Waaaaah?

This video gets so many things wrong it is truly cringe-worthy.

The country has been covered by vending machines since the 1960s--long before there were problems with an aging population and birthrates. The primary reason for vending machines being installed everywhere is, surprise, convenience! Who wants to go to the store and stand in line to buy a drink when you can just go downstairs from your apartment and grab one from outside your front door?

Another thing to consider is that Japan late at night basically completely shuts down--even in major cities like Tokyo the trains stop running around 1AM or so and won't start again until 5AM. Nowadays their are 24-hour convenient stores on practically every other urban street corner but back when vending machines first started getting installed nothing was open late besides bars. If you caught the last train home from work and wanted to buy a coke or something on your walk back from the station you were SOL. Vending machines helped solve that problem.

Which brings us to another point--VERY few Japanese people in urban areas commute by car. Mass transit is fast and efficient and a huge number of people just walk/bike everywhere. Since there is so much foot traffic vending machines make total sense, especially in the summer when temperatures are going to rise into the mid-90s (30+ degrees Celsius) with high humidity and people who are walking/biking are going to get thirsty pretty damn quick.

Another thing he gets wrong is that retailers are not the ones primarily profiting off of vending machines: land owners are. Either they purchase and stock the machines themselves (thereby keeping all the profits) or they make a contract with the retail company in which the company stocks and services the machine but compensates the landowner for use of the space.

Oh, almost forgot something not mentioned in the video--the low crime rates. Another reason for the proliferation of vending machines is that whoever puts them out can be reasonably sure they won't be damaged, defaced, or robbed.

Finally, while he is right that credit cards are not as big here as in, say, the U.S., e-money is huge. And all of the newer vending machines produced in the last few years will take either cash or e-money, such as Suica or Pasmo cards.

By the way, all of this information that I've posted here is available from a simple Google search and there have actually been several articles written on vending machines in Japan over the last couple of years. It's like this guy just came over here and tried to guess why there were so many vending machines around....

I stopped in a Mouse computer store (small section on 1 floor of a much larger 9 floor "tech mall" in Tokyo). Nothing especially impressive. Computers in Japan are > 15% more expensive (and 1-2 CPU generations behind) computers sold in the US.

Nice commercial though.

Japan is full of these kinds of paradoxes. It's like when you wander around Tokyo and find a Shinto shrine that is hundreds of years old squeezed between two skyscrapers. There are tons of things here that could be done more efficiently or effectively but aren't done that way because of tradition or social values.

Just to give one example at my own job, people nearly always come to see me face-to-face for even the most trivial of things that could be easily resolved with a one-line email. Most workplaces in Japan still very much appreciate the "personal touch" of interacting with another human being and value the relationship between co-workers over the efficiency technology can provide.

That was amazing! *doublepromote

Locations in order of appearance:

1:15 Pont de Bir-Hakeim, Paris, France
1:30 Berlin Wall Memorial, Berlin, Germany
1:43 La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain
1:56 Hoxton Alley, London, UK
2:11 Regents Park, London, UK
2:33 Calle Traghetto Vecchio, Venice, Italy
2:49 St. Pauls Cathedral, London, UK
3:08 Rooftop Terrace, Copenhagen, Denmark
3:25 Sand Dunes, Dubai, UAE
3:33 Red Square, Moscow, Russia
3:45 Gulfoss and Gljúfurárfoss Waterfalls, Iceland
4:01 Mrs. Macqauries Point, Sydney, Australia
4:19 Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo, Japan
4:36 Brooklyn Bridge, New York City, United States of America

Crazy cool dance / movement in a Japanese music video has been added as a related post - related requested by eric3579.

WORLD ORDER "Welcome to TOKYO" has been added as a related post - related requested by eric3579.

Genki Sudo - WORLD ORDER in New York has been added as a related post - related requested by eric3579.

Genki Sudo - World Order in Korea has been added as a related post - related requested by eric3579.

Genki Sudo - World Order "Boy Meets Girl" has been added as a related post - related requested by eric3579.

Not just that. This resort is east of Tokyo, near Nagano on Honshu. The only wild bears on Honshu don't look remotely like this bear.

Yeah. I'm sure it is true, or mostly true, or contains elements of truth. But I don't like RT.

The 21st century Tokyo Rose, who sole goal was to demoralize the soldiers.

I'm with @skinnydaddy1.

@newtboy and @Dragen_Jager

My main point is just in agreement with Hayden, that given a grossly illegal and unpalatable order like targeting women and children just because of who they are related to is something that America's current top brass would say no to.

That said, in existential wars there is no such things as a war crime any more. Or at the least, the definition will be written by the victors(Fire bombing Dresden and Tokyo, or nuking Hiroshima and Nagasaki).

Furthermore, what is approved in a 'black ops' sense has IMO always been something that America and every other nation has done, and again with the only meaningful rule being that it be effective and secret and/or deniable. Hence my ask the CIA quip,

?!?
Jump to 1:15 to see the micro-Tokyo model.

As was I, at 16 as well. I've got too many photos of the Micro-Tokyo model.

Pretty sure this is what it is like: http://videosift.com/video/Tokyo-Breakfast

She forgot to mention you don't tip here. Ever. If you ever want to have some fun at a restaurant, try leaving a tip on the table and then wait in the parking lot for the staff to come sprinting out to return your money.

Other things to watching out for--blowing your nose loudly. You shouldn't blow your nose at all, really, if you're trying to be Mr./Miss Manners but if you absolutely must do it, you should blow as quietly as possible. I have no idea why this is a thing, but they actually prefer you to sniffle incessantly as you try to keep the mucus from dripping out of your nose to using a goddamned tissue--despite the fact that you will be handed packs of tissues at nearly every train station by people trying to advertise their services/products.

Also, at the end of the day, pretty much none of these rules apply to foreigners visiting Japan for tourism purposes. Tourism is way up here these days and Japanese people--especially in the Tokyo area--kinda expect tourists to be clueless about everything. The stuff she's mentioning really only applies if you're thinking of a longer-term stay where you might make some connections and actually have to give a fuck what other people here think because you're seeing the same faces every day.

Then again, I break almost all of these rules. I've been here long enough to see Japanese people break these rules and understand the times when it is acceptable. Or when I can get away with it due to "gaijin privilege." Gaijin privilege = not being expected to conform to Japanese societal rules since I'm not Japanese--and would never be considered Japanese even if I were to get Japanese citizenship.

Absolutely! If you haven't seen his stuff you are missing out on some of the greatest anime ever!
Tokyo Godfathers, Paranoia Agent, Paprika, Memories.

They were hung, in the Nuremberg Trial and Tokyo War Crimes Trials.