Here’s a link to a fascinating article. A large hotel refused to allow a union organization to have its annual meeting on its premises. The main reason for this was that the hotel felt threatened by rightest organizations. So there is a kind of leftists versus rightest feel to the article. Interestingly enough, the owners of the hotel make a libertarian argument that the hotel is their property, and they should be free to rent it out to whoever they wish.

As is typical the rightists seem pro-business because they are anti-union, but this is really misconceived. The right to organize and petition doesn’t necessarily mean someone advocates socialist government policies. And even to the extent it does, the right often want something similar. The main difference between the left and the right at the extremes is the same difference between international socialism and national socialism. That is both are pretty much against the free market.

The hotel owners are correct that they should be free to rent to whomever they choose, but they seem really wimpish here. But if the government will not provide adequate security then that is the real problem. What can be said of a government that won’t protect people from far rightest organizations?

Government eyes increase in class hours
The education ministry on Friday unveiled a draft of new teaching guidelines for primary and middle schools that would increase classroom hours for arithmetic and mathematics as well as science subjects by around 15 percent during the nine-year study period, in a departure from the current guidelines, which emphasize “education with latitude.” …
As in the current guidelines, the new guidelines’ basic philosophy is “to foster the power to live.” To improve the ability to think, judge and express oneself, the new guidelines attach importance to activities such as observation, conducting experiments and writing reports.

Right. We need to make sure that the ability to think, judge and express oneself is completely consistent throughout Japan.

Transport ministry spent 526 mil. yen on musicals
The Construction and Transport Ministry spent more than 500 million yen on staging musicals using funds earmarked for roads, it was revealed in a House of Representatives Budget Committee meeting Thursday.
In response to a question posed by the Social Democratic Party’s Nobuto Hosaka, the ministry revealed it had spent 526 million yen earmarked for roads to put on 85 performances of a musical. It said the shows, staged between fiscal 2003 and 2005, were aimed at educating people about road maintenance and improvement.
“We did it to win over landowners,” Construction and Transport Minister Tetsuzo Fuyushiba said. “But we won’t do this kind of thing again.”
Following a question by the Democratic Party of Japan’s Akira Nagatsuma, the ministry also revealed its Nagoya-based Meishi National Highway Office had bought two aromatherapy machines worth a total of 46,390 yen.

These activities speak for themselves. What I find weird is how stories like this constantly crop up in the press, yet there’s not sense of anyone doing anything serious about it.

Foreign students may get to skip fingerprinting
The Justice Ministry will consider exempting foreign students attending Japanese high schools from having their fingerprints and mug shots taken at immigration sections when they return to Japan from school excursions, if the schools make a request.
Justice Minister Kunio Hatoyama on Thursday said he will consider taking necessary measures including revising a ministerial ordinance, after receiving a request from New Komeito to exempt the students from having their fingerprints and mug shots taken. “This is a thing we have to do,” Hatoyama said.
The Revised Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Law came into force last year and requires foreigners aged 16 and older entering Japan to have their fingerprints and mug shots taken at airport and seaport immigration checkpoints.

I don’t think anyone should be fingerprinted. But this article is a bit rich. Hatoyama says “This is a thing we have to do.” Give me a break! How about permanent residents?

Some of the people who have been kind enough to read this blog have referred to me as a libertarian. Of course, I’d prefer to think of myself as a liberal of the classical mold, but I have to admit in many ways that aligns me with modern libertarians.

Anyway, let me pose a question. According to the views I hold, which party would I be best off to support in Japan? (I’m not a citizen, so speaking in terms of moral support.) Ironically enough, if my decision were to be based on campaign posters, it would have to be the Japanese Communist Party.

For literally years now, I’ve been seeing campaign posters arguing for a strict interpretation of article 9 of the Japanese constitution, the antiwar clause. Wow, that’s just what I believe. The constitution should be taken seriously and interpreted strictly. Good on you, JCP.

Now, recently, I’ve noticed a new poster from the JCP. This poster says something like stop the sales tax increase. It’s an anti-tax message. Wow, I can get into that. Fight the tax raise, the government already gets too much money.

So there you have it. Based on campaign posters, the JCP is the party of strict constitutionalism and antitax to boot. Now, that’s the party for me. Okay, if I actually checked their platform, I’d probably have to revise this a bit, but anyway …

I can’t help but wish JCP luck next election cycle with their anti-tax, strict constitutional platform.

In a recent op-ed the editors’ of the WSJ state:

Under the leadership of recent Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe, Japan began to accept more responsibility for its own national defense and to play a larger role in international security affairs. It remains to be seen whether Mr. Fukuda fully shares his predecessors’ vision of a revitalized, strong Japan, but last week’s vote suggests he understands what’s at stake.

Japan is “accepting more responsibility for its own national defense” by venturing off to refuel ships and patrol the waters off Afghanistan?

No, I don’t think so. Rather it’s finally seeing the real price of its security alliance with America. So much for the free security lunch.

Let’s make a guess, the more and more America pushes this time, and the more and more the Japanese government acquiesces, the more they will be punished at the polls come election time. We’ll see.

Update: I’ve blogged a few more details on this at my other (not ready for prime time) political blog. Here’s the link.

There’s about a million reasons why Japan should not be fingerprinting foreigners, however just to concentrate on one.

As early as 2005 a study on the current fingerprinting system in America was published. It showed that if only two index fingers were fingerprinted, then the likelihood of thwarting the system was fairly substantial. For people with weak fingerprints, recognition would be severely degraded. Once a determined individual realized this, he could work on wearing down his own fingerprints, so that the system would not accurately record them.

Here is a link to the study.

Here is a link to the short hand version of the study.

This study was published in 2005. As of now, America will be moving to a 10 finger fingerprint system. Although no one is saying so, this must be a result of that study.

So here we are in 2007, two years after we’ve been informed that the two finger index system doesn’t work, and Japan is now instituting that system. That is from conception to implementation, Japan put into place a system well known to be deficient in thwarting determined individuals. People should be shocked and outraged. Instead … silence.

The system in America cost $10 billion dollars, I wonder how much money is being wasted on Japan’s system.

As far as the two finger index system, the secretary of Homeland Security (in the US) notes that it has been used to stop 2000 criminals. Were any of these people terrorists? No, the “criminals” were stopped in relation to drug trade and “illegal” labor. $10,000,000,000 divided by 2000 people apprehended (related to drugs and “illegal” workers). That means $5,000,000 per apprehended person. Is he serious?

Rest assured that the new system ten finger system will be easily thwarted by any truly determined person.

Last year in June, I wrote an editorial about the new law in Japan requiring foreigners to be fingerprinted when they enter Japan. Recently, through email a reporter contacted me in reference to the editorial. I was asked some questions about the new law (which goes into effect this month). Here are the questions I was asked, along with my answers.

Read the rest of this entry »

Given the situation in Afghanistan, I don’t see the Japanese as being ready for this.

I don’t even think the Americans are.

You have to watch this video.

There’s a good article on the Moriya scandal, and its impact on the current political situation in the Yomiuri this morning. It’s well worth reading.

I can’t help but think that the scandal is not really significant as it is probably only a minor representative element of an entire system of systematic collusion. There is something frustrating in watching so much venting over the scandal without an accompanying analysis of a system that would have allowed for the scandal to have taken place so naturally. In essence, political maneuverings for public gains without a debate over anything substantial. The electorate seem all to willing here to be taken for a ride.