical health problems, bullying, teachers.

Ombudsperson Tanaka Fumiko, who reported to the Mayor Takashibau on Mar 10, said, “Since I am a third party, I would like to continue listening to children and think about their problems with them.”

An example of the very liberal local governing in Japan. Japan’s cities tend to be generous in offering socialized health care and living stipends for poor families due to their federal funding.

Kokutai National Sports Festival to Be Almost Completely Opened to Foreigners

Daily Sports Presents!

It was announced on Mar. 2nd that the restrictions on qualifications for participation in the Kokutai, Japan’s national sports festival, will be greatly relaxed for students of Korean schools in Japan, Japanese-Brazilians, and other players and coaches with foreign citizenship to take, opening the door for their participation. The Japan Amateur Sports Association (JASA) will make the official decision at a Kokutai Committee meeting on Mar. 4. The changes are expected to be implemented in next years combined Kokutai in Hyogo Prefecture.

Under current regulation Japanese citizenship is a prerequisite for participation in the Kokutai, and limited to foreign students of Japan Basic Education Law Clause 1-defined schools (Clause 1 Schools) who are (1) entered in such high schools or colleges, (2) have been an exchange student of such high schools or colleges for more than 1 year, or (3) graduated from such high schools or colleges.

The revision to rules regarding players and coaches of foreign nationalities will admit long-term residents (as defined by the Immigration Law) as participants, treating them in the same way as Japanese citizens. This change will allow the participation of students of Korean and other ethnic and international schools, defined as “various schools” the same as preparatory schools in the Basic Education Law.

International students at Japanese universities, heretofore barred from participating, will be allowed in if they have lived in Japan continuously for 3 years.

The National High School Sports Federation has been accepting non-Clause 1 school students since 1994.

My Comment: Well, it’s about time. The government has also recently decided to allow graduates of International Universities apply to Japanese grad school. Good going, guys!

Nippon TV Internal Inquiry Results Released (Abiru Yuu Pt. 2) DS:　「カミングダウト」調査結果発表-

以下はデイリースポーツからのパクリです。

Daily Sports reports that Nippon TV now knows just how Abiru Yuu’s scandalous past made it onto the quiz show:

According to a report of an internal investigation by Nippon TV, the story of Abiru’s past theft came up during a meeting between the TV Station and Abiru’s agency, after which it was used on the show. It is said to have aired without the management’s approval at either a program meeting or at editing.

Now, what I think is so strange is how quick the station is to melt under any kind of pressure. Whatever happened to free speech? I realize that Japanese TV, while somewhat more liberal about showing naked breasts (thought they’ve grown far more conservative recently) and English swear words than the US, is still extremely sensitive to “inappropriate” broadcasting, which includes political speech, mention of the mentally ill or ethnic minorities, and various words for sexual organs or behavior. But what, really, is so “inappropriate” about mentioning someone’s checkered past?

Strangest of all is the fact that these TV stations are so careful without the threat of government fines, as in the US. There is a law in Japan stating that TV broadcasters must refrain from broadcasting “harmful and inappropriate” material, but there is no enforcement provision at all. Can someone with some knowledge about this clue me in please?

Japanese fans to be allowed to watch World Cup Qualifier in Pyongyang

From Daily Sports Online:
It came to light Feb. 22 that North Korea plans to allow Japanese supporters into the country for the World Cup final qualifying round between Japan and the DPRK to be held June 8 in Pyongyang. Japan Football Association Vice President Ogura Junji unveiled the news at a press conference in Tokyo. This is the first time North Korea has officially allowed Japanese sports fans into the country, in what promises to bring a large number of Japanese fans into a country with whom they do not have diplomatic ties.

According to those involved with Japan-DPRK relations, it is said that NK will allow from 2000-5000 Japanese supporters in the country. And NK has made promises to allow a 100-journalist, 50-cameraman media group to cover the Japan-DPRK match, however only on the condition that “coverage is limited to soccer.”

As this is an unprecedented number of Japanese traveling to the DPRK, there is expected to be some wrangling in finding accommodations and flights for all these people. Also, this plan may be affected by proposed sanctions on the country over the North’s kidnapping of Japanese nationals.

My Comment: Nice! This is bound to inspire more than a few interesting travelogues. Looks like the story’s already been covered in English. Oh well, I already translated it.

The obscene excesses of JASRAC

“We want to give lessons without worrying about royalties”
Self-made dance music CDs grow in popularity

According to the royalty guidelines of the Japan Association of Recording Artists’ Copyrights (JASRAC) , royalties for music used in a social dance classroom vary based on the number of teachers and the lesson fee, but they can be assumed to reach the amount of 3,000-20,000 yen per month. However, many people have expressed dissatisfaction, wondering “Is it really necessary to collect fees even for music used to practice dancing?” According to JASRAC, of the 2500 classrooms nationwide about 40% are not paying.

