Hashimoto at it again

[kurogane]

To be honest these guys didn't really strike me as rich kids. More the type you described although this was before everyone and their mother claimed to be training in MMA. Definitely a bunch of big douche bags looking for trouble.

Between you and Kuro, that pretty much describes the bar scene across much of the country.

Yeah. Being such a nice Vancouver boy with only a few years in Kingston I was never all that up on how the doughnut half lived, until half of them moved to Vancouver, and another half of that to Whistler.

Sort of a shame Samurai and his charges had to meet that ilk instead of sophisticates like Mike and me.

[matsuki]

One man's "pussy" is another man's (albeit still probably an asshole) "neither-in-jail-nor-dead-still-able-to-pay-rent-and-feed-the-family".

Love how gaijin trash think that actual beatdowns resulting in actual bodily harm, medical bills, jail time etc are more legit expressions of disgust, outrage and anger than machismo on show. Pitbulls or peacocks.

Yeah, I'd rather live with the latter too. Gimme "ore, ore! kora!" over "Fuuuuccckkkk, me mate's on the ground bleeding out!" any time.

Did you miss the part where I wrote "not that I want to encourage fights" or is my "gaijin trash" accent too heavy for you? Sorry if my trashy mentality means that I don't need to make empty threats to deal with assholes or feel like a man but guess what...it seems even less likley to result in

actual beatdowns resulting in actual bodily harm, medical bills, jail time etc

than "machismo on show"

That's how most fights in America end too, dipshit. Violence is still the exception not the rule even in the land of freedom, guns, and Jesus. Yeah, yeah, we know. It was different where you grew up.

How can you call it a "fight" if there is no "violence?"

You guys are reading what I wrote as "if someone challenges you, you better throw down or you're a pussy!" when all I'm saying is "Don't start talking shit and making threats unless you are prepared to back them up."

Since it seems to be assumed otherwise, my philosophy is usually the same as with asshole drivers/roadrage...not worth the risk or wasting my time on. Even if they manage to piss me off, they'll eventually do the same to someone that can't control their anger and get theirs...and that person doesn't have to be me.

[Samurai_Jerk]

How can you call it a "fight" if there is no "violence?"

When most guys talk about a fight with their girl they don't usually mean punches were thrown.

[matsuki]

How can you call it a "fight" if there is no "violence?"

When most guys talk about a fight with their girl they don't usually mean punches were thrown.

Well, if they're still around to talk about it, probably not

Would you really describe an argument between two dudes at a bar, rolling their R's and bustin' out the "omae" as a "fight" rather than "an argument?"

[Samurai_Jerk]

How can you call it a "fight" if there is no "violence?"

When most guys talk about a fight with their girl they don't usually mean punches were thrown.

Well, if they're still around to talk about it, probably not

Would you really describe an argument between two dudes at a bar, rolling their R's and bustin' out the "omae" as a "fight" rather than "an argument?"

That's not the point.

[matsuki]

That's not the point.

It was my original point...the title of the article makes it sounds like it broke down into an actual fist fight when it was nothing more than some "Omae" here and "you're annoying" there....and ended with "go home!"

When I read "fight" or "Hate Speech Debate Gets Ugly, Fast" I expect something more like:

[Yokohammer]

Apparently a number of zaitokukai thugs have been arrested for assaulting members of an opposition group after a rally. The police have raided their head office for good measure, with Sakurai in attendance. Good to see that some positive action is being taken. They're getting a bit too big for their boots. That little altercation with Hashimoto might have helped to tip the scales against them.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Mike Oxlong]

The case for a more multicultural Japan
The aging nation must consider its future. Banning
hate speech would be a crucial first step

Last month Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto made headlines for his heated face-off with Makoto Sakurai during a debate on hate speech. Sakurai is the chairman of Zaitokukai, an ultranationalist organization whose full name translates to the helpfully descriptive “group of citizens who do not tolerate privileges for ethnic Korean residents in Japan.” The debate, at Osaka’s City Hall, began contentiously, when Sakurai addressed Hashimoto without the honorifics typically used for formal interactions and concluded when Hashimoto declared, “We don’t need racists like you here in Osaka.”

