Japan

[robinson]

Or flying your plane into a ship



















Too soon?

[Anaxagoras]

Is someone going to prison for this? Where is the accountability?

Widow disgusted by government’s move to end false-data suit

The government agreed to pay full compensation to the widow of a Finance Ministry employee who killed himself in 2018, but she said she was disgusted by the abrupt move that ended her lawsuit.

“I started the lawsuit because I wanted to know more about why my husband died,” Masako Akagi said at a news conference in Osaka on Dec. 15. “The whole issue is not about the money. I was so disgusted by the way the lawsuit was terminated that I don’t know what I could say to my husband.”

Her husband, Toshio, committed suicide after he was ordered to falsify official documents related to a shady land deal. He was 54.

The Finance Ministry has long kept under wraps details surrounding the falsified documents.

But the widow and her lawyers were expecting more information to finally emerge through the court hearings.

However, the government, during a closed-door meeting at the Osaka District Court, said it would pay 107 million yen ($938,000) to Akagi, the compensation amount she sought in her lawsuit.

In a written statement submitted to the court on Dec. 15, the government acknowledged that Toshio Akagi, who worked at the ministry’s Kinki Local Finance Bureau in Osaka, developed a mental disorder after he was ordered to falsify ministry documents related to the sale of state-owned land to private school operator Moritomo Gakuen.

He was also swamped with information disclosure requests after the falsifications became known to the public, the statement said.

“It will not be appropriate to prolong the court proceedings” in light of the gravity of the fact that government’s official documents were falsified, the statement said.

The agreement to pay compensation represents a complete reversal of the government’s stance. It had asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit when it was filed in March 2020.

The state-owned land was sold to Moritomo Gakuen in 2016 for less than 20 percent of the appraised value, a discount of about 800 million yen.

Critics say the documents were falsified to shield Akie Abe, wife of then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, from any connection to the land deal.

The Moritomo Gakuen founder had boasted of his relationship with the first lady, and she was named honorary principal of an elementary school that was scheduled to open on that land in Toyonaka, Osaka Prefecture.

The government in June disclosed the so-called Akagi file in response to the widow’s demand in court, although it had spurned a similar request by opposition lawmakers in the Diet.

The file revealed emails sent by senior ministry officials instructing Toshio to falsify data on the land transaction. The file also showed that Toshio and other employees at the bureau, which oversaw the land deal, objected to the document tampering.

Akagi and her lawyers had planned to use the court battle to press the government to disclose more evidence and have senior ministry officials testify to gain a fuller picture of why the data was falsified.

Teruyuki Ogoshi, one of the lawyers representing Akagi, 50, called the government’s abrupt compensation decision “surprising, insincere and extremely contemptible.”

Makoto Kimura, a member of the Toyonaka city assembly, expressed outrage over the government’s move, saying the cover-up mentality of officials remains unchanged.

“The government chose to swiftly end the lawsuit by agreeing to pay the damages, rather than being compelled to disclose inconvenient evidence during court proceedings,” he said.

Kimura was one of the first individuals who raised suspicions about the murky transaction.

He sued the government in 2017 for not listing the value of the Moritomo Gakuen transaction in records it published over state-owned land.

The Kinki Local Finance Bureau handled 36 land deals between fiscal 2014 and 2016 and disclosed the value of all the transactions--except for the plot sold to Moritomo Gakuen.

The government again appears to be pushing its stance that the scandal is over.

Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki told reporters Dec. 15, “We reached the decision to pay the compensation because the government is accountable for the case.”

Just a reminder: when the government pays off a lawsuit, they are using taxpayer money. This is not accountability. Who are these "senior ministry officials" and why haven't they been arrested and charged with corruption?

More background information:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moritomo_Gakuen

Maybe they can get away with it because there is no effective opposition party in Japan. Those who control the levers of power are effectively above the law.

[robinson]

Sort of like the US of A

[Hotarubi]

...and the UK

[Doctor X]

Everywhere.

Just ask Brandon.

– J.D.

[Doctor X]

I like this guy, but I would like to ask him this question:

Given your statement that you would oppose the imperial system if it harmed the Japanese, can you honestly state you would have opposed it if you lived in the 1930 – 40s?

That is not meant to attack him. I would ask the same question to anyone that, if you grew up German in Nazi Germany, being told how awesome you are, how all of your problems are the fault of "other people," et cetera would you oppose it? Both had rather open and extensive police systems dedicated to brutally rooting out dissent, there was severe economic and social pressures to conform, et cetera.

