[cstaylor]

It's going to be tough as long as the national government has a stake in smoking (JT anyone?)

[tokyojoe]

It's going to be tough as long as the national government has a stake in smoking (JT anyone?)

Yes, but the national health costs will eventually start to outweigh the tax revenues and they will have to pay attention.

[Steve Bildermann]

[tokyojoe]

Wow. Talk about your F`d Nihonjin. In a situation like that it`s good to get foreign media attention. Nothing like a few articles of `what the hell are the japanese doing?` to change ideas.

[kamome]

An amazing post, Steve. How many gaijin can say they rode the Shinkansen back when it was a new thing in the 70's? I can imagine how it must have been within a hermetically sealed Shinkansen car--just walk into any Dotour coffee shop and sit at the back table. Then take a huge whiff of the foul, stale, carcinogenic air. I like Dotour's sandwiches, but I can't walk in there for fear of sucking cancer-inducing particles into my lungs.