Mentally ill child-killer gets 22 years in prison
…
According to the ruling, Ujiie stole a knife at an Ito-Yokado Co. supermarket in Anjo at around 10:40 a.m. on Feb. 4, 2005. He then stabbed to death 11-month-old Shoma Aoyama of Okazaki in the prefecture, who was in a baby buggy near his mother around the children’s clothing section. Ujiie also kicked and injured the boy’s 6-year-old sister and a 27-year-old woman nearby.

Oh. But he didn’t mean to do this. He wasn’t in his right mind. There were voices in his head that told him to do this, but he didn’t really want to do it. So he gets only 22 years as opposed to 30 years.

I don’t like capital punishment. The danger is so great that an innocent could be killed, and I could never really accept that. But a man killing a baby in cold blood? I might have to rethink my opinion on this.

I’ve been to that specific Ito-Yokado more than a few times, though never with my children. I did often take one of my children to an Ito-Yokado in a near by town, when he was a toddler.

I don’t believe in the insanity plea for several reasons. One reason is because issues like guilt should not be up to pseudo-scientific experts of the mind. In a certain sense, we’re all crazy.

There’s no question that he committed the crime, so there shouldn’t be too much debate over what punishment he deserves.

U.S. marine held over illegal entry in Okinawa
NAHA–A 21-year-old U.S. Marine Corps corporal was arrested Monday on suspicion of breaking into a house in Nago, Okinawa Prefecture, and falling asleep on a sofa, police said. Cpl. Shawn Jake, stationed at Camp Schwab, was arrested on suspicion of trespassing after the prefectural police arrived at the scene at the Henoko area in the city, in response to an emergency call early Monday from a 54-year-old woman who lives in the house.

What are these guys doing down there?

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.

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.

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?

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.

At home, the government faces a longstanding ambivalence toward foreigners. A 2003 survey shows that, while 48 percent of those polled would like to see more foreign tourists, 32 percent don’t. About 90 percent of them blame increased tourism for a “rise in crimes committed by foreigners.”

Link.

… he got off the bridge by going through an unlocked door and down a stairway. He entered a restricted area on the ground but was not spotted by a security guard who was positioned just below the bridge, the sources said. The man walked through the restricted area for more than 500 meters and left the airport through a gate shortly before 10 a.m. without being stopped by any guard.

I wouldn’t suggest this as a way to avoid getting fingerprinted when reentering Japan. It does, however, call into question the whole point of the activity.

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.

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.

If only there was place offering a lunch menu.

I do have a friend selling microwavable turkey dinners from America. I haven’t had a chance to try these yet though.

It’s a bit strange, but even after 13 years in Japan, Thanksgiving is the holiday I still feel the most remiss about missing. If by chance you read this and live in Nagoya and know of a restaurant serving turkey lunch, please let me know …

First, there are a few things I don’t really understand.

I don’t understand what the substance of a grand coalition between the LDP and the DPJ would have been.

I don’t understand why Ozawa even considered it.

I don’t understand why Ozawa resigned.

I don’t understand why the DPJ leadership begged him to come back.

I don’t understand why he came back.

Okay, that aside let me go over in detail what I do understand.

ahem … [head scratching] …

Okay, I’ll have to come back to this later …

(more…)

I checked at about 11:55 PM, east cost American time, at Ron Paul’s campaign site. Total contributions then we’re about $2,700,00 for this quarter. As I write this they are over $3,800,000. That would suggest that in about 7 hours, he has raised over a million dollars.

I will also note that shortly after it turned 12:00 AM on the east coast of America, just after 2:00 PM in Japan, I donated $100 to Ron Paul’s campaign. This is the first donation I have ever given to a presidential candidate ever. I look at it this way, at the very minimum he is educating young people about economics, and that is worth contributing to. Look at the top candidates in either party. Rudy Giuliani, Hillary Clinton … do these people actually care about the constitution? Do they care about people? Do they care about economics and policy?

I look at today as a chance to make a statement. I hope a really loud one.

Now if you think this has nothing to do with Japan. Guess again. I’m not just talking about the kind of antics you get from Ozawa and Fukuda, but the fact that monetary policy in Japan is, as it is in America, centrally planned. Is it really even conceivable that a bureaucrat, a sort of technocrat, should be able to set interest rates better than the market would? Just read the article I’ve linked.

Governor Fukui says, “But we need to pay greater attention to the risk of prolonged easy policy, even as downside risks grow.” How in the world is he suppose to know what the best rate would be? And even if he knew it, who in the world would have the courage to raise the rate for the good of the economy knowing it would incur everyone’s wrath?

It’s late (for me) and I’m rambling. Good luck Ron Paul!

So far they have nearly 11,700 people who have pledged.

I think it terms of supporters who are sincerely passionate about their candidate, Ron Paul must be leading the pack.

Is it actually even possible to be passionate about any of the other front runners in the US presidential primaries?

Certainly the Internet is changing the whole dynamics of the election. A passionate following on the Internet translates into cash. Cash translates into money for advertising. Advertising translates into name recognition. Name recognition translates into more support …

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I don’t even think the Americans are.

You have to watch this video.