Osaka, which is Japan’s second-largest metropolitan area, is considering the implementation of a ban on hate speech. In August the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination urged such a move, citing a rise in anti-Korean sentiment throughout the island nation. Zaitokukai arguably became the face of xenophobic rhetoric when in 2009 and 2010 its members demonstrated in front of a Korean elementary school in Kyoto, hurling racist invectives at children as they made their way to class. Recently, residents of Korean neighborhoods in Tokyo and Osaka have reported demonstrators marching through the streets and chanting for the massacre of Koreans.

Japan has long had troubled relations with its ethnic minorities. The largest such group, known as Zainichi Koreans, has lived in the country since the imperial period, when Japan annexed Korea; hundreds of thousands of Koreans were conscripted during World War II. The descendants of those who remained navigate the Japanese language and culture with fluency, but many lack citizenship and voting rights, living as “guests” in a nation that is the only home they know.

Ironically, it is this supposedly special treatment that raises Zaitokukai’s hackles. Zaitokukai is undoubtedly a fringe movement, but even mainstream Japan is, at best, ambivalent about multiculturalism and has resisted loosening its immigration laws despite a rapidly aging citizenry. An ordinance outlawing hate speech would be a significant step toward tolerance, and Osaka, known for being a comparatively lively and liberal city, would be an appropriate leader to soften attitudes about difference.

But it’s unclear how the Osaka municipal government might proceed. Despite Hashimoto’s recent anti-racism stance, he hasn’t always been a human rights crusader. In 2013 he told reporters that the use of so-called comfort women — the women and girls, many of them Korean, forced into sexual slavery by Japanese imperial forces — was necessary to “give these emotionally charged soldiers a rest.” Japan’s tensions with Korea extend, as well, to the realm of pop culture; hundreds demonstrated outside Fuji TV’s headquarters in Tokyo in 2011 to protest its broadcast of Korean soap operas.

If some Japanese seem apprehensive about overseas influence, it may be in part because they have had little interaction with outsiders. Only 1.25 percent of the population is foreign-born, the smallest ratio of immigrants in the developed world. This tiny trickle of newcomers is not enough to compensate for the nation’s plummeting birth rates; by 2060, it is predicted, half the country will be over 65. Soon Japanese lawmakers will be faced with a decision: Either they must brace for a radical downscaling or begin accepting more immigrants in order to maintain its status as the world’s third-largest economy. The Japanese are well acquainted with the implications of a graying populace, but a poll conducted in April by the newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun revealed that only 37 percent of the public felt that more foreign workers should be accepted to secure Japan’s labor supply...

Continued at Al Jazeera America

[matsuki]

Zaitokukai arguably became the face of xenophobic rhetoric when in 2009 and 2010 its members demonstrated in front of a Korean elementary school in Kyoto, hurling racist invectives at children as they made their way to class.

Such brave men with a noble cause will surely win the support of the world with these kinds of demonstrations.

[Russell]

Osaka mayor weighs in on school lunch debate

He’s known for his outspoken and often controversial opinions, from saying that civil servants who have tattoos should resign, to denying the forcible recruitment of South Korean “comfort women” during the second world war.

But it was an intense debate about whether students should be allowed to have “furikake” seasoning with their school lunch that left Mayor Toru Hashimoto scratching his head as he asked the Osaka Board of Education: “What’s wrong with furikake?!”

Cold, unappetising and tasteless is how junior high students in Osaka describe their school lunches. And kids have been voting with their chopsticks, leaving lunches uneaten. With 70% of students failing to finish their school lunch, the city Board of Education has been discussing ways to get them to clear their plates.

“More students might eat their rice if they could have ‘furikake’ [with school lunch]”, teachers suggested in a meeting on Nov 25. Hashimoto then asked in amazement, “Furikake wa dame nan desu ka?” which translates as “What’s wrong with furikake?” or “Why can’t they have furikake?”

