Capuchin comments

So was the issue that it was dangerous to be competing in such heat? Or that it was "incosiderate" to point out that they shouldn't be competing in such heat?

Looks like Shin Sawada's hairline already resigned several years ago.

https://www.shibuya-univ.net/professor/detail/1015/

Kishida and his friends should plan a beach party for the end of August. Catch some fish, bang 'em on the grill maybe go for a bit of a paddle. Y'know just to help reassure the public.

Daiichi Sankyo branching out from pharmaceuticals into the field of historic research.

The drug maker has no plan to release the messenger RNA vaccine "Daichirona," which is tailored for strains that spread during the initial stages of the pandemic.

Many U.S. polls have indicated that some in the country believe the nuclear attacks on Japan were necessary to end the war.

Because that's what American education tells them to think.

The defeat of Japan was inevitable. The decision to drop the atomic bombs has a lot more to do with post war strategy and the U.S.'s rivalry with Russia. The U.S. wanted to show it had the most powerful weapons ever created in human history and they wanted to test them on humans whilst they still had the chance. If you look into historic documents about how the U.S. selected Hiroshima and Nagasaki it has a lot more to do with population density and topography than it does strategic military benefit. They wanted ideal conditions for their science experiment.

You could argue all day about what may have happened if the bombs hadn't have been dropped and the war allowed to drag on. Maybe more innocent people would have died in the long run but you'd think perpetrating the single greatest loss of human life in human history might warrant a little more humility, self-reflection and soul searching. It's a complex issue that's of tremendous importance to every living person on this planet.

An episode of 'The Evaporated' a podcast about people going missing in Japan goes into this case. The police search seemed half hearted at best. Their conclusion was that she might have been washed into a river by a typhoon. The only hole in their theory being that there was no typhoon.

I recommend giving the episode a listen along with the rest of the podcast series.

The far right and the far left are as bad as each other when it comes to their attempts to legally mandate language and history to suit their ideological agendas. You go far enough in either direction you end up at the same point.

I support Palestinian rights and oppose Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian land but shoehorning a discussion of the Nakba into an article about DeSantis is a bit of a logical leap.

Didn't think I'd wake up on a Saturday morning to read an article about fruit flies manifesting the immaculate conception.

Bigmotor's TV ad from 2006 hasn't aged so well.

https://youtu.be/Az7EltyuQu0

Who? Easy to just sit behind a keyboard and snap your fingers and say "Time for change"

One should consider what they mean before that, as right now there arent a whole lot of options out there that would be better than Kishida.

Ahh now I get it, you advocate for an unstable Japanese, revolving door leadership, like there was following Koizumi and until Abe part 2, new PM's ever 6 months to a year, and the economy a mess. - Yubaru

"Yeah, buy what else are you going to do about it?" is pretty much the LDP's entire manifesto at this point. Plenty of opposition parties and potential coalitions out there offering an alternative to the LDP.

Not sure why you're bringing up revolving door Prime Ministers when that's a trademark of the LDP. The annual reshuffling of the chairs on the deck of the Titanic.

It's a symptom of the government systematically trying their best to ensure there are no viable political competitors. Things like taking taking advantage of voting disparity which has been ruled unconstitutional by the supreme court on multiple occassions. Resorting to xenophobia to eliminate potential rivals like Renho.

They were lucky that in one of the two instances the LDP hasn't been in power for the last 6 plus decades Japan was hit by one of the worst natural disasters in its history. Scape goating the DPJ government for the Fukushima meltdown when it had in fact been caused by the decades of the LDP's own lack of nuclear oversight and regulation. It'd be interesting to see what may have happened if the LDP had been in charge at that moment.

So following the governement line that there are no alternatives isn't going to solve any of Japan's festering issues. Toss out the corrupt party that relies on voter apathy, suppresses political discourse and ensures that Japan is in actuality, not a democratic country.

Please I have a suspicion that the article below could give an insight into why "Oppenheimer" release could be delayed, perhaps sadly indefinitely. - itsonlyrocknroll

I'm hoping it's just being delayed until after summer. It's common practice for Japan to bump summer blockbusters in favour of domestic family movies that come out every year. (Doraemon, Crayon Shin-chan, Power Rangers etc etc)

I wonder if your Japanese friends are aware that it's a Christopher Nolan film. There's been zero marketing in Japan and it's not an obvious Nolan flick like Tenet was.

Anyway, I'd love to eventually see Oppenheimer in an Imax cinema as Nolan intended.

Difference is nuclear weapons cannot design superior versions of themselves and their own motivations and goals. - dagon

This is a fascinating talk about the issues of AI (Or more accurately machine learning which they point out is what it actually is.) The concern is not the Terminator/Ghost in the Shell/Matrix scenario of sentient AI turning against humans. It's that switch to large language learning means AI is progressing exponentially and at a rate that makes it impossible for regulations, laws and safe guards to keep up with.

