alex comments

Because foreigners appreciate nature more than Japanese, who prefer concrete and noise.

These kind of articles seem deliberately designed to stoke anti-american sentiments, and are the worst kind of populist journalism.

The worst that can be said of Trump and the majority of Americans who elected him as their leader is that he is a somewhat over-enthusiastic patriot, with a bias toward the national economy rather than international diplomacy. Basically a businessman, not a humanitarian.

Nothing inherently wrong with that, frankly, and many countries would do well to follow suit and prioritize internal problems and inequalities. (Looking at you Japan, France, Britain)

As a Brit though, I'm proud of our loyalty to the Ukrainian people and to our (somewhat stubborn) refusal to capitulate to the world's bullies. And when I visit other countries, I always feel a sense of pride when I tell people who ask my nationality that I'm British. This despite England's colonial past.

I suspect many Americans might give pause before revealing their nationality to someone they don't know. maybe even consider pretending they are Canadian. I know I would, if I were American now.

Who started this oddball translation of 残念 as "regrettable"? It's usually translated, and accurately, as "unfortunate".

This.

 in Australia where people are out, about, open and chatty, coming back to Japan, the vibe is palpably different. 

Coming back from visiting England give me the same vibe. I find Japanese society to be reserved and distant compared to that which I'm used to. In the UK, strangers will converse cheerily with each other apropos of nothing, and there is none of the awkwardness found in Japan. On the other hand, you're more likely to get stabbed in England, so there's that.

But lack of finances and interpersonal skills etc. are misdiagnoses, in my opinion. There has been a paradigm shift in the aspirations of young folk, who simply don't want children. In the same way you might not want to get a cat.

The new generation are different. They spurn cars, motorbikes, beer, tobacco & it's stronger cousin, and permanent position employment. They also see marriage as an antediluvian construct with a 50% chance of failure, and children as a complicated and unnecessary burden.

Not everyone wants children; indeed, not everyone likes children. More and more people each day, it appears, and that's fine.

Hopefully other countries will be able to see the fairness and opportunities in the Japanese legal system.

Hahaha! Good one!

the most unamerican politician in the history of the US.

I would say he is a stereotypical American. Bombastic, aggressive, loud, uninformed and obnoxious. He won the popular vote in America, which means that the majority of American people admire these qualities.

 I wonder if she caught the flu in Japan or brought it with her from China. Hopefully immigration will reintroduce the temperature checks for foreign visitors to keep Japan safe.

She's Taiwanese. Please keep your not-so-subtle China-bashing/Japan-cheering comments to yourself, with regard to stories reporting the sad demise of other human beings.

Basically, Japan's stance on nuclear weapons proliferation is that all countries (read China & N. Korea) should give up their programs, except America and by proxy, Japan. It's an unfortunate reality for Japan; the hypocrisy is blatant here.

this increase is the 2nd one in 2 years, not 45

Actually no. This is (as the article correctly states) the 2nd price increase in 45 years, and the first price increase in 2 years.

Why is her employment status omitted? If this were son on father patricide, you can be sure the son's unemployed status would be duly reported..

Haha! The BoJ touting cash as 安全、安心, Japan's favorite marketing mantra.

The whole raison d'être of electronic money was to address cash's Achilles' heel - namely its vulnerability. Easy to steal, lose, copy, or destroy.

When my cash is stolen, or lost, then it's gone. End of. The bank does not replace it or refund me.

But when my credit card is scammed, or electronic payment is queried, I'll get an (immediate) refund after one phone call.

35 and still living with mum and dad? Brother also still living off the parents.

There's the source of the trouble, right there.

Hmmm. The police might want to ask that JHS boy a few more questions...

Note to Mod; 3rd paragraph 2nd line: nursery homes should read nursing homes.

Like a lot of the legal system in Japan, property law is inconsistent and full of holes. Since the government ought to be collecting property taxes each year on all land and any buildings upon it, it is mind-boggling that there is "a difficulty of identifying the owners". This is prima facie evidence that the property registration system is woefully inefficient.

In no other industry is this kind of bait-and-switch marketing acceptable. Imagine booking a comparatively expensive flight on ANA, with its exemplary service and excellent safety record, only to be herded onto a dirty old Air India airplane, with its poor service and notorious time-keeping.

There's something else going on here;

"Under the Penal Code, a person who kills someone at the request of that person or with their consent can face a prison term of between six months and seven years."

and

A doctor was sentenced on Tuesday to 18 years in prison...

So he was sentenced to 2 and a half times the statutory limit. Presumably this is a second-offense punishment; reflecting the previous assisted suicide of Yamamoto's father in 2011.

The law allows for empathy, wherever due. Hence the minimum sentence can be as low as 6 months . In this case however, it seems the law went in with boots on.

According to the health ministry (who replied to my request for clarification today), the new quarantine period of 10 days also applies to returnees who are currently doing their 14 days. Although the My SOS app hasn't updated the Quarantine last date yet, I was told by followup@hco.mhlw.go.jp that (provided I feel well) I could go out from the 11th day.

@Akie; "...all other criminals". It is for the judge to decide, after hearing the case for the prosecution, and the case for the defence, whether or not Ghosn is in fact a criminal. This is the process of law, and the reason for having a trial.

It seems that you have already judged him guilty ahead of the trial, and herein lies a fundamental flaw with the Japanese system of justice; it starts off on the wrong foot.