Biker assaulted by iron bar-wielding Nara innkeeper
Bosozoku are deliberately annoying people who customize their motorcycles (usually shitty little dirtbikes of some kind) and scooters so they're as noisy as they can possibly be. Ear-injuring noise levels. The kind that causes permanent threshold shift the likes of which Pete Townshend has had to adjust to. They ride these bikes around late at night because that's the best time to piss people off and get noticed for something that makes zero sense to anyone who is not a bosozoku. Or simply to avoid traffic and the police. Judging by the comments at the end of this article, few people have sympathy for them or their loud hobby.
We have one or two bosozoku out where we live. This area has a lot of broad avenues with straightaways and you can probably boom through as many red lights as you want after midnight. Our local bosozuku don't ride every single night. Once or twice a month. Occasionally during the day. I was waiting to cross a major street so I could get to a pizza restaurant for lunch one day and one of them was waiting at the traffic light. I had to close my ears with my fingers to avoid hearing damage. I hope he was wearing some kind of muffler or earplugs. I have to admit to some interesting thoughts regarding the bososoku late at night when I've lost sleep because of their motorcycle antics.
People seem to grudgingly tolerate them when they appear. This may have something to do with not wanting to be the one to violate the concept of group harmony while secretly deploring those who do. Or maybe it's because bosozoku intimidate. I saw a small group of them cruising slowly through downtown Hamamatsu a few years back. When traffic became too heavy they simply switched their bikes from the street to the sidewalk and drove on. People made way for them and no one waved a fist or cared to tell them to stop.
Hitting someone with an iron bar is a bit extreme, though. I don't know what the best solution to this problem is, but that's definitely a step too far. Did I receive a vicarious thrill from reading this article? Of course. But if we all give into vigilante thoughts we're going to end up with a worse society than one where a few noisy people with a dumb hobby cause us to lose some sleep.
Showing posts with label crime. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crime. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Priceless comment at the end of this story: No. of reported stalking, domestic abuse cases in first half of year highest ever
No. of reported stalking, domestic abuse cases in first half of year highest ever
I think this is because women are reporting these more and I think they number of cases is actually much higher. So what we're seeing isn't an increase in the amount of abuse that goes on-- any of that is too much-- but rather simply a sign that fewer Japanese women are willing to put up with this shit anymore. I'd love to see a 1-to-1 ratio of cases to cases reported. People will lose their minds when they see how widespread this is, and then we'll see society change for the better.
In my ideal world. Where the police here actually get off their asses and do something when women report abuse and stalkers. You know, other than call the person on his cellphone and ask him to come to the koban to talk about it, which gives him ample warning that he needs to go stab his object of desire or ownership to death.
My favorite part of this story is the comment at the bottom where someone insults all Japanese men by calling their social skills "abysmal," then opines the real problem is Japanese women are becoming less friendly and colder. "Reporting stalking is good," he tells us. "However, being stuck up and/or frigid is not." Then he goes on to further explain we really need to be looking at women withholding sex if we want to understand this problem fully. But despite telling us we should stop neglecting the role played by "female culpability" in stalking, he's not victim blaming. No, because he tells us he's not. But you're a male-hater if you think so, and that's why we have stalking, apparently.
I think we've found a new best friend for Richard Dawkins.
I think this is because women are reporting these more and I think they number of cases is actually much higher. So what we're seeing isn't an increase in the amount of abuse that goes on-- any of that is too much-- but rather simply a sign that fewer Japanese women are willing to put up with this shit anymore. I'd love to see a 1-to-1 ratio of cases to cases reported. People will lose their minds when they see how widespread this is, and then we'll see society change for the better.
In my ideal world. Where the police here actually get off their asses and do something when women report abuse and stalkers. You know, other than call the person on his cellphone and ask him to come to the koban to talk about it, which gives him ample warning that he needs to go stab his object of desire or ownership to death.
My favorite part of this story is the comment at the bottom where someone insults all Japanese men by calling their social skills "abysmal," then opines the real problem is Japanese women are becoming less friendly and colder. "Reporting stalking is good," he tells us. "However, being stuck up and/or frigid is not." Then he goes on to further explain we really need to be looking at women withholding sex if we want to understand this problem fully. But despite telling us we should stop neglecting the role played by "female culpability" in stalking, he's not victim blaming. No, because he tells us he's not. But you're a male-hater if you think so, and that's why we have stalking, apparently.
I think we've found a new best friend for Richard Dawkins.