“Furikake” is a flaked flavouring that is sprinkled on rice. It comes in all kinds of flavors, but it’s typically fishy with seaweed, and is a popular and effective way to get Japanese kids to eat up their bowl of plain rice.

So what’s the problem with “furikake?” Well, typically, school lunches in Japan are rice-heavy and well-balanced. But “furikake” is high in salt, and allowing kids to use it might undo the careful balance of the healthy meal they’re being served. On the other hand, some say that the negative effects of higher salt intake might be offset by the benefit of students actually finishing their meals.

School meal uptake in Japan is impressively high, and students are expected to eat the whole thing with no leftovers. But in Osaka, where bringing lunch from home has long been the norm, school lunches are a recent development. In 2011, only 11% of junior high students in Osaka were having a “full school lunch” including milk, compared to a national average of 76%. Amid concern that some homemade lunches were not healthy enough, school lunches were rolled out across the city.

But to keep costs down, lunches in Osaka are prepared elsewhere, refrigerated, and delivered to schools. The problem is, lots of kids don’t like chilled lunch.

On the “furikake” question specifically, the debate lasted 10 minutes and did not come to any concrete conclusions; the board decided to consult with experts before taking any further action. Will flaked seasonings be allowed in Osaka’s schools? Hashimoto was insistent that schools must be allowed to decide for themselves without interference from the city government.

More

Yeah, let schools decide for themselves on the important questions, unlike issues concerning tattoos of teachers...

[matsuki]

Amid concern that some homemade lunches were not healthy enough, school lunches were rolled out across the city.

Cause eating tons of cold white rice is obviously healthier?

That whole conversation is just fucking odd...why the fuck are retarded politicians decided what children eat? (and asking if they can force them to eat it?)

[Coligny]

Hum... Frozen fukushima rice and whale meat...

Try that shit in french school and enough cars will be burned to restart the whole Russian automobile industry...

[Mike Oxlong]

Osaka embraces English Reformation

While Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto’s controversial political antics have increasingly drawn criticism, little attention has been paid to how his leadership has prompted the most progressive reforms of English-language education in the nation. Hashimoto, who served as Osaka’s governor from 2008-11, made possible the appointment of fellow Waseda Law School graduate Toru Nakahara as superintendent of the Osaka Prefectural Board of Education, charging him with the task of empowering students to compete on a global stage.

Only in Osaka will students in the public school system have the opportunity to start preparing for the TOEFL iBT — an internationally recognized English-language proficiency exam for non-native speakers administered over the Internet that tests reading, writing, speaking and listening skills for entrance to English-speaking university overseas — in grade one of primary school.

With the urging of Mayor Hashimoto, Nakahara — who also graduated from the University of Michigan Law School and was a practicing attorney at a California firm for 10 years — left the private sector and took a substantial pay cut to become the principal of Izumi High School in Osaka in 2010. In 2013, Nakahara became Japan’s youngest-ever superintendent at age 42, overseeing 1,600-plus schools, and he formed what is known as the English Reformation Project Team.

Nakahara’s accomplishments in the United States and at Izumi High School have led him to be recognized as an education innovator.

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

More

[dimwit]

So where are they going to find the ALT's without Tattoos?

[Russell]

So where are they going to find the ALT's without Tattoos?

That's the brilliance of Hashimoto's plan: he doesn't need ALTs...

Another unprecedented move is the plan to hire Super English Teachers (SETs) for the 2015 academic year to teach at these pre-selected top high schools. According to Cook, these teachers will be “the best and brightest Japanese, English-speaking citizens… who have TOEFL iBT scores of over 100 points or an IELTS score above 7.5.”

The Osaka Board of Education will grant special teaching licenses to these candidates, and they will teach for three- to five-year contracted terms and be paid approximately $74,000 per year. In contrast, Japanese teachers in their mid-20s earn approximately $44,000 per year. These SETs will also be expected to have regular teacher responsibilities including homeroom and club supervision.

[Yokohammer]

So where are they going to find the ALT's without Tattoos?

