Notices by Unseen Japan (unseenjapan@mstdn.jp)

At Tokyo Pride, Daiwa Securities Group CEO Ogino Akihiko said he isn't on board with the anti-DEI fever gripping companies in the wake of Trump's rise. Ogino plans to *strengthen* DEI initiatives at Daiwa, saying they "establish an environment where employees can excel."

#japan #unseenjapan #lgbtq

Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru is denying that he slandered Gunma Prefecture. During a visit, he said, "Those of us from Western Japan get spooked just hearing 'North Kanto.' We hear 'Gunma' and think of a place that seems like it has a lot of scary people."

https://buff.ly/z8GEruj

A Japanese app wants to end so-called "full-stop harassment" (maru-hara). The Simeji mobile keyboard will help translate sentences ending in periods to ones ending in emojis so older texters don't scare young Japanese who say full stops in SMS are "scary."

#japan #unseenjapan #technology

"This is largely Japanese TV these days"

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite

It's not the first business in Japan to offer a flexible approach to work. Microsoft and others have experimented with four-day workweeks. One t-shirt company lets workers set their own hours - a model that's brought it much success.

https://buff.ly/JwYusE5

Papua New Guinea Seafood Co. in Settsu, Osaka lets workers take off without notice or permission for any reason whatsoever. On the day of filming, it was a rainy Friday, and only three people were working in the AM. (More showed up once the rain stopped.)

https://youtu.be/JY27K78eOls

#japan #unseenjapan #work

You may experience longer wait times at Japan's arrival ports thanks to one American. The tourist reportedly brought a handgun & ammunition into Japan, somehow getting it through two airports before realizing his "mistake" at his Osaka hotel. He's now under arrest.

https://unseen-japan.com/american-tourist-gun-japan/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #travel #tourism #news

Japanese Communist Party (JCP) politician Yoshida Ayaka said recently that sanitary products should be free for women "like toilet paper." At least one prominent hard-right figure bashed her for the idea, leading to a pile-on - and a flood of automated death threats.

https://buff.ly/vcHV0im

"I screamed - thought these were towns I'd never heard of"

Sign shows a train bound for Shizuoka and Tokyo, but the names are meant to be read left-to-right. Reading down - which is still standard in Japanese print media - produces "Shizuto" and "Okakyo."

#japan #unseenjapan

You don't need to quote Miyazaki's highly negative reaction to an early AI model he was presented some years ago - a cursory viewing of a few of their films reveals their care for human creativity.
We're proud to have hired a human artist for this cover.
https://unseen-japan.com/the-ultimate-ranking-of-the-studio-ghibli-universe/

The entire Ghibli ethos is concerned with craftsmanship. It's a textual subject of the films (one example: hand carving violins in Whisper of the Heart) and the meta work that goes into the films themselves, which feature hard workers, and are animated with sweat and tears.

Folks in Japan are talking about Akihabara's new Dr. Pepper-only vending machine, located near the JR Akiba Electric Town exit. DP (you know what I mean, pervs) has been sold in Japan since 1973, but its unique taste has limited its appeal to Tokyo, Shizuoka, and Okinawa.

#japan #unseenjapan

"There's no feminism in Japan!!" claim dudes on their fourth anime waifu body pillow. That's not true. It's so not true, in fact, that we wrote a three-part series detailing extremely how not true it is. Learn more about feminism in Japan from Meiji to today.

https://unseen-japan.com/feminist-movement-in-japan-meiji-wwii/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #history #women

Bad tourist behavior has made headlines in Japan as the country plans to welcome 40 million visitors next year. However, a recent spate of headlines shows bad traveler behavior is something of a global epidemic.

https://unseen-japan.com/japanese-tourists-great-wall-arrested/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #travel #tourism

An incident involving Japanese travelers in China shows that tourist idiocy is universal. It came out this week that a Japanese man and woman were arrested - and subsequently deported - in January after he pulled down his trousers at the Great Wall while she recorded it.

https://unseen-japan.com/japanese-tourists-great-wall-arrested/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #travel #tourism

A new report from the Japan Tourism Agency shows tourists are spending more time out of Japan's big cities, with the share of regional hotel stays climbing to 34%. The big winner? Gifu Prefecture, which saw stays increase by 118.9% year over year. Miyazaki Prefecture came in 2nd.

#japan #unseenjapan

Across the islands, Okinawans are reconnecting with their languages. Traditional dance, theater, and music are blossoming. And now, as knowledge of the separate history of Ryukyu spreads, so too does the story of the hajichi tattoos.

https://youtu.be/dHOOkwaLKdQ

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #okinawa #ryukyu

Baumkuchen, which began its life in Europe, has risen to become one of the most popular desserts in Japan. The story of baumkuchen’s arrival in Japan is one of creativity and industry flourishing even during the darkest of times.

https://unseen-japan.com/baumkuchen-japan-history/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #food

Japanese social media users are back to debating the age-old question: Is it good manners to wear your backpack on a crowded train on your chest or back? In FNN's poll of 50 ppl on the street, 39 said chest is best. (Five said keep it on your back, four said the floor.)

#japan #unseenjapan

As of April, Japan will make high school free for all with a budget revision that lifts income limits on subsidies to pay school course fees. Japan's far right is lambasting the move as a waste of taxpayer money. However, public opinion polls show fairly broad support.

https://unseen-japan.com/free-high-school-japan-approval/

#japan #unseenjapan #ujwebsite #school #kids #parenting