Monday, June 16, 2014
3 arrested for tweaking Denny’s logo for sexual service company
3 arrested for tweaking Denny’s logo for sexual service company
Well, that's a shame. It's a shame that these guys, who are so much more enterprising than that Akiba-kei-for-hire NEET fella, ended up in so much trouble. But trademark infringement is serious business. Even if you're handy at this kind of job, these kinds of rear entries into the market, no matter how stimulating, rarely result in happy endings. Whatever position you take on sexual services, surely you can see companies like Denny's resorting to the use of some kind of protection, because if they open themselves wide for this kind of violation they can expect quite a pounding. On the other hand, before things climaxed this way, perhaps the parties involved could have engaged in a rousing intercourse and consented to some kind of oral agreement of mutual benefit. I can only hope now the alleged criminals will reach their release at the same time and have some time to reflect on what they have done.
Strangely enough, the wife and I ate at Denny's just this past weekend after having been regulars at Gusto and Joyfull restaurants. They first sat us in the smoking section, after reassuring us at 11:30am the entire restaurant would be non-smoking. We lasted just long enough to open the menus. My nostrils filled with the sharp stink of burning tobacco and I swear I could even taste it on my lips. She didn't feel much better and asked me if we should simply leave. I told her that sounded good to me, but when we told the server, she found us a non-smoking table between a mother-daughter pair and a group of older women who decided to stare at me the entire time. Well, I am quite striking.
Denny's has a lot of pancake desserts on their menu right now. Pancakes in Japan aren't necessarily breakfast food, the way they are in the US. They're more like desserts, or sweet snacks. They did look tasty. Seeing so many pancakes made my wife long for IHOP, one of her favorite places to eat when she lived abroad. The rest of the menu, while very attractive, didn't feature much variety. Lots of hamburger steaks and beef dishes, when I wanted chicken. They didn't have the green noodles my wife loves, either. One the other hand, what we ordered tasted very delicious and filled us up. Right now it seems Joyfull is making an effort to expand their menu-- which is budget-priced compared to Denny's-- and they offer a drink bar. Gusto does, too. It will probably be a long time before we choose Denny's again.
Well, that's a shame. It's a shame that these guys, who are so much more enterprising than that Akiba-kei-for-hire NEET fella, ended up in so much trouble. But trademark infringement is serious business. Even if you're handy at this kind of job, these kinds of rear entries into the market, no matter how stimulating, rarely result in happy endings. Whatever position you take on sexual services, surely you can see companies like Denny's resorting to the use of some kind of protection, because if they open themselves wide for this kind of violation they can expect quite a pounding. On the other hand, before things climaxed this way, perhaps the parties involved could have engaged in a rousing intercourse and consented to some kind of oral agreement of mutual benefit. I can only hope now the alleged criminals will reach their release at the same time and have some time to reflect on what they have done.
Strangely enough, the wife and I ate at Denny's just this past weekend after having been regulars at Gusto and Joyfull restaurants. They first sat us in the smoking section, after reassuring us at 11:30am the entire restaurant would be non-smoking. We lasted just long enough to open the menus. My nostrils filled with the sharp stink of burning tobacco and I swear I could even taste it on my lips. She didn't feel much better and asked me if we should simply leave. I told her that sounded good to me, but when we told the server, she found us a non-smoking table between a mother-daughter pair and a group of older women who decided to stare at me the entire time. Well, I am quite striking.
Denny's has a lot of pancake desserts on their menu right now. Pancakes in Japan aren't necessarily breakfast food, the way they are in the US. They're more like desserts, or sweet snacks. They did look tasty. Seeing so many pancakes made my wife long for IHOP, one of her favorite places to eat when she lived abroad. The rest of the menu, while very attractive, didn't feature much variety. Lots of hamburger steaks and beef dishes, when I wanted chicken. They didn't have the green noodles my wife loves, either. One the other hand, what we ordered tasted very delicious and filled us up. Right now it seems Joyfull is making an effort to expand their menu-- which is budget-priced compared to Denny's-- and they offer a drink bar. Gusto does, too. It will probably be a long time before we choose Denny's again.
Friday, January 31, 2014
Everyone needs a hobby: Thief caught with 450 pairs of high heels
Thief caught with 450 pairs of high heels
This one is worth reading for the comments that accompany it. Some solid comedy, including a couple of shoe-based puns. There's also some thought-provoking consideration on one of the journalistic failings in the story itself-- namely, if the suspect has no fixed address and no job, what are the circumstances behind his room rental (including the logistics of transferring such a massive shoe collection into it without raising some kind of alarm from the owner) and seeming ability to gain access to a hostess club? Those places aren't cheap, you know. We also need to know how they nabbed him. Did he make a clumsy spectacle of himself, or did someone just happen to barge in on him in the act?
