mu-da comments

@ quercetum

Please give me any indication–any example that appeasement has made the Chinese worldview less arrogant, aggressive and predatory in the last 20 years. Appeasement just feeds the looting vulture of the CCP. Time to shut the door.

China is a bully. Time to stop accepting students from communist China at Japanese and Australian universities too. And while we are at it, stop visa free travel from China.

Good to see the police doing their job. The courts have more important things to do than pander to attention seekers.

Checking out people based on hair style and skin color is NOT "the police doing their job". And your skin color, if different from the majority, is definitely NOT "attention seeking".

"... public anxiety is growing against foreigners not following rules."

Following rules and the law are entirely different things and should be dealt with accordingly. I wish these gentlemen "with foreign roots" the best of luck. Any effort to improve matters and create awareness are commendable.

Is that all the opposition has to offer?

I am not a politician. I will not touch on political issues.

Either she's total dim or in complete denial, probably both, that visititing Putin is highly political especially at this time.

This are the same guys who reportedly spend 300 million dollars to get "instigate" and get rid of Ghosn. And the architect of that screw up, Hari Nada, is still workinmg there.

It is truly sad to see a company which 10 years ago was a giant in the industry is now reduced by toxic management personnel to worse than it was in 1999. And by toxic management personnel I don't mean Carlos Ghosn! But rotten to the core personalities like the utterly corrupt Hari Nada who unbelievably still is involved at Nissan in the background for "special operations". (https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2020-ghosn-nada-nissan/?embedded-checkout=true). Uchida Makoto is still there and should be thrown out too and a number of others. It is unfortunate that quality workers can't fire ruthlessly scheming management personnel who with their intrigues run the place into the ground with their mafia-style "management".

The irony: one reason Ghosn made so many enemies was slashing jobs when he started at Nissan. "....former CEO Makoto Uchida previously expressing a commitment to keeping domestic factories in operation". If I'd be CEO Ivan Espinosa I'd prepare a large music equipment box for eventualities.

Townshend shouldn't even be allowed entry into the USA. 

To all of his defenders, just keep telling yourself he was 'doing research.'

The lynch mob alive and well.

Most Japanese journalists are meek. They were instrumental in replacing PM Kan and saluted one of the most corrupt AND longest-serving PM in Japanese history, who got rid of journalists who dared to be critical. Journalists here serve the ruthless and act up with the ones they are not afraid of.

The RSF ranking placing Japan at #66 and for example Germany at #11 seems highly questionable. While Japan is criticized for lacking an adversarial press culture, this overlooks cultural norms of nuance and consensus, as well as the existence of ideologically diverse media. In contrast, Germany’s public broadcasters (ÖRR) and mainstream media often operate within a narrow ideological frame, excluding dissenting views through Haltungsjournalismus—a form of “stance journalism” where reporters see themselves as moral guides rather than impartial observers. The German mainstream press is mostly ideological conform and excludes nonconforming voices. Press freedom isn’t just about legal protections—it’s also about whether dissenting voices can be heard without marginalization. By that standard, the RSF index reflects more of a Western ideological bias than true press diversity.

Since getting rid of "Le Cost Killer" Nissan goes only in one direction: down. Just shows that he was worth every penny of his compensation.

The EU bureaucrats are parasitic leeches who produce nothing but suck the blood of successful American companies. They are also ignorant about technology and have no idea how technology is developed and nurtured.

I much prefer the awkwardness of Ishiba to the smug arrogance of ex PM Abe.

Japan can't catch a break anymore.

You can feel it in the people. Hope is lost. Sadness overwhelms. 

Greed, corruption amd xenophobia are rife. 

The country is dying, economically, socially and within the people themselves.

You obviuosly haven't been in Europe recently. I recommend a train journey in Germany. After that, come back here and visit the Expo.

I have close friends in the US and always have enjoyed visiting New York, Chicago, Portland Maine and Seattle. But currently we'll meet elsewhere because I don't want to be treated like a suspect and loose my appreciation for the country.

