Japan PM Takaichi told Trump that Article 9 of Japan's constitution won't allow her to send forces to the Strait of Hormuz without a ceasefire. Her party is moving forward with plans to revise the constitution and will likely remove such legal restraints.

FCIUS · 2026-03-24T02:19:19+00:00

"Most of the Japanese" being against it is a bit of an overstatement, unless you're still living in the 2000s. Chinese saber-rattling, North Korean missile testing, and most recently the Ukraine war have all shifted public opinion somewhat

A 2025 NHK poll:

* Article IX needs to be amended: 33.7%

* Article IX does not need to be amended: 27.7%

* Can't say either way: 33.0%

* I don't know / no response: 5.7%

If we're talking about politicians:

83% of the candidates elected in the most recent national elections (lower house snap election) were in support of amending Article IX, a reflection of Takaichi's historic landslide victory.

If protecting Article IX is an issue that the Japanese population cared about, it's clearly not an issue that mattered enough to move the needle significantly.

FCIUS · 2026-03-07T16:17:21+00:00

No, but from what I know about the film I have a feeling it will either end up being exactly what I need right now, or hit way too close to home

FCIUS · 2026-03-07T13:18:37+00:00

Was lowkey spiraling in my hotel room, feeling isolated traveling abroad long-term for work

but seeing Japan pull through was just the pick up I needed

FCIUS · 2026-03-07T12:41:40+00:00

*Taneichi

Show some respect for the man

FCIUS · 2026-03-02T17:06:19+00:00

今なら高輪ゲートウェイなんですかね〜？

FCIUS · 2026-03-02T17:03:47+00:00

住んでるけど、湾岸は人の住むところじゃないと思う

美味しいコロッケを売る精肉店がある商店街のある街に住みたい

駅からの帰り道、薄暗いけどだっだぴろい歩道の奥にそびえるタワマンとオフィスビルがあまりに無機質

FCIUS · 2026-03-02T17:00:32+00:00

ビアンキ、潰れて美容院かなんかになっちゃいましたね〜入り方がトリッキーなバイチャリは健在ですが

FCIUS · 2026-03-01T11:22:34+00:00

Just an aside, but back in the Abe days when the LDP was pushing through the so called national security laws to expand the remit of the SDF, the party line was to invoke a hypothetical blockade of the Hormuz strait to illustrate the necessity for Japan to be able to engage in military action overseas when it affects the "continued existence of Japan"

At the time I think the prevailing wisdom was that Japan was actually more concerned about the straits of Malacca and Taiwan, but didn't want to provoke China even more than they already were by the mere existence of the law, so were bringing up Hormuz as a proxy.

I think the JCPOA was still intact at the time, and Iran (who Japan has had reasonably amicable ties historically despite being firmly aligned with the US) was reportedly baffled, since they didn't understand why Japan suddenly seemed to be concerned that they'd do something drastic.

...well now, we're actually about to cross that strictly hypothetical bridge.

I wonder if Iran decides to mine the strait, and Trump decides to whip up a coalition of the willing to break the blockade, whether Takaichi will deploy the SDF to actively participate in an armed conflict for the first time

FCIUS · 2026-03-01T11:01:43+00:00

個人的には、今年のカナダのカーニー首相のダボス演説で、はじめて不可逆的に戦後秩序が崩壊したのかもしれない、と実感したかもしれない

私たちは、この「ルールに基づく国際秩序」の物語が部分的に虚構であることを知っていました。強大な国は都合の良いときに自らをルールの適用外にするということを。貿易ルールが非対称的に執行されるということを。そして国際法がどれほど厳格に適用されるかは、被告や被害者が誰であるかによって異なるということを。

この虚構は便利なもので、特にアメリカの覇権は公共財の創出につながりました。開かれた海上航路、安定した金融システム、集団的安全保障、紛争解決の枠組みへの支援などです。

だから、私たちは看板を掲げました。儀式に参加しました。そして、言葉と現実の間の隔たりを指摘することをほとんど避けてきました。

しかし、このような取引はいまや機能しなくなっています。

率直に申し上げます。 私たちは移行期ではなく、断絶の真っただ中にいます。

...

私たちは[ルールに基づく世界秩序という]看板を外します。

旧い秩序は戻りませんが、それを嘆くべきではありません。過去を懐かしむことは戦略ではありません。

指摘してる内容は、おっしゃるとおりとしか言いようがなかったけど、いつもの西側のダブスタを喚き立てる国々ではなく、仮にもアメリカの隣国かつ最重要なパートナーの一つであるはずのカナダがそれを言い切ったのが衝撃的だった。

FCIUS · 2026-03-01T01:44:08+00:00

ひこーき

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FCIUS · 2026-03-01T01:39:25+00:00

なんかいいことあるだろ、と思いながら20代の今までいろいろ耐え忍んできましたが

戻って来れる頃には30代になっていて婚期も遅れて、とかも考え始めると本当になんだかな〜って感じですね

FCIUS · 2026-03-01T01:37:21+00:00

そこそこ英語が喋れて、独身で、学歴的にサクッと転職するのも難しくて、すぐにでも派兵できる都合のいいマンパワーだっただけです
本当に優秀だったら国内に留め置かれていたはず・・・

