Gaijin Topics

A list of some typical comments by foreigners in Japan:

1.

World War Two:
The Japanese movie, Pride, was very distasteful". "Japanese should portray
their history with accuracy".
The movie, Pride, showed that Tojo did not receive a fair trial".
"Nanjing massacre, Japan was an evil empire".
"A Japanese politician said that there was no proof that foreign women
were sexually enslaved." ( an angry gaijin)
"Nobukatsu Fujioka (a Tokyo University professor) said that there wasn't
any evidence of a massacre in Nanjing." (angry gaijin)
"Japanese want to hide the truth about atrocities committed during the war."
"Atomic bombs led to a quick surrender by Japan."
"People should learn from the a-bombs that were dropped on Japan."
"An embargo would have been better than dropping atomic bombs."
"It was us or them."
"Better to bomb than to blockade."
"War is hell, a blockade would not have worked."
"Japan should face the facts of history, Nanjing, sex slaves, POW's
etc."
"If Japan or Germany had developed the bomb first, they would have
used it."
"A-bomb attacks were a war crime."
"Because of the atomic bombings, people are still suffering today!"
"Japan was already defeated before the a-bombs were dropped."
"Keizo Obuchi's (Japanese Prime Minister) apology to Chinese President
Jiang Zemin about atrocities committed during the war, a flop!"
"History should be taught in an undiluted manner, not how it is prone to here,
to heavy censorship."
"Japanese massacred civilians in countries that it defeated during
the war."

2.

Politics:
"Bring down the consumption tax to 0%."
"The Japanese are right to press forth the return of the Northern Territories."
"The Japanese government worries about the falling birthrate and the
effects it will have on the economy, they should solve the source of
the problem first."
"Japan is under transformation from an egalitarian into an inegalitarian
economy and society."
"The economy is not the only problem. Reforms, the environment, the
aging society, all need to be dealt with urgently."
"I am appalled by the silence displayed by the Japanese government on
the latest atrocities committed by the Malaysian government."
"What did Kiichi Miyazawa really say, Americans lack work ethics ?
Are lazy ?"
"Prime Minister Obuchi only smiled when he met Malaysian Prime Minister
Mahathir, why?"

Education:
"Japanese young people do not have strong support from those adults
that surround them, leading to more adverse social conditions for
Japan in the future."
"School priorities need to be overhauled."
"I think schools are excellent in Japan."
"University professors and Universities need a big bang."
"High school championship baseball (Koshien), winning is everything,
this is wrong !"
"Teachers should put their heart into teaching."

The Environment:
"I soon learn to hate noisy politicians, shouting their name and little else over
powerful sound systems in vans, going around the neighborhood!"
"I dislike noise pollution caused by idiots with cellular telephones."
"The village of Chuo in Okayama Prefecture has a newly installed waste
incinerator. Clouds of stinking smoke blows over the rice fields and
the local school. The politicians do nothing, why ?"
"Laws on incinerators have nothing to do with the health
of the people."
"Japanese have a low regard for the environment, witness idle cars
with engines running, often the driver is taking a nap."
"Japanese are the biggest wasters of paper. Excessive wrapping in shops
should be halted."

Western Festivals in Japan:
"Direct cultural links not needed, any country should enjoy Halloween, Christmas, etc"
"Christmas in Japan is just pure commercialism."
"Japanese should learn to respect what the holidays stand for."
"I am not a Christian but I will celebrate it, because it is fun!."
"Christmas dates back to pre-history, it is not originally a Christian holiday, get a life!"
Site owners opinion: "Everyone should enjoy holidays whether they
are Christian or not. My family and myself are Buddhists, we still have a tree
and give presents ! It also follows that foreigners in Japan should NOT take
part in Japanese holidays, if they believe Christmas is only
for Christians, even though the origins of Christmas go back long before
Christianity !"

7.

Japanese Language:
"Many Japanese have problems when spelling their name in romaji, such as Satoh or is it Sato?"
"Any language is difficult to learn, why do so many foreigners moan about learning Japanese?"
"Kanji is important to learn, as you will get more insight into the culture and concepts of Japan."

8.

Salary men:
"Japanese salary men like molesting young girls on the trains, shouldn't
they be banned from all trains ?" "Ha ha ha ha ha ..."
"Japanese men like to touch schoolgirls backsides on the train, do they
have no shame !"

Rearming Japan:
"The proposed theater missile defense system for Japan is an utter
waste of money."
"The Japanese Self Defense Forces can look after Japan's interests,
it's time for the American military to go home."

10.

Corruption:
"It is disgusting that even the Defense Agency is rife with corruption."
"Let the corrupt bankers pay the full price for their crimes."

11.

Japan and Smoking:
"The government and the media do nothing to prevent young people smoking."
"Many Japanese ignore the No Smoking signs in stations."

12.

Anti Japanese/Western Feelings:
"Some western media like to misrepresent what is happening in Japan,
perhaps it is only out of ignorance and not something more sinister."
"Japan is a country of contradictions, maybe foreigners should learn
more about it, before criticizing."

13.

Lady Liberty:
"Lady Liberty is facing in the wrong direction."
"Lady Liberty is situated in typical Japanese surroundings, ugly offices,
dirty sea, not like Paris."

14

Japanese TV:
"Fuji TV as usual, turns out trash. One time 3 "talento", including
one aged transvestite, try out tiger meat. I think the producer, director
and the so called talento's should be fired."

15.

Rising Birth rate:

"What would be the cost of a rising birth rate, more trash and pollution !"

16.

Non American English:
Japanese should not only learn American English, as other English
speaking countries speak different kinds of English."

People Power:
"I think that only the Japanese people can save Japan from the corruption
of their leaders and employers."

Aum Shinrikyo:
"Aum still remain active, they still try to recruit new members."

19.

Illegal Wildlife trade:
All the various wildlife sold as pets in Japan, are they legally obtained ?"

Anonymous Murder:
"It shows Japan is an ailing society, when people easily poison
items in a supermarket, or poison food at festivals