Japanese Society/Culture
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Nikkeis from South America paid to leave Japan (and not come back to work ever again)
I’ve really been out of the loop, but this was a really interesting read: Japan Pays Foreign Workers to Go Home Even though the dumbass running the program can’t keep his racist views in check, I basically can’t see how having this choice is a completely bad thing. Sure, it’s insulting if you want to think of it like that, but hell – I know a lot of people who have needed to beg, borrow, or steal money to buy a ticket home when everything went wrong. And pride is a luxury for practical people.
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Oh My Pakuri
This is funny but for most of it you need to be able to read Japanese. Thanks to T for turning me onto these on YT.
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Himiko’s Punch Perm (aka Pimiko’s Punch Perm – PPP)
As in, they have reconfirmed Himiko’s tomb as the kofun (burial mound) in Sakurai that T and Adam and I walked around on the way past Miwa Jinja on a cold drizzly day a few years back. You see, this is important because the location of the Yamato kingdom has always been disputed by tourist money-deficient Kyushans who just can’t accept the fact that Nara always has been and always will be the one, the only, the Kingdom of Heavenlike Yamato, biiiiotches. What Kyushu is lacking in ancient bronze mirrors from China (burial mound evidence), however, it makes up for in cultural value. So let that be a lesson to…
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Democracy in Obama City
It doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but homeboy gets points for pseudo-fundoshi and giant Garfield flying kick cop-out.
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aikoku
http://kimigayowachiyoniyachiyonisazare-ishinoiwaotonaritekokenomusuma.de
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The Road Warrior would be really happy in post-apocalyptic Japan (because he wouldn’t have to worry about tolls/gas/speeding tickets)
There’s an excellent article up at the Japan Times that explains some of the reasons why even though the government used to subsidize half of the toll for the bridge to the mainland I used every weekend when living on Awajishima, I still had to pay 2600 yen (one way!): Japan’s many roads to ruin “The results have been a disaster. Certainly, Japan has a lot of roads: four to five times the number of any other Group of Seven country when measured by kilometers of road to usable land. The trouble is, a lot of these roads are in places where they are not needed. The country has an…
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Some Mother Frakking Group – OMFG with an “S”
OK it’s time to go on a Japan kick for a couple posts. Is it just me, or is SMFG the worst named financial institution, ever? As in, “SMFG agrees deal with Citi to buy Nikko Cordial.” They might as well call themselves the Stealing Fuckers or Nipponese Moneylending Urchins of Doom (NMUD).
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Kings get bored.
The Death Of D1 – The Rise And Fall My bootleg drifting vids will one day be worth millions (of Zimbabwe dollars?).
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Asics Origami
Watch:
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Fuck Mount Fuji (also, Fuck Mt. Fuji)
Out of all the fucking glorious mountains in the world, why is Mt. Fuji so universally beloved? I can’t believe nobody’s ever written this before. So I reiterate: FUCK FUJIYAMA* Some people like mountain climbing; I like mountain hating. FUCK YOU FUJISAN, YOU STUPID DORMANT VOLCANO! Also, just to cover all bases: FRAK YOU, MT. FUJI!!! ///////////////////////// * For some reason, Thais call it Fujiyama. I hadn’t even heard this word until I came to Thailand, but wikipedia says, “Fuji-san is sometimes referred to as ‘Fujiyama’ in some Western texts, but this reading is not correct in standard Japanese.” ** This post was spurred by this comment.
