Reminds me of the protectionist (almost 800%) import tax on rice in Japan.

Post #414,734 by a6l6e6x 10/21/16 5:30:45 PM 10/21/16 5:30:45 PM Reply	Reminds me of the protectionist (almost 800%) import tax on rice in Japan. Punish the many to protect the few. Lots of cultural hand waving used to justify it. Alex "There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." -- Isaac Asimov
Post #414,756 by Andrew Grygus 10/23/16 1:54:00 AM 10/23/16 1:54:00 AM Reply	But, remember, California rice is very inferior to Japanese rice . . . . . which is why every Japanese tourist leaves this state with bags of rice carefully calculated to be 2 rice grains below the legal limit to take to Japan. Incidentally, if you want the very best California (Japanese style) rice, it's Kokuho Rose (Nomura & Company, Inc, Burlingame, CA 940101). The Korean markets here have vast mounds of the stuff. Japanese markets are nearly extinct in Southern California - they exist only to provide junk foods Japanese tourists crave - but the Korean markets have all the stuff you need for real Japanese cuisine. Of course, the Koreans pretty much own Little Tokyo now, as well as almost all the "Japanese" sushi bars here. Of course, the Japanese do make their presence known. Down in Glendale, a sculpture has been installed in a park to commemorate the Korean "Comfort Women" forced to serve the Japanese during WWII. Japanese have filed multiple lawsuits to have this monument removed as an "insult to the Japanese people", claiming these women were "regular prostitutes". Yeah, regular prostitutes service 26 soldiers a day for a bowl of rice. So far, the reaction from the courts has been "Fuck off and die".
Post #414,757 by static 10/23/16 5:18:01 AM 10/23/16 5:18:01 AM Reply	Comfort Women et al. We had a brouhaha here in Sydney about a memorial to the Comfort Women, too. It was supposed to be installed in a public place but the councillors got cold feet. So a Korean church put it up in on their land. I've also discovered Japanese restaurants here being run by Koreans. It was an odd moment when I recognised them talking to each other in Korean! :-D Wade. Just Add Story http://justaddstory.wordpress.com/
Post #414,768 by a6l6e6x 10/23/16 12:30:08 PM 10/23/16 12:30:08 PM Reply	Hai! :) Alex "There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." -- Isaac Asimov
Post #414,773 by Andrew Grygus 10/23/16 3:28:16 PM 10/23/16 3:28:16 PM Reply	Yup . . . . . the Little Nippers are probably regretting having forced the Koreans to cook Japanese as part of the reaculturation program.
Post #414,824 by static 10/24/16 9:40:16 PM 10/24/16 9:40:16 PM Reply	Cross-cultural ties still happen, though. The K-pop marketplace in South Korea is insanely competitive and very saturated - but it turns out the Japanese market is much bigger. Groups that learn Japanese and go perform in Japan can gain immense followings. The largest girl-group concert ever in Japan was a South Korean group! Wade. Just Add Story http://justaddstory.wordpress.com/
Post #414,826 by Andrew Grygus 10/24/16 11:08:51 PM 10/24/16 11:08:51 PM Reply	Yea-but, what happens when the Japanes realize . . . . . the Koreans are winning? One thing that happened here is that Japanese "experts" became very distressed by the situation in California sushi bars - especially all the non-traditional things they were serving. They came up with a certification scheme that all sushi chefs must be Japanese trained, and certified sushi bars would be inspected to be sure they were only serving properly authorized sushi items in the approved way. Of course, the California sushi industry laughed them right back onto their boat. Imagine a "certified" sushi bar. In comes a boat load of Japanese tourists, and the first thing they say is, "We want try California roll we hear so much in Japan".

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