Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on November 2010

Keep Out

Illustration by Phil Couzens

Regarding “Welcome, Red Army!” (The Last Word, November 12): I’m pretty sure the most common crime the Japanese government is trying to prevent with these regulations is overstaying visas, not violent crime or petty theft. The “vast, law-abiding majority” of Chinese citizens you want to bring over on tours make something like $2,500/year in the cities and $800/year in the countryside. I don’t think it’s unreasonable for the Japanese government to require proof that someone coming here on a tourist visa is likely to return home when the visa expires rather than stay here and work illegally. Is that really “racism and profound naïveté,” or fairly standard screening?—kevinh*

Did you just move to Japan? While China may not be “a cauldron of red-hot evil,” the situation you describe is nothing new. I’d say it’s been the status quo for at least 20 years. Ditto for the “Korean” community inexplicably aligned to the dictatorship in the north.

Maybe you should get out of Kanagawa a bit and spend an evening or two in Kabukicho. I wouldn’t want to bet on the side of legitimacy if you rounded up a few dozen of the “entertainers” and their “managers” you might find there.

That being said, when I was in Tokyo for a couple of days last December, including time at Disneyland, I saw (heard) lots of Chinese tourists. I suppose some were from Taiwan. But the visitors to Japan from the mainland have skyrocketed in the last couple of years.—jeffrey**

For those Chinese people wishing to visit Japan, the answer is simple: just go online, make a Japanese friend, and get a letter inviting you over to visit, then a lot of the visa regulations are waived or flexible. And, honestly, this isn’t difficult.—Frungy**

A Chinese triad ganglord would have no problem providing evidence that he’s rich.—Beelzebub**

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Regarding “The Butterfly in the Metro” (The Last Word, November 5): Tempora mutantur, nos et mutamur in illis…

Thanks for this commentary. I’m from Hawaii and have lived here for nearly 7 years. I have no desire to return. Japanese are often bewildered when I tell them this. Yes, Hawaii (not Oahu) is beautiful, but remember that what you see is only the top of the volcano, and there’s a lot of stuff bubbling beneath the surface, ready to explode. People aren’t that nice anymore. They’re rude and angry and selfish.

Sadly, Japan is changing as well. To wit, the increasing self-centeredness that accrues with wealth disparity, such as destruction of private property with graffiti, which leads to a general disregard for public spaces. Japan is becoming a place that no longer respects “old stones.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve picked up after an evening of partying and trashing of the gorgeous and serene parks that line the Zempukujigawa River in Suginami. On Maui, people think nothing of dumping bags of trash and abandoning cars along the roads. “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone…”

A beautifully written piece that reaffirms what I like about living in Tokyo.—keratomileusis

Random Missive of the Week

Maui captures Best Tourist Island in the World for 14th time. That award has been a curse for the island. Now they have Costco, Walmart, Kmart, Loews [sic], Home Depot and, in Wailea, you now have to pay per view to see the ocean from the road. There is still plenty of land to abuse and you can always steal the water from the Hawaiians.

Stay off my island, thieving pirates, tourists and missionaries with your heathen ways.—Kimo Kekahuna, Molokai, Hawaii

* via Metropolis online
** via Japan Today

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