asiafriend comments

I have been to Matsuyama many times, in fact, much of Shikoku. Matsuyama Castle lit up at night is a beautiful sight. The mandarin oranges, called mikans (unshuu oranges) are fantastically delicious and exported around the world. A great place to visit.

I don't see Israel killing any Palestinians because the blood of innocent in people in Gaza is totally and unequivocally on Hamas. Hamas even bombed their own hospital, either because of missile failure or most likely to gain sympathy by blaming Israel. When Hamas uses human beings as human shields, what do you think will happen? Wakeup Hamas terrorist lovers! Their charter even calls for the elimination of Israel. You want this to end? Then protest against Hamas. Let's see how well that will go.

MocheakeApr. 8  10:23 am JST

America is not, nor has ever been, a meritocracy. Take a look at the States that are listed: Texas, Kentucky, Idaho, Florida and Alabama. Idaho is well known for having virulent white supremacists. The others are known for being Confederate states with historically deep seated ties to slavery and discrimination so I'm not surprised by this movement against diversity at all. They have always been racist places, but especially virulent towards black people. Nothing has really changed; they are just a bit better at hiding their racism through the laws they pass. Jim Crow was never defeated and is alive and well.

So what! Diversity is not the answer to every concern in the world. For instance, during my many days in Japan, whether working or visiting, I attended the beautifully cultural tea ceremonies, all conducted by Japanese. I do not want to see a gaijin of any color perform such a wonderful ceremony in Japan. Let them do it in another country. What makes Japan so special is the clinging to tradition of hundreds of years ago. Diversity would destroy that. There is nothing wrong with being fully Japanese in Japan.

dagonApr. 7  07:08 am JST

"We don't like the idea of judging people based on immutable characteristics, whether it be gender or race or height or whatever," he said, calling the United States a "hyper-meritocratic society."

Disproven by any by any random glance at the list of billionaires.

Yes, like Oprah Winfrey. Could it possibly be that these people worked harder than most?  Also, look at the benefits. We wouldn’t be writing these comments, or reading about these comments, if it were not for the ingenuity of people that became billionaires (think Bill Gates). I would bet my last dollar that people that complained about billionaires making their money through hard work don’t have much money themselves.

AntiquesavingApr. 7  02:18 pm JST

We here look at the billionaires, but focus just on the USA, they say "minorities" are at a disadvantage and discriminated against but then fight to block Asians in ivy league universities because they get in based in merit in high numbers!

Internationally more and more busines leaders are coming from places like India, China, Taiwan, Brazil because they understand the reality, hard work is the key not complaining math is racist.

Asians in North America put in 2 hours of studying for every hour a white student puts in and 4 hours for every hour a black student puts in!

So if we just look at that, we quickly see why more Asians get in to top schools than whites and more white ls get in than black.

If they all put in the same amount of effort then they would be on an equal footing but the stats tell us they don't!

Asians (this includes south Asians AKA India etc..) don't or rarely get athletic scholarships, they get minus points for not doing so and not having a load of extracurricular activities or social activities, but still get in more than the other groups.

So if baseball, basketball, swimming, football, rowing, etc.. is where you put your time instead of studying, then the results of poor grades is your fault and not some notion of discrimination.

Because if it was racism/discrimination then the Asia guy or girl, would be facing the same problems, instead they are attacked for studying hard !

Very accurate comment.  Yet, there are down votes. Probably by people who have never worked hard to achieve anything worthwhile in their life yet demand it just because they exist.

rcchToday  10:13 am JST

[ “I took my family to Japan this week, and I have to say, I’m still not sure how I feel about what happened over there,” the comic said in his opening monologue for an episode of nightly TV show, Jimmy Kimmel Live. “We were in Japan for seven days. Not only did I not encounter a single dirty bathroom, the bathrooms in Tokyo and Kyoto are cleaner than our operating rooms here.”

…

“

I used to watch Jimmy Kimmel, I mean, he was funny and he seemed like a nice, likable guy… but not anymore, maybe he is(?), idk, but he’s annoying when he’s presenting the show, always claiming the moral high ground—people can’t stand all that political talk, anti-Trump rants and extreme praise for celebrities while real life problems faced by millions of hard working Americans are ignored. But, occasionally, he’s right, and in this case, well said, Jimmy, well said. Funny that he’s Jimmy Kimmel, but he’s still a relatively ignorant American, just like many others—he had to come to Japan to realize this simple fact—when compared to Japan, the US is a “jungle”. And it’s not just the bathrooms, right, Jimmy? Good thing that he came to Japan—now more Americans will know that the US is not as good as they thought it was.