That's the brilliance of Hashimoto's plan: he doesn't need ALTs...

Another unprecedented move is the plan to hire Super English Teachers (SETs) for the 2015 academic year to teach at these pre-selected top high schools. According to Cook, these teachers will be “the best and brightest Japanese, English-speaking citizens… who have TOEFL iBT scores of over 100 points or an IELTS score above 7.5.”

The Osaka Board of Education will grant special teaching licenses to these candidates, and they will teach for three- to five-year contracted terms and be paid approximately $74,000 per year. In contrast, Japanese teachers in their mid-20s earn approximately $44,000 per year. These SETs will also be expected to have regular teacher responsibilities including homeroom and club supervision.

At the current exchange rate, US$74,000 is close to 9 million yen. Not bad for an english teacher.

Something tells me this plan is going to meet a load of resistance from the board of education and/or teachers union (if such a thing exists).

[wangta]

It is quite scary to think that some people hope he becomes a viable candidate for national politics. He would make old Blinky seem tame in comparison!

No fan by any means, but he's no less scary than the fundies the GOP puts up in the Untied States...
Hashimoto is burakumin...can't see Japanese attitudes changing that much too soon and national politics is a whole new ball game compared to ruling over constituencies given a certain degree of executive power.
Mind you, he certainly couldn't do much worse nationally than what we've had for the past three decades or so.

Japan needs maverick politicians but this bloke despite his buraku background aint it. With his tattoo bullshit all he is doing is reinforcing stereotypes of scummy lower class who don't deserve jobs and hanging out to dry other buraku who didn't have his advantages to get to a position of influence.

Much as I don't like political correctness and using past injustices to justify present entitlement mentalities and low expectations, I support well thought out and applied affirmative action in certain cases. Instead of bullshitting about appearances, if Hashimoto had integrity he'd be focusing on helping build a buraku middle class along with a focus on education including school retention rates and college entry.

I actually taught a politician from Ishihara's party. A decent bloke as a person, the kind of politician who would do whatever it took to help constituents regardless of their ethnicity or country of origin. Yet when we discussed buraku issues (he was keen to talk about social and political issues) his viewpoint was that there was no discrimination anymore and that buraku had been given 'special privileges' such as a monopoly over garbage disposal jobs. I didn't point out that this attitude was why being a garbage worker is still considered great for buraku.

[IparryU]

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

Spot on... surprising for Hashimoto to say something intelligent.

[Yokohammer]

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

Spot on... surprising for Hashimoto to say something intelligent.

Hey, no shit.

D'ya suppose he might have read my post on Japanese debating skills? A closet FG reader, eh?

[wagyl]

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

Spot on... surprising for Hashimoto to say something intelligent.

Hey, no shit.

D'ya suppose he might have read my post on Japanese debating skills? A closet FG reader, eh?

People!!! Where are your famed critical reading skills? That quote is by Nakahara, not by Hashimoto.

[Yokohammer]

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

Spot on... surprising for Hashimoto to say something intelligent.

Hey, no shit.

D'ya suppose he might have read my post on Japanese debating skills? A closet FG reader, eh?

People!!! Where are your famed critical reading skills? That quote is by Nakahara, not by Hashimoto.

Oh ... well, d'ya think Nakahara is a closet FG reader?

[wagyl]

Oh ... well, d'ya think Nakahara is a closet FG reader?

I've never seen him and Takechanpoo in the same room.

Just sayin'.

[matsuki]

“One thing I noticed when I was in Ann Arbor (Michigan) was the necessity to have English-speaking abilities, otherwise nobody outside of Japan is even going to acknowledge you,” he says. “We Japanese do not have a strong ability to debate with others. We lack opportunities to debate throughout our education, and we are not good at logical and critical thinking.”

Spot on... surprising for Hashimoto to say something intelligent.

Hey, no shit.

D'ya suppose he might have read my post on Japanese debating skills? A closet FG reader, eh?

People!!! Where are your famed critical reading skills? That quote is by Nakahara, not by Hashimoto.