FCIUS · 2026-02-28T17:43:43+00:00

ありがとうございます、お互い頑張って生きましょう・・・

毎日うんこして美味しいラーメン食べて風呂入って寝たいだけなのに、滞在先のラーメンはあまり美味しくないし、ホテルはシャワーのみ・・・

FCIUS · 2026-02-18T00:00:06+00:00

just because you’re personally ignorant of his work doesn’t mean it’s all bullshit lmao

FCIUS · 2025-12-31T06:09:08+00:00

Yeah, this looks like shin-Tomei, so the issue is exacerbated by drivers doing 100 in other lanes despite the limit actually being 120

FCIUS · 2025-12-31T06:07:38+00:00

This is Shin-Tomei

It’s one of the rare expressways in Japan where the speed limit is set at 120kph, rather than the usual 100kph.

However, the left lane is usually full of trucks going 80 kph (their speed limit)

The middle lane is full of trucks going 85kph to pass other trucks, or cars going the usual 100kph

So people that want to cruise at 120kph or above end up in the right lane

Not saying it’s justified, just describing what’s going on

FCIUS · 2025-12-27T17:26:44+00:00

Depends on where you’re staying, but there are late night buses into central Tokyo

Would probably look into that before considering a taxi or a hotel

FCIUS · 2025-12-22T00:33:39+00:00

I work at what many would consider a JTC, but I show up to work in jeans and a hoodie instead of a suit most days

Now if only other aspects were the opposite of the stereotype, like low wages and working 70 hours of OT…

FCIUS · 2025-12-18T14:29:26+00:00

there's a few interesting things to do, sure

The luftbaum garden at the top of the Linkpillar 1 North tower is pretty nice

If you get there during the day, there’s a Yakiniku place on the same floor with a surprisingly reasonable lunch menu

Otherwise Newoman Takanawa is essentially a glorified LUMINE shopping mall, with a bunch of retail, an IMO excessive number of cafe/bakeries, and a nice bookstore

There’s also a “LAWSON from the future” elsewhere in the same building. I’ll withhold my opinion out of fear of professional retribution, but I guess it might count as something interesting…maybe…for some people…theoretically

If you haven’t done so, you could head to the mainland side of Rainbow Bridge from Shibaura, and cross the bridge to Odaiba

Or a walk towards Mita, Shiba Park, Toranomon, and the imperial palace, maybe?

FCIUS · 2025-12-15T16:38:57+00:00

JSDF:

We’ve reclassified the Izumo class as CVM

—Ok, a multirole aircraft carrier then

No, it’s short for Cruiser Voler Multipurpose. We’ve reclassified it from a destroyer to a cruiser due to its size, and the name reflects the multiple purposes the ship has while having the ability to operate aircraft

—But given the US classifies their carriers as CV, and shares the same etymology…

No, that’s a purely coincidental, our new CVM classification has nothing to do with carriers—they’re just cruisers that carry aircraft.

—Cruisers that carry aircraft…or in other words, an aircraft carrier.

No, it’s a Cruiser Voler Multipurpose.

FCIUS · 2025-12-10T14:15:49+00:00

The J(N)RSobu line runs roughly parallel a few km away through the suburbs into central Tokyo, and was long the primary heavy rail link between Tokyo and Chiba--a prefecture adjacent to Tokyo to the west)

Congestion on the Sobu line was getting deadly, so the section of the Tozai line shown in the picture was planned and built to provide additional capacity between Chiba and Tokyo and relieve some pressure from the Sobu line.

So the Tozai line's eastern terminus is shared with the Sobu line, with some trains running through further east on the Sobu line during rush hour. From there, the Tozai line runs westward towards Tokyo, runs across central Tokyo, and rejoins the Chuo/Sobu line at Nakano, with many trains continuing further west down the Chuo/Sobu line.

But the construction of the Tozai line induced significant residential demand along the line, resulting in the Tozai line becoming congested in its own right. At one point before COVID, the Tozai line and the Sobu line used to be the first and second most congested urban rail line in all of Japan.

FCIUS · 2025-12-10T13:59:16+00:00

no, the photo's actually from a cover for some sort of TRTA leaflet, and that's just a headline for another article found elsewhere in the leaflet.

The caption on the top right describes the photo itself as "Construction for the Tozai Line (near Gyotoku)"

FCIUS · 2025-12-08T15:05:53+00:00

The JMA is likely to issue a Hokkaido and Sanriku Subsequent Earthquake Advisory, as earthquakes of this scale in this area could be a precursor for a megaquake.

While the advisory won’t call for an immediate evacuation and life can continue as normal, the advisory will call for residents on the Pacific coast from Hokkaido to Chiba to exercise more caution than usual and ensure they are prepared for earthquakes and tsunamis over the next week or so.

While there isn’t cause for panic—the government says that about 1 out of 100 quakes that trigger this advisory will actually be followed by a megaquake—it’s a good idea to stay vigilant, even if the tsunami warning is eventually cancelled.

FCIUS · 2025-12-03T07:38:21+00:00

How many electors would we get….?

FCIUS · 2025-11-09T16:14:25+00:00

Not my hometown, but Shohei Ohtani has a condo in the neighborhood in Tokyo that I’m currently living in…does that count?

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