I heartily agree about your assessment of Jimmy Kimmel, except that I never thought he was funny at all. Funny was Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, and David Letterman. I never recall these three espousing their political opinions. Too much politics with Kimmel and him claiming the moral high ground. Yet, Kimmel wore blackface, insulting millions of black people. For example, impersonating Chris Rock. Why was he not cancelled, especially by himself? Then of course, an apology came 20 years later. Probably only because he had to save his skin and multimillion dollar contract. Yet if a conservative did the same thing, he would call for them to be fired. Too much hypocrisy. 

 As for bathrooms, I recall working in Japan in the late 80s and there was one bathroom for men and women together. The urinals were on one side and the stalls opposite them, maybe only three meters from urinal to stall. It was a small restroom and as I stood at the urinal doing my thing, many women were waiting in line for a vacant stall. I could feel a ladies’ back rub against my back as she waited for a stall to become vacant. That is the way it was done in Japan, at least in this instance. I accepted it as part of assimilating to Japanese culture. That’s one of those incredibly unusual times that does not fade from memory.

As for keeping things clean, I always watched with amazement, and joined in with other spectators, to clean up the isles and seating areas after a baseball game, such as in the Tokyo Dome. Of course, students cleaning up their school and helping to dispense food at lunchtime is also amazing. This would not happen in the US, but that does not make the US a bad place.

It is amazing how the Pro-Palestinian group rarely, if ever, acknowledges the atrocities perpetrated on the innocent Israeli women and children on October 7, and probably continue now to whatever hostages remain alive. Decapitation of infants, burning babies alive, rapes of women (where are the women's rights groups-the silence is deafening?). If these things happened to the Palestinian women and children, you would never hear the end of it. But Israeli women and children as victims, I guess it is no big deal. Also, for the Pro-Palestinian group, by supporting Hamas (which is what happens if Israel does not attempt to kill them) you are also supporting the killing of gays by Hamas, which undoubtedly they do. Hamas, Islam in general, hates gays as much as they hate Israel. Don't you recall the throwing off of roofs of gay people? But maybe now with not too many tall buildings left in Gaza, this particular way of death to gays won't be a problem. But they will find other ways.

BertieWoosterNov. 26  09:00 am JST

It's not the size, it's what you do with it!

It is not the size of the ship in the water that matters, but rather, the motion in the ocean.

For those who like to smoke it, have at it. My shares in Tilray and Aurora Cannabis have gone done (nearly breakeven point now), but increased sales will increase revenue and thus, the share price.

RodneyNov. 21  08:57 am JST

Women may have to walk one meter behind their husbands in public, but I know many salarymen who have to hand over their salary to their wives. In return they get ¥30000 pocket money a month average.

There are some cultures where men walk ten meters behind their women.  When anthropologists investigated this, they found the common answer.  Land mines.

StrangerlandJune 30  04:33 am JST.

Sure. To someone who has never done any drugs, they would think I've done lots.

No, only based on past braggadocious posts.

Schizophrenics are observant as well. The thing is, the observations they make aren't actually logically connected together, they are unrelated connections that only appear to have a connection due to a brain that is chemically imbalanced.

Scientists, accountants, and others are observant as well. The Weltanschauung about schizophrenics, as you described from the unique perspective of past personal, firsthand experience, provides neuroscientists a plethora of research material.

> StrangerlandJune 28  07:20 am JST

If anyone knows the ins and outs of drugs, it is strangerland. Not from a scientific point of view, but rather a usage point of view.

Not really. I dabbled a little when I was younger, but I'm nearly a teetotaller now.

As once bragging about LSD use, is it a coincidence that the moniker “strangerland” contains the letters LSD?

I think you'd have to be on LSD to find that anything other than coincidental

Dabbled a little? That is all relative. A billion dollars to Elon Musk is only a "little" amount of money, but to 99.99999999 % of the world, it is a fortune.