@ Saltwater Shenanigans

You should be ooking at the numbers. Here for the USA - I'm quite sure that the situation in Japan isn't very different: The highest risk age group of drivers are aged 16-29. So actually when safety is concerned, you may not drive until you are 30. 11% of all drivers under 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted. This age group has the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted. This is also reflected in insurance premiums. As for the safest drivers, drivers between 60 and 69 are safer than any other group. Overall, people become safer drivers as they age, becoming the safest as they enter their 60s. However, driving risk increases slightly for drivers ages 70 and older. For England (source BBC): The Department for Transport (DfT) says there is no evidence older drivers are more likely to cause an accident, and it has no plans to restrict licensing or mandate extra training on the basis of age. Figures also show that 46 drivers aged 16 to 19 died in an accident, while 173 drivers aged between 20 and 29 involved in an accident died. That compared with 59 deaths in drivers aged between 70 and 79 involved in an accident, and 52 over the age of 80.

No surprise here. As long as Japanese city planners prioritize cars over humans, nothing will change.

"Since it was easy for the girls to differentiate foreign visitors from Japanese cops, they felt safer doing it with foreigners." "When approached by a foreigner I feel lucky."

Priceless quotes. No crossed hands anymore when entering an etablishment can only be seen as a welcome change.

If he's successful as a Mexican COO he will be tripped up by envy like the Lebanese. It's just how corporate culture of Japan's most traditional corporations works. BTW the design of the new models looks absolutely appalling.

I’ve never seen any speed bumps and I also live on a 1 way road and cars fly down it.

No space to walk and no speed bumps ...

In a meeting with Machida-shi officials about widening the narrow road leading through our valley I asked to add speed bumps. The answer was: Speed bumps will damage cars. Literally: スピードバンプが車を傷つける。(Supīdo banpu ga kuruma o kizu tsukeru.). As long as you have people in charge who prioritize cars over humans, these kind of accidents will happen. No matter the age of the drivers. Town officials who refuse to add speed bumps should be thrown in jail if accidents happen. They are the ones who should be made responsible. Before that doesn't happen, nothing will change.

@ dbsaiya

Stop treating driver's license renewals like a production line. 

You obviously know nothing about driver's license renewals for the elderly in Japan. Drivers aged 70 or older must complete the course for elderly people, when they renew driver's licenses. This mandatory course which has to be completed BEFORE you show up for the usual renewal comprises a classroom lecture, an actual driving session through an obstacle course which also includes a reaction test and a much more thorough and stringent vision test. For those aged 75 or older, a cognitive function test, which evaluates memory and judgment abilities, is also mandatory. Please research before you post.

Time to limit land- and busness ownership to foreigners who live here and have permanent residence.

Even voting down all those critical comments about Nissan (and Nissans temporary saviour for 15 years) won't rescue this thoroughly rotten example of the worst aspects of Japanese management.

The gotten-rid-of-Ghosn ailment. They'll never get back to their glory days.

Is this photo for real? Looks like two photos combined in Photoshop.

I lived there from 1979-1985 when it was still a nice place to reside. Even then Kyoto was badly managed. Kyoto city was always ruled by greed and milking the cultural image. It is very sad to see the serene atmosphere of long gone days completely and utterly destroyed.

Well, Nissan schemed out Carlos Ghosn the golden goose who saved the company from oblivion 25 years ago and made it a succesful brand name again. The downward spiral started right after Ghosn was forced out and criminalized for dubious reasons. Since then, instead of producing fine cars, Nissan has been mainly known for political maneuvering, management intrigues and infighting, a total lack of vision, and blaming everybody else for their demise. Well deserved, no sympathy whatsoever.

End-stage capitalism dystopia repackaged as a heartwarming story”. Imagine still working at 108.

Most ignorant and ideology contaminated comment of all. She has a job she still can do in her age. Great. She doesn't sit alone and lonely in front of television but gets regualar visitors every day with whom she can chat with and such be part of a network and community. I'm sure she got regular customers she's had for decades and is close with and close with their families. She will not die alone and be found after months like many (in Sweden for example, not only Japan). For myself, as long as I can walk (now 75) I'll work. I despise social security systems like in Europe where you are forced out of your job even you want to continue working.