They also make the same 1944 Openheimer comparison.

https://youtu.be/xoVJKj8lcNQ

feigned ignorance beaver? that's a puzzle.

diagonalslip

They're named after a love hotel in downtown Osaka. Maybe that makes more sense now. ;)

“We’re turning into a Fist of the North Star society.”

That made me chuckle.

Think I'll skip this one but it's great to see local Osaka underground heros Otoboke Beaver gaining more and more recognition. Been watching them for over 10 years and definitely worth checking out if you have the chance. Excellent live band.

Even this year, their ex COO is being surveilled for no reason. That ex-COO can make new litigation about that.

https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/nissan-investigates-claims-ceo-put-deputy-under-surveillance-2023-06-23/

Thanks for the link to the article. Interesting read. Looks like they were getting ready to oust Gupta by surveiling him and drumming up harassment charges. Gupta was smart enough to see the writing on the wall.

Hopefully Nissan will get their just desserts when they return to the inept Japanese management that nearly bankrupted them in the first place.

Pretty sure the likes of U2, Metallica and others get as much or more for their tours. I'm not sure about the logic of that

I should really have left out the word male. My point is that salaries in sports are based on popularity and performance. That's why not every player in the EPL makes the same money as Haaland.

I'm all for womens right and support the attempt to further popularize women's sports but demands for equal pay make no logical sense. It's cart before the horse.

This is basically like all male musicians demanding the same paycheck as Taylor Swift.

While part of me wants to support this reeks of populist politics. The parts I don't understand is that the article says that Neyagawa has a population of 225,000 whilst only 3,500 will surveyed. If my maths are correct that makes it 1.56% of the population. How is that 1.56% selected?

Still, it would be fun to see the LDP adopt this policy with their consistently poor approval ratings.

Here is the question that is missing in this article, the elephant in the room.

Will Christoper Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’ Get a Theatrical Release in Japan?

*- *itsonlyrocknroll

Pretty sure that's the internet drumming up some fake news for clickbait.

Toho hasn't set a release date yet but a lot of Hollywood blockbusters get delayed in the Summer so that Japan can protect its domestic films. Got to make space for those annual Doraemon, Power Rangers, Crayon Shin-chan and Kamen Rider movies.

So what's the excuse for the police not investigating these sordid crimes?

The same theatre also warned audiences attending a recent production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" that the comedy contained "language of violence, sexual references, misogyny and racism".

That makes Shakespeare sound almost exciting.

I agree with Callow though. The arts be it stage, film, music or whatever should be a space to explore ideas and issues that make us feel uncomfortable. It helps us better cope with life and broadens our minds.

Meandering through life avoiding every possible discomfort is no way to live.

Welcome to Barnum's Pizzas where there's no such thing as bad publicity.

We've developed a pizza that we're sure our customers will think is truly awful and borderline inedible but more importantly, will appeal to the taste buds of unimaginative, clout chasing social media influencers.

It always impresses me just how quickly diplomacy between Japan, South Korea and China descends into childish pettiness.

My son appears to run 5 times slower in the early morning. Maybe I should start calling him quasar.

Can't really wrap my brain around what any of this stuff means but it's fascinating.

I remember a manager at a Japanese company where I worked actually showing up at my colleague's home on a Saturday night, bottle of wine and flowers in hand, to convince her and her parents not to quit. Pathetic, way out of line and a clear example of power harassment. - hurryharry

Exactly the kind of thing my old company would do. I didn't get any home delivery flowers and wine when I told them I was quitting.

Though I did get a Starbucks coupon when I had my meeting with the higher ups to outline my reasons for leaving which were largely to do with feeling undervalued and frustrations with ineffective management. Cue the Curve Your Enthusiasm theme.

If this news story were about a woman being beaten with wooden coat hanger by a man would we be making all these jokes?

Ahhh, I'm just jealous because all the good hanger puns already got used. Lol.

One of the companies I used to work for did a lot of this stuff. First they'd implore you stay by telling you how disappointed your parents would be if you quit. Many Japanese staff members still live with their parents so they would start visiting their homes. Just before I quit a staff member used an agency like this to quit.

Never did this company or so mane other companies consider changing their working conditions to prevent high turnover or make themselves more appealing to potential employees. You reap what you sew.

Not much of a Star Wars fan but this is an excellent series. Very well written with the story and characters first rather than cheap fanbaiting.

I heard this series didn't do as well as other Star Wars shows which is a shame. It's sad that badly made shows will get more views through meme-able hate watching than well made shows with genuine craftsmanship behind them.