No, one does not need to be on LSD to find it anything other than coincidental. Rather, just observant.

StrangerlandToday  10:39 am JST

NAISU NAISU!! A maiyaku vending machine!! Weebtastic!!

Eh? CBD is not a drug. For that matter, cannabis is barely a drug.

You're only about 40 years out of date with your propaganda, boomer.

If anyone knows the ins and outs of drugs, it is strangerland.  Not from a scientific point of view, but rather a usage point of view. As once bragging about LSD use, is it a coincidence that the moniker “strangerland” contains the letters LSD? The "go to person" for drugs.  I prefer getting high on life.

Michael MachidaJune 22  11:05 am JST

Why didn't they hold a trial in Indonesia? Why did the send him back to Japan? Now he is free?!

> David BrentJune 22  12:22 pm JST

If he makes it back to Japan then he's gotten off scot free.

Here you go, guys/girls.  If you read the first two paragraphs again (carefully), you will realize that he was arrested on board the plane by Japanese police. Once the plane enters Japanese air space, the Japanese police evidently then have authority to make an arrest. They have no authority of arrest in another country. 

By the way, for anyone interested, if a baby is born on an international flight (it is rare, but does happen), the citizenship of this child is determined by the particular country’s airspace when the birth occurs.  Thus, if a child is born to Indonesian parents on a flight from Jakarta to Los Angeles and the baby is born in US airspace (a certain distance from the coast) the child is then a US citizen.  If the child is born in no country’s airspace, such as over the Pacific Ocean, the citizenship of the child is from the country in which the plane departed, in this case, Indonesia.

NemoJune 20  05:23 pm JST

Homophobes of the world UNITE!

Because nothing will threaten a solid straight marriage like a same sex couple wanting the same rights as you!

This is such malarky, a specious statement.  It is like saying that a heinous murder or rape in India is fine because it does not threaten people in the United States.  No, murder or rape is just plain wrong, as is same sex marriages.  If nature intended that same sex couples be natural, then through evolution, two men having sex would produce a baby.  Newsflash, it does not! (Although pro-abortion Democrat Aimee Arrambide thinks men can get pregnant, just amazing!). It is completely unnatural, unless you think nature is wrong.  By the way, you can change the word “Homophobe” to something more accurate, which would be a new word, “Pervertphobe”.

StrangerlandToday  06:56 am JST

The typical liberal response, coddle the criminal and totally forget about the victims and their families.

20 years in jail is coddling. Ok bruh. You lost any credibility with that claim. Didn't even bother reading the rest.

Nice try at deflection. Don't worry, you will master it one day. Practice makes perfect. Didn't even bother to read the rest? That is usually the case for people that wish not to see reality. The one who lost any credibility is the one that thinks 20 years in jail for master minding the deaths of 26 innocent people and injuring 80 more innocent people is sufficient.  Twenty years for killing one person in not sufficient. Would you have the courage to face the families of those killed and tell them that 20 years in jail was sufficient?  100 % guaranteed you would not have the courage.   She should die in jail, not a free person.  Better yet, let the families of the victims decide her fate.  By the way, I am not your “bruh”, and glad of that!

StrangerlandMay 29  04:12 am JST

She's paid the price that was enacted upon her. You can (and maybe even should) hate her, but she deserves no more persecution. Let her go off and die in peace.

The typical liberal response, coddle the criminal and totally forget about the victims and their families.  Just too much binary thinking.  What persecution did she endure?  She served 20 years and is now free. The dozens of people she killed never had those 20 years, or anything after that. Neither did their families. She most likely basked in the “glory”, in her mind, of killing dozens of innocent people because it fit her agenda.  Maybe using too much Mary Jane and other things obfuscates your reasoning.  Whatever happened to something called "taking responsibility for one's actions"? Actions do have consequences.

TokyoHamApr. 17  09:57 pm JST

Who cares?

No, but seriously. MLB makes the news in Japan only when a Japanese player is involved. How is that not racist? lol

In any case, it makes me wish there were any noteworthy Japanese NBA players, because that's American sports news I would actually be interested in seeing covered here. You know, rather than a game where 90% of the players are doing absolutely nothing, 90% of the time.

