commanteer comments

Mff dude, ntadall. Sall gd.

And this is the golden dream of conservatives in US, turn US in a madieval teocracy..

Yes, all those conservative families you see are just dying to swap their MAGA hats for turbans. You must quiver in terror every time you venture outside your urban bubble and see real people.

He knew he had a major heart problem but refused to treat it because he’d have had to quit climbing.

Sounds like an impressive guy with a passion. “I thought that giving up climbing would be a choice I would regret later on,” he told a Japanese magazine in 2022. “Even if I lived to be 70 or 80 without climbing, would that really be a happy life for me?”

There isn’t any reason for a stronger yen to emerge…

It could become relatively stronger as other currencies also collapse. Most developed countries are in trouble. Korea and Canada are ones to watch, though there are many others.

I know there are cases where this works out, but it has also caused a ton of divorces. Proceed with caution.

Japan needs to offer the same 3-5% 6-month treasury notes as the USD

The national debt to GDP is already among the highest in the world. Higher interest rates would crush them - the only way they could pay would be by printing currency all day long. (Which it looks like the US is doing.) Also, as mentioned, that would immediately collapse the yen carry trade, which is financing a massive amount of investments worldwide. If those carry trades were ended suddenly, we would see a global stock market crash.

Other news sources mention that volcanic gas might have been a culprit, probably from a fumarole

That was my first thought. Fumaroles are interesting to be around but an unexpected burst of gas can kill everyone around it instantly. Better to give them wide berth. Every couple of years I hear about climbers and hikers being killed this way.

The trend is down for the yen…

Lot's of downvotes, but this is likely the case. Even worse, if the yen manages to recover (not impossible) it could cause panic in the carry-trade (which depends on a weakening yen) and a global collapse. Either way, Japan won't be alone in economic misery for long. At least the country has a stronger social fabric than most others, which will be more important as the economy worsens.

Assange claiming he is a journalist doesn't get him out of his obligations to obey the law.

Dangerous nonsense. According to you, then, if a journalist in the USA reports something negative about the Chinese or Russian government, and those governments manage to get their hands on him, you are fine with him rotting in a Chinese or Russian prison because he "broke the law."

When you make these wild assertions about the US, stop and think for a moment how you would react if it were China or Russia instead of the USA.

https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2023/06/27/overall-opinion-of-the-u-s/

The same poll also found a similar percentage have confidence in Biden's handling of foreign affairs. Polls are silly things and mostly meaningless. And the average person's opinion of global affairs is uninformed and changes overnight.

Oh come on mate, surely any staff member will help you order. 

Try spending a day around town with a blind person. It will be eye-opening for you. You don't know how many barriers there are until you share the experience.

Yep, both the Republicans and Democrats are in lockstep so far as imperialist ambitions and starting wars around the globe. I have to laugh when Americans call this Australian a traitor - seemingly thinking that all people of the world are American subjects.

The US is broadly popular outside of scummy dictatorships.

I see you have upgraded from rose-colored glasses to VR goggles. Truly, many Americans live in an alternate reality these days.

Quite a relief he is free. It's not justice that he was forced to cop a plea, or that he spent 12 years in prisons without a trial, or that the war criminals he exposed as a journalist were never punished and are still running things. But at least he finally got a break - even if the only reason was so the War Party could pick up a few more votes in November.

Unfortunately, the CIA (even more so than Putin) are not averse to assassinating enemies overseas - so I hope he stays safe.

Lots of people jumping to conclusions - showing how easily opinion can be manipulated. Random knife attacks in China are not unusual - much more common than is being reported.

Based on many experts the yen will be at around 230 by the end of the century , Good for Japan any way you look at it.

Anybody who claims to predict an exchange rate 76 years in the future is a crackpot, not an expert. In this environment, no responsible economist would claim to predict the yen rate even 6 years from now.

Reading these comments, I thought I mistakenly clicked on WarmongersToday.

