their shoes are safe... or are they? Hi, i believe a fundamental cultural difference between "western" and "eastern" may be the societal rank level where violence against someone is commonly unaccepted, i.e. leaving a sleeping bum in peace (and in possession of his belongings). Once again, i feel somewhat ashamed of "western civilisation" in this regard... -- regards, -- a wolf posted by wolfAugust 13, 2003 at 20:56 [ e ]

hmmm if the media is any indication then domestic violence is more accepted here.  I had a friend who had bruises.  When we asked her about them she said she got them from her husband.  She said he got mad about once a month and ended up hitting her and then asked "isn't that normal?". Well, I know it's not *normal* but you see it on every 3rd drama on Japanese TV. But I agree, in general there is very little violent crime in Japan. posted by greggmanAugust 14, 2003 at 14:35 [ e ]

godfathers Poor hobos... its so sad. But Japan isnt the only place that suffers from the homless. I live in Australia and you can see people scabbing for food sometimes. Though our town is rather cooky. And i dont htink buskers pass for homless. There is one hobo who takes a trolley down the main street and goes through all the otto bins. Rumours have it though, and i think its fact, that that hobo is one of the riches men in the city and he dresses up liek that for fun. Kind of the story youd hear in the movies, who thought it was real? This page reminded me of the anime "Tokyo Godfathers" I love that movie! posted by kymFebruary 6, 2005 at 2:50 [ e ]