-1( +0 / -1 )

You have obviously never played baseball, or certainly not in a competitive setting.  If all you did was stand around doing nothing, then your coaching, if you had any, was horrendous. Your observations, or rather opinion, is way off base (pardon the pun).

As with any success in life, one reacts before things happen.  This is better known as anticipation, a key to success in life, sports, business, etc..

In baseball, every good player anticipates what they would do if the ball is hit to them, or wherever it is hit.  For example, a line drive to right center field has both the center fielder and the right fielder running after it. The left fielder will come in and back up any throw to second or third base. The infielders will line up in proper positions, such as for cut off throws and backing up a base. Even the pitcher will anticipate where he should be in the event of a throwing error.  Even when no one is on base and the catcher throws the ball back to the pitcher after a pitch, the shortstop and/or second baseman will instinctively move toward the area behind the pitcher, even if only a little, in case of an overthrow. In this way, they are well conditioned to back up a return throw to the pitcher when opposing players are on base.

I know this because I have done it, from Junior Development League (age 7) to American Legion Baseball (late teen years). I also coached women softball teams and taught them these playing basics, taking over in mid-season and turning a losing team record into a winning team record.  It is all about knowing the basics, and perfecting them.

Here’s a quote from Bruce Lee that can easily be applied to learning and perfecting the basics in baseball:

 “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.”

I don’t smoke any myself, never did, and don’t care to do so.    But I have done well investing in pot stocks (Tilray, Aurora Cannabis, Green Thumb Industries etc.).   In fact, these last two days cannabis stocks went up well over 15 % in value.  So, to all you people that think it is not a bad idea to smoke it, then keep going at it.  Every puff you take adds money to my portfolio.

Peter14Today  02:44 pm JST

Lucky the teller was black. A white teller would be being accused of racial profiling and being racist right now. Maybe it is not about the color but the situation?

You got that right! If she was white, she also would have lost her job immediately.

I heard about an older fellow, age 65, who is a flasher and said he would retire. But he changed his mind and decided to stick it out another year.

wtfjapanDec. 1 10:42 am JST

One last thing, Do you also think there is no science behind living a healthy lifestyle?

living a healthy lifesytle isnt the endgame of stopping this pandemic, its kills the elderly the most even if theyre healthy, your immune system just degrades with age.

what I find is the lack of empathy for the elderly by he anti vaxxers, they seem to think theyre freedoms right to choose somehow trumps the elderly's right to live,

Why does it not work the other way around when talking about abortions and the lack of empathy for the unborn when the women’s right to choose trumps the unborn's right to live?

starpunkToday 01:21 am JST

There's been so many lies and hatred spewed out, and fibs galore about a Latino/a 'invasion' that doesn't exist. There is no invasion, the US borders are secure.

I beg to disagree. The northern border is secure, although some illegally try to cross there, too. But the southern border is a different story. How can you say it is secure when there are well over 10 million people living illegally in the country? Not everyone came legally (land borders, airports, cruise ships etc.) and overstayed their particular visa or time allotted as a visitor. Almost all the illegals arrived at the southern border, or never showed up for their court hearing to determine if they can stay in the country. People don't come illegally on a commercial aircraft. The airline won't let them board the aircraft without proper documents. Some do arrive with criminal records, but are arrested if necessary. Any guess on how many claim asylum at the southern border, get a court date to appear before an immigration judge while living in the US, and don't show up for their court date? I bet it is more than two people. They now live in the shadows, working under the table, many obtaining a fraudulent social security number if needed and not paying taxes, not having car insurance, yet they drive, etc.. Many do it the right way and pay their share of taxes. In case you were not aware, there are many Latinos that have come legally and despise those Latinos that did not. Latinos are wonderful people, but they also need to follow the rules. Not to mention many countries have a quota on how many people can immigrate to the US, based on US quota numbers. Thus, those coming illegally are not playing fair. The southern border is not secure despite the hard work of the border officers. It is just too overwhelming. We are not even talking about the drug trade and cartels getting drugs across the border. Much come commercially, but with tens of thousands of trucks crossing every few days, they cannot all possible be checked. If you want to see an interesting picture, google the Latino that were sewn into the backrest of a car seat. Or those hiding where the front passenger air bag was. Yes, it happened, and continues to do so. The crisis at the southern border is why Biden is now enforcing the "Remain in Mexico" policy that he decried as terrible when Trump did it. The chickens are coming home to roost.