Used to be common sense that, for peace talks to succeed, you actually had to talk to your enemy. Yet, lots of Americans (and Canadians?) here seem eager for more war. Perhaps that's because it's usually other nations and people that suffer because of their wars. I think Americans need to taste war in their own country to put a damper on their bloodlust. As it is, they seem to treat war like a football match.

Because their guidebook, "To Serve People", is actually a cookbook.

We are just livestock to these grifters.

But when you go to a bar, you stay in the bar to be with other people, party, drink, sing karaoke, and listen to music. What's the point of going to a bar just to go outside and be with people who are not in a party mood like the people in the bar?

I can't quote any research, but I think it's safe to assume that nearly 100% of people who drink in bars eventually leave the bar and go outside.

My Uncle Ray was an exception to that, but I haven't seen him in years. He may still be in a bar somewhere.

It makes more sense to not use washlets in epidemics of an aerosol transmitted virus. Shutting down air hand dryers is public theatre.

Air hand dryers should be avoided for the same reason. Plenty of research showing their dangers - so much that I avoid them.

It seems like you didn't look around enough for a proper rescue group. You may also need to find a new vet.

Or perhaps proper rescue groups are lacking in my area (not Kanto or Kansai). Our vet is great. Been to many over the years, and he is not only better but cheaper than many others. He loves animals, which is not something evident at some of the vets we have been to.

If we wanted to save money, we could have just gone to a pet shop. We wanted a shelter dog for different reasons.

Whatever his flaws, he sunk a big chunk of his fortune into Twitter/X, which is the only thing standing between Americans (and much of the world) and a total state controlled media.

What shelters are the author and some commenters referring to that charge 20 or 30 man to adopt?

I was speaking from personal experience. The nearest government run shelter was difficult to visit and you needed to be there to see a specific dog chosen from a picture. You couldn't just look at all the dogs and find one that bonded. I am surprised you were able to get vax and spay for less than 3 man, as well. They cost more here, and were from regular vets.

Every time I see the words "far right" the first thought that comes to mind is racism

Every time I see the words "far right" the first thought that comes to mind is anyone who is not a left-wing extremist, as the far right label is applied these days to anyone who questions even a part of the current Woke narrative.

witness the 14,500 abandoned dogs and cats put to sleep in animal shelters across Japan in 2021 

Many of the "shelters" here are simply scams. They will actually cost more than buying a puppy from a shop, and often supply sickly or traumatized dogs for that high price. I have seen older dogs on their last legs at shelters that need a home. But after fees, shots, donations, etc., the cost can run as high as 300,000 yen. It's a shameful situation.

Other countries make it easier to take in abandoned dogs, usually paying for all the shots needed and often with only nominal fees involved.

Over the 20+ years I have been visiting Vancouver it has gotten to be a place I am happy to leave. Though it has become more cosmopolitan, it has also picked up the druggies, homelessness, social disorder and tolerance of crime we see in many other larger cities. Not to mention housing (and just about everything else) has become unaffordable for working people there. There are nice places in Canada, even in Vancouver. But overall it is a not a good place to live anymore.

Europe's total ICE ban, including hybrids, is only 11 years away.

Like so many of their utopian goals, this is not gonna happen. They will have much bigger worries in the next 11 years.

Would be interesting to know what he said.

It doesn't really matter. Anybody can accuse anyone of insulting the monarch - even insulting the monarch's dog is a crime. Like the Salem witch trials, it's a useful way to get people you don't like arrested. No wonder Thailand is only second behind the US in the proportion of population in prison.

And yet the US has zero active or threatened invasions going on.

You must be speaking of another US. I was referring to the USA - the one on planet Earth that has its military in over 100 countries.

Broccoli was up 80% from last week at my local supermarket yesterday.

Fresh produce, especially broccoli, has always been that way. A week of unfavorable weather in the growing region and prices shoot up. Some great weather, and they shoot down again. Not really a good indicator of inflation.