Self Defence Force Calls The Marines

[Mulboyne]

[Ganma]

Nice to know the JSDF are up to date and ready to defend Japan now that they won't be needing the US bases anymore.

[Number11]

The JSDF would so just fine if the bases closed up tomorrow. And so would the rest of us living in Japan who have to pay taxes to support the American tax feeders on the bases.

Here's some rolling eyes for you too:

[jingai]

I wonder where the husband got it and why he thought it would make a nice souvenir?

[Samurai_Jerk]

The JSDF would so just fine if the bases closed up tomorrow. And so would the rest of us living in Japan who have to pay taxes to support the American tax feeders on the bases.

Here's some rolling eyes for you too:

Yeah, 'cos like, if the they all left, Japan would lower your taxes 'n shit.

[Coligny]

Nice to know the JSDF are up to date and ready to defend Japan now that they won't be needing the US bases anymore.

Maybe they are pussies... But at least the Germans are not within walking distance from their motherland...

(family is from a part of the country which was described as "like the surface of the moon but with less lifeforms" after WWI...)

[Kanchou]

If video games have taught me anything, anti-tank weapons are basically puny and harmless firecrackers so long as you stay more than five feet away from the blast.

Also, if you fire one at your feet as you jump, you can reach high places you couldn't before.

[IparryU]

[Takechanpoo]

Maybe they are pussies...

Aussie please....
Aussie could not even declare war on Japan if Big Uncle Sam didnt support it in WW2. Next time should be one-to-one. Imagine that you dudes be bullied by us.

[Ganma]

Maybe they are pussies... But at least the Germans are not within walking distance from their motherland...

(family is from a part of the country which was described as "like the surface of the moon but with less lifeforms" after WWI...)

I don't see modern day Germany as a military threat. Japan has bigger problems, having still not resolved past grievances with its Asian neighbors.

[BigInJapan]

Does anyone know what they actually do in training?

Karaoke, and playing the guitar and sax it seems...

[Greji]

The JSDF would so just fine if the bases closed up tomorrow. And so would the rest of us living in Japan who have to pay taxes to support the American tax feeders on the bases.

Here's some rolling eyes for you too:

That is probably true, but the taxes that will be required to realign JSDF and bring them up to date and up front to defend Japan would definitely increase. So it would cost us as tax payers, even more (at least initially), because contrary to popular media in TIJ, Japan is not paying the whole bill for USFJ. At any rate, taxes for the defense percentage would not be going down. So whether or not, you favor or are against the security treaty, it is not going to be cheaper and probably less safe in the long run.

[Number11]

In the real, pragmatic world that I like to live in, I don't see any country on any continent attacking Japan in a full-scale onslaught in my lifetime. In spite of the fantasy world of politicians, media and think tanks full of people who profit from building arsenals pooping out the altruistic "defending Japan from X" crap, the US has always occupied Japan for its own reasons.

It acts out of self interest, like all nations, and I have no doubt that if in the highly unlikely event that there were some bizarre turn of events creating a true military threat to Japan, the US would renege on the security agreement, if it was in the best financial interest of the US to do so.

I didn't say that taxes would go down. How old do you think I am? However, Japan spending on Japanese defense makes about as much sense as the UK spending in UK defense, the US spending on US defense and even China spending on Chinese defense.

The bitter truth is that the US cannot afford to fund the US bases and personnel in Japan. Period. And neither can Japan afford it now, either.

If Japan is such an awful, undependable ally and country, Americans should want the troops home. Send them back to the "homeland." Why would an American object to the position that the majority of the US personnel in Okinawa should be sent home?

You should be supporting the Okinawa and the current Japanese administration position to reduce the US impact. Why do Americans in Japan not object?

Self interest and greed. Being stationed in Japan has always been too good of a deal, hasn't it?

[Coligny]

[B]I don't see modern day Germany as a military threat.[/B] Japan has bigger problems, having still not resolved past grievances with its Asian neighbors.

yeah... famous last words...

[Midwinter]

yeah... famous last words...

[yt]yfl6Lu3xQW0[/yt]

Shhhh, don't mention the war...

[Ganma]

yeah... famous last words...

OK. I haven't ever lived in Europe so please enlighten me. Is Germany a threat? Is there tension between it and its neighbors?

[Coligny]

OK. I haven't ever lived in Europe so please enlighten me. Is Germany a threat? Is there tension between it and its neighbors?