Desert TortoiseNov. 30 07:16 am JST

...Everyone spoke he old country's language so no need to learn English right away. One grandmother never did. No need. I had cousins who likewise never spoke English. Ask why that makes you so uncomfortable (I know it does). And if are honest about American history you admit immigrants throughout the nation's history have been feared, loathed, disparaged, called names and vilified in the press. And then their grandkids make the same mistakes and vilify and disparage the next wave of immigrants to the US from a different part of the world, forsaking their own immigrant roots.

Uh, you need some clarification to your assumptions (and you must know one of the meanings of the word "assume", just like "snafu" has different descriptions of the words' meaning). Why do you think that older people that never spoke English and lived in the US makes me uncomfortable? If you know what other people are thinking and feeling, then you should have no trouble picking the winning mega-millions lotto numbers. As Mark Twain said: "Get the facts straight, then you can distort them anyway you wish". Certainly if older people don't learn English after coming to the US, that is understandable. My grandparents came to the US with very limited English, and they came legally. Have you ever heard of Ellis Island? They learned more English here, especially watching TV (The Price is Right) and speaking to us grandchildren. My mother still did the property taxes and other paperwork for them as she was born here (high school valeditorian by the way). But half of the time they spoke their native tongue, especially to other friends and relatives their age. I often listened to them and understood much of the language, but responded in English, which did not lead to my learning the language as much as possible. My grandparents were also the recipients of discrimination, but their work ethic convinced many that they were not so bad after all. The vast majority of immigrants face some type of discrimination, but they also meet very nice and accepting people, too. This is not new in anyway. However, if a person comes to the US at a young age and does not learn English, that is a problem. Not only does that limit their opportunities, but it does demonstrate that they don't want to assimilate to a new country. The government cannot construct road signs for the highway in over 200 different languages, all on the same piece of metal. Learning the language of the country in which you live is essential in order to fully experience the country and function in society. You don't need to be fluent, but at least the basics of the language is a necessity for everyday life. This is not rocket science!

1glennNov. 29 10:26 am JST

And so on, and so on. Shutting down immigration would destroy America.

The overwhelming number of Americans do not talk about shutting down immigration. What people are concerned about is illegal immigration.  There is a humongous difference which some people just don’t seem to understand. Why do people get these two things mixed up?

The only person who I ever heard say to shut down immigration entirely was a liberal friend who feared that if more people came to America, especially from places like Haiti and Central America, they would want to live like Americans and produce more waste per person than anywhere in the world, as Americans supposedly do. This was the craziest reason I ever heard for ending immigration, but it is his opinion.

Hervé L'EisaToday 07:03 am JST

Let's Go Braves!

May the better team win. But since the Astros cheated in the very recent past, then I will go with the braves. Pretty soon the Braves will have to change the name.  It is obviously racist to some. Yet, I would think being called “brave” would be a compliment. If they were called “Atlanta Indian Cowards”, then I could see that would be wrong.

> Pukey2Today 10:43 am JST

If you don't agree with abortion, don't have one. If you are pro-life, then look after an unwanted child financially.

Looking after the child financially is the responsibility of the father (and mother, but mostly the father). Oh, that terrible word "responsibility".

Bob FosseToday 09:26 am JST

If evangelicals want to live by the bible they shouldn’t pick and choose which parts to follow and which to ignore. Have some integrity.

Leviticus clearly states a very “liberal” stance on immigration, for example.

Does Leviticus clearly define legal vs illegal immigration?  There is a world of difference.   It is known as obeying the law.  Please explain fully.

YrralOct. 31 09:55 am JST

Covid,should be an excuse, not too frequent prostitutes

I don’t think covid is the main concern if one frequents prostitutes. Even if one has been vaccinated, it still has other drawbacks. Just like the proverbial man who was stabbed and bleeding profusely. Laundering his bloody shirt was the least of his concerns.

El RataOct. 29  08:52 pm JST

I wish they could keep the borders closed forever, I love traveling without the noise and annoyance of rowdy tourists from other Asian countries.

You obviously are not employed in the tourism industry, or any of its offshoots, not to mention being selfish.