Information, please. That's a journalist's job and you've only done yours halfway.
And while I don't condone theft, I do think everyone needs an outlet for his or her interests. This guy is apparently very into high heels, and that by itself is great. But he should have sought gainful employment so he could afford to buy shoes rather than stealing them. You can buy used shoes online and in vintage clothing stores, and there must be other legitimate resources for people who share this hobby considering how many Google searches for Malin Ackerman's feet I come across when checking my blog's readership. If this is your thing, I urge you to join the vast online network of high heel lovers and foot fetishists out there and keep things above board and legal.
Unless the stealing of the shoes was his real kick, in which case I believe I have the answer for him and others of a similar nature. Sometimes it's the illicit act itself in relation to the object rather than the object itself that draws the active hobbyist. Perhaps there's a market for fake shoe and panty thievery. Set up a club or a shop, stock it with whatever clothing items fetishists like to steal, let them pay a monthly fee and satisfy their urges with totally legal "theft." You can allow the customers to go through whatever scenario turns them on (hostess bar changing room, high school lockers, laundry hanging on a line), curtail crime and make a few bucks in the process.
How about it, venture capitalists?
This one is worth reading for the comments that accompany it. Some solid comedy, including a couple of shoe-based puns. There's also some thought-provoking consideration on one of the journalistic failings in the story itself-- namely, if the suspect has no fixed address and no job, what are the circumstances behind his room rental (including the logistics of transferring such a massive shoe collection into it without raising some kind of alarm from the owner) and seeming ability to gain access to a hostess club? Those places aren't cheap, you know. We also need to know how they nabbed him. Did he make a clumsy spectacle of himself, or did someone just happen to barge in on him in the act?
Information, please. That's a journalist's job and you've only done yours halfway.
And while I don't condone theft, I do think everyone needs an outlet for his or her interests. This guy is apparently very into high heels, and that by itself is great. But he should have sought gainful employment so he could afford to buy shoes rather than stealing them. You can buy used shoes online and in vintage clothing stores, and there must be other legitimate resources for people who share this hobby considering how many Google searches for Malin Ackerman's feet I come across when checking my blog's readership. If this is your thing, I urge you to join the vast online network of high heel lovers and foot fetishists out there and keep things above board and legal.
Unless the stealing of the shoes was his real kick, in which case I believe I have the answer for him and others of a similar nature. Sometimes it's the illicit act itself in relation to the object rather than the object itself that draws the active hobbyist. Perhaps there's a market for fake shoe and panty thievery. Set up a club or a shop, stock it with whatever clothing items fetishists like to steal, let them pay a monthly fee and satisfy their urges with totally legal "theft." You can allow the customers to go through whatever scenario turns them on (hostess bar changing room, high school lockers, laundry hanging on a line), curtail crime and make a few bucks in the process.
How about it, venture capitalists?
Sunday, August 25, 2013
'Love of buses' trips up Osaka man | The Japan Times
'Love of buses' trips up Osaka man | The Japan Times
Everyone must love something. This guy expressed his love for buses in the wrong way, which I deplore, but he did it out of love, which I applaud. I applaud his enthusiasm.
Why buses? Why not buses? Why anything? Love for an activity or enthusiasm for a hobby can make life better and possibly longer, although it may seem shorter. That's just the way it goes when you're doing things you enjoy, be it watching movies or stealing bus destination signs. The dragon in Grendel advised the monster to steal gold and sit on it.
I don't advise anyone to steal anything, but I do recommend you find a nice hobby and go to it with gusto. Keep it within the limits of legality, though.
Everyone must love something. This guy expressed his love for buses in the wrong way, which I deplore, but he did it out of love, which I applaud. I applaud his enthusiasm.
Why buses? Why not buses? Why anything? Love for an activity or enthusiasm for a hobby can make life better and possibly longer, although it may seem shorter. That's just the way it goes when you're doing things you enjoy, be it watching movies or stealing bus destination signs. The dragon in Grendel advised the monster to steal gold and sit on it.
I don't advise anyone to steal anything, but I do recommend you find a nice hobby and go to it with gusto. Keep it within the limits of legality, though.
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