Today, everything is fine and cute. Unless you are turkish... or a Rom... But if the crap hit sufficiently the fan the silent nationnalism is ready to bloom....

they completly fuck up their energy policy by giving up on nuclear power while not really thinking a plan B. They are good customers for our plants... except now they are run more or less privately... run... to the ground... with safety problems unknown before... and enough downtime to make us unable to provide for ourselves.... So even less for them germans...

Now to add to the fun we are going back to a Kayser era situation where we are b.f.f. with Soviet Russia...

A conflict with china seems unlikely... they won't kill their customers... A collapse of the EU... i'd say maybe... it's easy to be peacefull when the economy is good... when factory close and energy runs out... it's family first...

[Choeki]

If it's an anti-tank weapon it's probably an AP/shaped charge type explosive meant to penetrate in a specific direction rather than a fragmentation/anti-personnel weapon. It's likely to be a rocket meant to be loaded in a launch tube, verses a "fire and forget" style launcher like the LAW or the more contemporary AT-4. However, in spite of its age it should still be "safe" (as in it would function properly if loaded in the proper launcher) to handle unless it was stored in an extreme environment.

At least it wasn't another of those cases where grandpa brought home 60+ pieces of UXO from the GSDF firing range. At least as of ten years ago there seemed to be a problem with poor policing of UXO from training sites (which usually had no security or barriers to prevent locals from entering when training was not occurring).

[BO-SENSEI]

In the real, pragmatic world that I like to live in, I don't see any country on any continent attacking Japan in a full-scale onslaught in my lifetime. In spite of the fantasy world of politicians, media and think tanks full of people who profit from building arsenals pooping out the altruistic "defending Japan from X" crap, the US has always occupied Japan for its own reasons.

You will whistle a different tune when/if China's economy collapses.

[Number11]

You might want to step away from the internet for a while and catch your breath.

[American Oyaji]

If video games have taught me anything, anti-tank weapons are basically puny and harmless firecrackers so long as you stay more than five feet away from the blast.

Also, if you fire one at your feet as you jump, you can reach high places you couldn't before.

Quake III or Halo?

[Kanchou]

Team Fortress

[Greji]

In the real, pragmatic world that I like to live in....

.... even in a pragmatic world, people still kill people and unfortunately, a military is a must. If you don't like the US, that's fine, but don't try to sell me on a Pacific Rim military strategy based on a policy of "Yankee go home, so we can all lay down our weapons and hug an Okinawan."

[nottu]

[nottu]

[Number11]

.... even in a pragmatic world, people still kill people and unfortunately, a military is a must. If you don't like the US, that's fine, but don't try to sell me on a Pacific Rim military strategy based on a policy of "Yankee go home, so we can all lay down our weapons and hug an Okinawan."

That's a dishonest exaggeration.

[dimwit]

In the real, pragmatic world that I like to live in, I don't see any country on any continent attacking Japan in a full-scale onslaught in my lifetime.

Okay let's take a look at the prgamatic world. Japan presently has territorial disputes with three of it's neighbors (four if you include North Korea in the rock in the Japan Sea dispute). Japan would most definitely need to upgrade both it's navy and airforce in a major way.

Now let's try and imagine the reaction from both China and Korea to this build up. Why don't we have some fun and make it a multiple choice answer.

China would respond by:
a) congratulating Japan on throwing off its' imperial yolk.
b) be scared and acquiesce to Japanese control of the potential gas deposits in the East China Sea
c) repeat over and over again to their people about what happened the last time Japan decided to strengthen its miltary, and use it as a justification for a massive increase in their miltary.

Pulling the US out of Japan would be both destabilizing and expensive.

[Ganma]

Pulling the US out of Japan would be both destabilizing and expensive.

Well said. My thoughts exactly.
If Japan had completely thrown off its fascist past and made reparations with its neighbors over the last 50 years I could see Japan stepping out from under the US nuclear umbrella no problem. But the facts are that Japan continues to snub its nose at its neighbors with visits to Yasukuni, glossing over history in textbooks etc... not to mention having the continued presence of a strong far right (Ishihara & co). Japan is still seen as a thread in Korea and China and there is no way those countries are going to look lightly upon a military build up in Japan.

[nottu]

[Number11]

I'm way out of my league here. I can't argue against brilliant analysis that comes up with a scenario of China invading Japan because its economy collapsed.

How can there be so much disdain for Japan, yet so much insistence that the US needs to "defend" Japan?

Oh, and it's time for a refresher course: George Carlin