– J.D.

[Hotarubi]

https://i.ibb.co/1TwcPPb/6ee48af8bfa0decf9a60716383b2d288.jpg

[Hotarubi]

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/ ... d-flavours

To be honest, I didn't get as far as reading the article.

[Doctor X]

But you did lick your screen.

– J.D.

[Anaxagoras]

Good grief. Yep, that’s Japan.

[Hotarubi]

But you did lick your screen.

– J.D.

Not after.

[Doctor X]

That was the 66099th Post of this thread.

Which is, in a way, awesome.

– J.D.

[ed]

I like this guy, but I would like to ask him this question:

Given your statement that you would oppose the imperial system if it harmed the Japanese, can you honestly state you would have opposed it if you lived in the 1930 – 40s?

That is not meant to attack him. I would ask the same question to anyone that, if you grew up German in Nazi Germany, being told how awesome you are, how all of your problems are the fault of "other people," et cetera would you oppose it? Both had rather open and extensive police systems dedicated to brutally rooting out dissent, there was severe economic and social pressures to conform, et cetera.

– J.D.

People who are judgmental of the actions of the defeated are worthy of scorn. What Doc said makes me think of Shaw's Man in the Glass Booth. I was very fortunate to have seen this on Broadway with Donald Pleasance in the lead role. And this soliloquy is apt to this discussion, I think. Note well the final paragraph.
https://i.imgur.com/MkTxxCE.jpg

[Anaxagoras]

Uh-oh:

Experts, LGBT groups say NHK’s year-end show is divisive (Asahi Shimbun)

Some academics and members of LGBT advocacy groups are voicing concerns that the public broadcaster’s year-end variety show is divisive and makes sexual minorities feel excluded.

Japan Broadcasting Corp. (NHK) produces and airs “NHK Kohaku Utagassen” (literally, Red and White song battle), an annual New Year’s Eve TV entertainment special.

The show uses a battle-of-the-bands format, in which a red team--mostly female musicians--and a white team--mostly male musicians--compete for votes from the audience and a panel of celebrity judges.

Noritaka Moriyama, 39, an associate professor at Waseda University who specializes in LGBT issues, said the fact that a show with a national reputation groups performers by male-female gender categories serves to reinforce binary thinking about gender and “possibly results in encouraging human rights violations against non-binary people and others.”

Sue Shinozaki, 36, who is non-binary, said this kind of categorization is hurtful to those who do not identify as either gender role.

“When (the performers) are simply divided into male and female, I feel like I am being shut out.”

The TV show has had a long run as an annual tradition for many as a way of ringing in the new year. It started in 1945 and was renamed to its current title in 1951.

Shoichi Ota, 61, a sociologist who has written a book on the show, said the red-versus-white grouping “started with a way of thinking about democratic equality between men and women.”

According to a producer of the show, NHK allocates the performers to each team. Unless NHK is informed directly, staff do not confirm the willingness of the performers to participate in a particular team.

But the social norm of dividing gender into only two categories, called “gender dualism,” is increasingly falling under scrutiny for excluding people who do not fit into traditional definitions of gender.

The entertainment business around the world is slowly changing to address that.

This way of thinking is not yet commonplace here in Japan, where most people seem to be happy with traditional gender roles and think there are two, and only two sexes. But you can see that it is beginning to make some inroads.

[Doctor X]

If one is actually non-binary, then one should not object performing in the role required by the rules for one night.

– J.D.

[Hotarubi]

Why are you such a misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist misandrist misogynist Communist Nazi11!!!1!1+1

[robinson]

How’s the snow there?

[Anaxagoras]

How’s the snow there?

There's no snow in Yokohama where I live. There's probably a lot in northern Japan though.

[Anaxagoras]

The Japanese courts have taken the view that retweeting without adding any comment can be libel.

Artist, retweeters ordered to pay journalist over ‘fake rape’ posts

The Tokyo District Court ordered a Twitter-using cartoonist and two retweeters to pay damages totaling 1.1 million yen ($9,680) to a journalist over posts that implied she had lied about being raped.

The court on Nov. 30 ruled that the tweets initially uploaded by manga artist Toshiko Hasumi defamed Shiori Ito’s character.

It also said that two men who retweeted Hasumi’s tweets without adding any comment must pay 110,000 yen each in damages to Ito.