In response to this non-payment, JASRAC sued 7 dance studios in Nagoya demanding royalties for the past 10 years in Nagoya Regional Court. Last September, the Supreme Court rejected the classrooms’ appeal and commanded them to pay the 46,360,000 yen that the Regional Court awarded JASRAC.

This is the story behing the self-made CD movement.
Continue reading The obscene excesses of JASRAC

No beer and no gyudon make ossan go crazy!

Last year, after Yoshinoya ran out of its famous gyudon (see here for background), there were multiple cases of ossan (middle-aged men) getting violent and demanding their beef bowls. It seemed as though these men couldn’t understand just what was going on and were hurt by the change.

Well, last week those wounds were ripped open as Yoshinoya resurrected its long-absent gyudon — for one day only in commemoration of the first anniversary of the ban (一年ぶりに、一日だけ）. I don’t know where they got the beef, but it was a momentous day that brought people out of the woodwork to get their hands on that sweet beefy goodness. And right on cue, some people got way too excited about it and did stupid shit like this:

The headline: Car crashes into Yoshinoya on “gyudon resurrection day”

The arrows point to people “still eating” despite the fact that they were almost killed by a runaway car. That’s dedication, folks.
Continue reading No beer and no gyudon make ossan go crazy!

Spam in Japanese part 2 いろんな迷惑メールその２

日本語の原稿をご覧いただくにはこちらをクリックしてください。

“Nice to meet you. I’m Yukari. You were looking for a sex friend, right? Mind if I apply? Umm, I have a boyfriend, but he’s not satisfying me, so please become my fuck buddy. It looks like we live close to each other, so first of all I’d like to confirm our sexual compatibility. Here’s a simple profile:
Sagara Yukari (My real name, but the kanji are secret for now lol, 24 years old, work as a telephone operator. My 3 sizes (bust, waist, hip?) are 92-61-88 (cm), and my breast are G-cup (about a D in American sizes). I’m kind of like an albino, so if you prefer tanned gyaru then you might not like me. Umm, I’m kind of a masochist when it comes to sexual habits… That’s why I’m a little unsatisfied when I have sex with my boyfriend. I’d like soft SM, like where you’d tease me by inserting from the back, or taking me on dates in a miniskirt with no panties, how about it?
Or are you looking for a normal sex friend who isn’t a masochist woman? Um, anyway I await your reply☆”

It’s written well enough so that someone with their guard down might actually respond. Click “Read the rest” to see the original Japanese.
Continue reading Spam in Japanese part 2 いろんな迷惑メールその２

The Non-formation of Intellectual Individuals at the Root of Society’s Fragility

お正月ごろに日本に遊びに行ったら、なぜか日本の週間雑誌にハマってしまって何冊もアメリカに持って帰った。ココで英訳するのは、東洋経済で見つけた北大の教授による「戦後６０周年の日本はどうすればよいのか」についてのオピニオンである。日本語の原稿はこちら。彼もWordPressで作ったブログを持っているらしい。さすが。この英訳記事をもとに僕らの存在をしらせようと思う。

OK, back to real posts. This opinion piece from Toyo Keizai (E. Asian Economy) Magazine comes a bit late, but it’s a very thought-out leftist stance that I have yet to see in the English language. Here you go:

by Yamaguchi Jiro (Professor, Hokkaido Univ.)　← Wow, it looks like he’s got a WordPress blog! Cool! And here‘s the Japanese original of this article:

The politics of 2005 have already begun. This year there are few major elections, save for the Tokyo Assembly, and it is predicted that there will be little change in Japan’s political situation. Quite the contrary, with the 60th anniversary of the end of WW2, we should perhaps make 2005 the year in which we recap how far Japan has come since the war and further the debate on Japan’s future path.

Looking back at the 50th anniversary of the war’s end 10 years ago, we must acknowledge a huge difference in the international environment and domestic opinion. 10 years ago, Murayama Tomiichi, then chairmnan of the Japan Socialist Party, had the Prime Minister’s seat, and public opinion displayed reflection over the past half-century along with a sense of atonement with the victims of the War. Furthermore, Japan bent over backward to achieve resolution on various pending issues, such as aid for “comfort women” and reconciliation ceremonies with the various countries in Asia via PM Murayama’s 50th Anniversary talks.

However, 10 years later, the Japanese public overflows with the exact opposite sentiment, as shown in their distrust of surrounding countries and their dissatisfaction with being made the villain of modern history. The PM is visiting Yasukuni Shrine, and plenty of people support him. And as Japanese-American military cooperation deepens, we have gone so far as to send SDF troops all the way to the Middle East. The postwar framework of the SDF and security has been dismantled, and Article 9 of the Constitution has already lost its significance as a norm. And in the case of the Japanese hostages in Iraq, the opinion that those who oppose the government’s policies deserve to die reached all the way to parts of the mass media. Continue reading The Non-formation of Intellectual Individuals at the Root of Society’s Fragility