The idol fandom–Japanese and Korean–has many different aspects that can be positive, neutral, and negative. I’ve written a few times about the negative side, and I will touch on that side again in this article. Everything positive has a negative side built into it. Understanding that negative side emphasizes the positive. Unlike anime and manga’s…
Category: Culture
Could South Korea or Japan Disappear?
Could South Korea or Japan disappear as nations? For those who asked this question: my apologies for taking forever to answer it. Modern nation-states, at least the developed ones, seem too solid to just disappear. Conquered, sure. But disappear? However, it has happened in the past. Amazonian and Mayan civilizations, for example, disappeared. Jomon civilization in…
The Legacy of Hakuin Ekaku
You likely haven’t heard of Hakuin Ekaku, but you’ve no doubt heard of his most famous question: “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” This question is a koan. Koans are a method, tracing back to Chinese Buddhist tradition, to break the logical mind so you can be more open to nirvana. While koans…
Is AI Translation the Future for Anime and Manga?
Manga is increasingly being translated by large-language models (LLMs), or artificial intelligence as most people call LLMs. The Ancient Magus’ Bride manga, for example, used Mantra Engine for part of its English translation (Schley, 2023). LLMs are software programmed to teach itself patterns in inputs and then use those patterns to generate new patterns based…
The Usefulness of Japanese Proverbs
Proverbs and folklore preserve the wisdom and hard-learned lessons of the common class. Both pass down orally, taking on regional flavors over time until someone comes along and writes them down. Proverbs, because of their pithiness and use of metaphor, tend to remain in regular speech long after folktales become literature. Sometimes proverbs become folded…
Japan’s Rice Shortage Problem
In Japan’s history, rice was once a currency and a commodity. Rice remains a staple grain throughout Japan and Asia. No doubt you’ve heard about Japan facing a shortfall of rice supply against their rice demand, causing prices to rise. But this problem has been gaining momentum since at least 2023 for a variety of…