The ruling said it is reasonable to regard the retweets as the two men’s own statements and expressions of support for the original tweets.

An illustration posted in one of Hasumi’s tweets depicted a woman with text saying, “Sex for a job failed miserably!!”

The court said that the tweet “communicated that Ito made a false sexual assault allegation, and it harmed her reputation in society.”

Ito had accused a senior TV journalist of raping her at a hotel. Although the criminal investigation into the alleged attacker was dropped, Ito won a landmark civil lawsuit against him in 2019.

Ito became a symbol of the #MeToo movement in Japan—but also a target of attack on social media.

She sued the three defendants in the defamation lawsuit, seeking damages totaling 7.7 million yen for spreading false information about her.

As you can see, the total damages awarded were less than $10,000 but people who only retweeted someone else's tweet were also held liable. 110,000 yen is roughly $1,000.

[Hotarubi]

How’s the snow there?

There's none In my back garden. We're having a mild winter which , more than anything else, proves something.

[shuize]

The Japanese courts have taken the view that retweeting without adding any comment can be libel.

Artist, retweeters ordered to pay journalist over ‘fake rape’ posts

Spoiler:

The Tokyo District Court ordered a Twitter-using cartoonist and two retweeters to pay damages totaling 1.1 million yen ($9,680) to a journalist over posts that implied she had lied about being raped.

The court on Nov. 30 ruled that the tweets initially uploaded by manga artist Toshiko Hasumi defamed Shiori Ito’s character.

It also said that two men who retweeted Hasumi’s tweets without adding any comment must pay 110,000 yen each in damages to Ito.

The ruling said it is reasonable to regard the retweets as the two men’s own statements and expressions of support for the original tweets.

An illustration posted in one of Hasumi’s tweets depicted a woman with text saying, “Sex for a job failed miserably!!”

The court said that the tweet “communicated that Ito made a false sexual assault allegation, and it harmed her reputation in society.”

Ito had accused a senior TV journalist of raping her at a hotel. Although the criminal investigation into the alleged attacker was dropped, Ito won a landmark civil lawsuit against him in 2019.

Ito became a symbol of the #MeToo movement in Japan—but also a target of attack on social media.

She sued the three defendants in the defamation lawsuit, seeking damages totaling 7.7 million yen for spreading false information about her.

As you can see, the total damages awarded were less than $10,000 but people who only retweeted someone else's tweet were also held liable. 110,000 yen is roughly $1,000.

I'd have to double check to be certain, but I seem to recall that truth is not necessarily a defense to defamation in Japan.

[shuize]

How’s the snow there?

There's no snow in Yokohama where I live. There's probably a lot in northern Japan though.

新千歳空港で欠航200便超 除雪で滑走路一時閉鎖

Over 200 flights reportedly canceled due to snow at Shin-Chitose (Sapporo) Airport.

https://www.msn.com/ja-jp/news/national ... d=msedgntp

[robinson]

https://twitter.com/sayakasofiamori/sta ... 76897?s=21

https://twitter.com/dbirch214/status/14 ... 84419?s=21

[robinson]

Because the 1984 NPC believes the lies, they know in their heart snow means warmer

[shuize]

最高齢田中カ子さん119歳に 明治から令和まで5時代生きる

Loose translation: World's oldest person, Kane Tanaka turns 119 -- Lives through five imperial eras.

Here's what she looked like approximately 100 years ago:

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%94%B0 ... -c1923.png

https://www.msn.com/ja-jp/news/opinion/ ... d=msedgntp

ETA: I found Wikipedia's English version about her:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kane_Tanaka

[Doctor X]

Very interesting.

– J. "I'm Not Racist . . . But" D.

[robinson]

The Japs used to be the most racist bastards on the planet

[robinson]

During WWII they literally treated non Japanese as not human

[shuize]

The Japs used to be the most racist bastards on the planet

I remember my grandfather laughing about that.

He thought it was hilarious how much Asians hated* other Asians.

Come to think of it, so do I. (Ha! Ha!)



* I'm not sure why I wrote that in past tense. They still do.

[Anaxagoras]

Very interesting.

– J. "I'm Not Racist . . . But" D.

I've a white guy and I cannot remember ever being stopped on the street by police and I've walked by police officers countless times. I've been living here for over 20 years now.

[Doctor X]

Sadly, I think the point of the video is his friend who was stopped was black.