Oh ... well, d'ya think Nakahara is a closet FG reader?

I was about to highlight the same part....what do yah know, an intelligent Japanese that studied/worked abroad and he is amazingly spot on with his assessment of the situation. I dunno that they need language teachers with such pay but regulars, FG or otherwise, that are able to teach/test in ways that actually achieve some fluency would make a big difference.

[IparryU]

http://www.japantoday.com/category/poli ... es-illegal

Osaka court rules tattoo check on city employees illegal

The Osaka District Court has ruled that Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto’s order to check whether municipal office workers had tattoos was illegal and constituted an invasion of privacy.

The court handed down the ruling on Wednesday in a damages suit filed by a 56-year-old city bus driver, Tadasu Yasuda, who was transferred to a desk job after he refused to answer questions on whether or not he had a tattoo, Sankei Shimbun reported Thursday. Presiding Judge Kenji Nakagaito invalidated the transfer and ordered the Osaka municipal government to pay Yasuda 1.1 million yen in damages.

The judge said ordering employees to reveal if they have tattoos or not encroached on individuals’ privacy and carried a risk of creating workplace discrimination. The court also ruled that the plaintiff should be reinstated to his previous position as a bus driver.

The tattoo check, which was requested by Hashimoto in May 2012, involved 35,000 city employees who were asked to reply in writing. Of those who answered, 114 said they did have tattoos on their arms or legs, while six refused to disclose whether they had any tattoos or not, Sankei reported. Those six, including Yasuda, were subjected to disciplinary action. Yasuda said later that he did not have a tattoo, but refused to cooperate with the investigation because he felt it was an invasion of his privacy.

When he launched his anti-tattoo campaign, Hashimoto said at the time that “citizens feel uneasy or intimidated if they see tattoos (on workers) in services and it undermines trust in the city.”

Although small tattoos are now a common means of self-expression in Japan and are no longer indicative of gang membership, Hashimoto threatened to dismiss any city worker who has tattoos. “We need to have possession of this information. Anyone who doesn’t respond to the survey should be reported to HR and passed over for future promotion. This all goes without saying,” Hashimoto said.

Japanese media reported that Hashimoto first brought up the issue after learning that a worker at a children’s home threatened kids by showing them his tattoos.

[yanpa]

Osaka court rules tattoo check on city employees illegal
(...)
Japanese media reported that Hashimoto first brought up the issue after learning that a worker at a children’s home threatened kids by showing them his tattoos.

I hate to think what Hashimoto would've done if the worker in question had shown his genitals.

[Coligny]

Osaka court rules tattoo check on city employees illegal
(...)
Japanese media reported that Hashimoto first brought up the issue after learning that a worker at a children’s home threatened kids by showing them his tattoos.

I hate to think what Hashimoto would've done if the worker in question had shown his genitals.

On most japanese school they have a name for this: it's called "monday"

[matsuki]

Osaka court rules tattoo check on city employees illegal
(...)
Japanese media reported that Hashimoto first brought up the issue after learning that a worker at a children’s home threatened kids by showing them his tattoos.

I hate to think what Hashimoto would've done if the worker in question had shown his genitals.

Any asshole worker threatening children needs to lose their job....but I like how the mentality bounces from case to case basis to blanket stereotypes...or does still count as case byu case since it is blanket policy being applied on a case by case basis?

[Salty]

Almost makes me want to get a tattoo - so I am sorta carrying a concealed weapon...

[matsuki]

Almost makes me want to get a tattoo - so I am sorta carrying a concealed weapon...

I had...what I think was an 18yo chinpira dude, flash me his tats (not tits) one after the other while laughing and proudly boasting "japaneeeeeze yakuza." As cute as the act was, all I can say is the weakest and bottom of the barrel dudes seem to be the only ones still getting inked up. As scrawny as this kid was, I think he's have a problem taking a lemur in a fight...let alone strike fear into anyone. (cept maybe children?)

[J.A.F.O]

These are the same guys that shitake in their fundoshis when a real yak comes along.