This Nobita seems to be upset with anyone darker than he is.

– J.D.

[Anaxagoras]

Yeah, I don't know who Nobita is, but I'm not buying what he's claiming. I did watch the video. I'm just saying it's different being a white foreigner in Japan and being black here.

[Doctor X]

Could be worse.

You could be Korean.

– J.D.

[Ben Trovado]

During WWII they literally treated non Japanese as not human

The part that surprised me -- (all from memory and all from some time back) -- was reading that not only were there competitions between army officers on how many civilians they could behead, it was reported back in the Tokyo papers like they were goddamn box scores. Bets were taken, the whole works. (but no one used steroids, so at least the sport was clean)

It was one thing to read about the death march or what specialized groups did in China or Korea -- you can almost understand how war and death could warp people . . . but the people back at home reading that and accepting it as a perfectly normal thing?

[Doctor X]

There is a question whether or not the infamous beheading competition reported in the newspapers actually happened or was made up by the newspapers for propaganda reasons and to, of course, sell the papers. What is horrifyingly interesting about that is that the readers knew and celebrated such atrocities.

The Ass Hat Yuta goes after – "Nobita" – recapitulates the same victim-blaming the Japanese met out to anyone, especially anyone sufficiently unfortunate to be born within the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere to a non-Japanese: "Japan is not racist! You need to take responsibility for members of your race!"

– J.D.

[Ben Trovado]

There is a question whether or not the infamous beheading competition reported in the newspapers actually happened or was made up by the newspapers for propaganda reasons and to, of course, sell the papers. What is horrifyingly interesting about that is that the readers knew and celebrated such atrocities.

I had not heard that possibility. On the one hand - good, maybe less beheadings. On the other - JESUS, WHAT ?!!!

[Hotarubi]

There is a question whether or not the infamous beheading competition reported in the newspapers actually happened or was made up by the newspapers for propaganda reasons and to, of course, sell the papers. What is horrifyingly interesting about that is that the readers knew and celebrated such atrocities.

I had not heard that possibility. On the one hand - good, maybe less beheadings. On the other - JESUS, WHAT ?!!!

Shintaro Uno wrote :

Whatever you say, it's silly to argue about whether it happened this way or that way when the situation is clear. There were hundreds and thousands of soldiers like Mukai and Noda, including me, during those fifty years of war between Japan and China. At any rate, it was nothing more than a commonplace occurrence during the so-called Chinese Disturbance

Lovely.

[Doctor X]

Indeed.

This does not in any way excuse through explanation. Japanese senior NCOs and officers encouraged and ordered atrocities so the troops would fear they would suffer the same and not surrender.

That being noted, it appears few soldiers objected. This explanation was offered by soldiers captured, so take it as you will.

One of the many of the great "What Ifs" is "what if" the Japanese actually lived up to their propaganda of being liberators for Asians?

– J.D.

[Anaxagoras]

One of the many of the great "What Ifs" is "what if" the Japanese actually lived up to their propaganda of being liberators for Asians?

– J.D.

Yeah, that would have been something. If memory serves, many or most of those beheadings were of Chinese soldiers who tried to surrender. But their orders were to take no prisoners, so surrendering was no better than committing suicide. On the flip side, very few Japanese soldiers willingly surrendered. They would usually kill themselves rather than surrender, or try to attack even in situations where that meant certain death. Probably because they imagined that they would be given the same treatment that they gave others who tried to surrender.

I don't know if this is rooted in bushido ways of thinking. To surrender is too shameful, and even suicide is preferred. Prior to the "Meiji Restoration", Japan was a closed country in much the same way as North Korea is today. The powers who controlled the country at the time did not want their population exposed to foreign influences. So foreigners were mostly kept out and Japanese were mostly prohibited from traveling abroad.

[Doctor X]

Hard to make a short reply on this. Bushidō was a made-up anachronism to convince a crap load of peasants that they were all warriors and all belonged together as part of the "Yamato Spirit/Race." Brutality was meted upon recruits with the encouragement that they do the same.

There was one college student whom I recall who ate up the university-taught propaganda of "liberation" of the "Asian people" from the Evil White Devils who frequently humiliated Japan on the world stage. He was somewhat surprised to find himself part of massacres. I think there is a comparison to be made between the Japanese attitude towards the people they conquered and American attitudes towards Native Americans: a lot of official excuses were made to taking their shit and killing as many of them as possible.

– J.D.