調査報道記者・Tokyo Vice (原作の著者) Investigative journalist, Zen Buddhist Priest, Paladin, Social Justice 🥷 Ninja, Grifter, Author of
#TokyoVice
禅僧
@thedailybeast
For everyone who loved
#TokyoVice
the TV series, sorry to say it seems like there won't be a Season 3.
I did however, wrote
#TokyoVice
as a trilogy
(Life unfolded that way)
So if you're reader, here you are
#TokyoVice
(2009)
#TheLastYakuza
(2022)
and finally
#TokyoNoir
(2024)
At a time when xenophobia seems to be rising in Japan, this lovely message from a Komeda Coffee Shop owner has struck a chord with many Japanese people and has been warmly received.
#TokyoNice
#Omotenashi
Loosely translated:
To Our Customers,
Our shop actively hires foreign…
The Japanese government runs campaigns that encourage people to suspect foreign workers of being illegal immigrants
or criminals
and then wonders why foreign workers don’t wanna come here
“Cooperate with legal hiring of foreigners month”
It’s a racist dog whistle
Cute ☺️ mascot
Everything you ever needed to know about deceased Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is here
For years, we reported his scandals, cover-ups, and corruption
He came to the sort of violent end that fascinated him so much in the movies he loved
And his legacy lives on
Japan is now saying it wants to attract 6 million foreigners to work here but the last two years have demonstrated that foreign workers and even residents will face aribtrary and unscientific discrimination in a crisis.
All of modern Japan’s problems summarized in a sentence
A principal was asked, “Why are students forbidden to wear coats even in sub-zero weather?”
The answer: “It’s been a school rule for ages; I don’t know the purpose”
For 18 years, I followed the career of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe: autocratic thuggery, crony corruption, lies, and xenophobia
He turned Japan into a country that can't tell the truth
This is the $11.8 million dollar eulogy he deserved
#DishonestAbe
Every year in Japan over 80,000 people go missing
"Every cop knows the real number is 3 times that..."
The Evaporated/神隠しpodcast launches next month
A few people got a sneak peek
And we got a kind review from the Guardian.
Coming soon to wherever you get your podcasts
The Year Of The Dragon started with fire and shock in Japan.
And for many people it was not a happy new year.
But I'm still hoping that 2024 brings a lot of peace and prosperity to us all.
So here's a little benediction from the Buddhist monk Shantideva--
and a reminder that…
My question: "Why would foreigners come to Japan to the global city when they have faced xenophobic discrimination here for the last two years and with no guarantees that they will be treated like human beings?"
Koike didn't answer but said, " We sure hope to open borders soon"
Twitter (X) as source of real time news is now abysmal.
Elon broke the algorithm and so many users dropped out you’re better off watching local news for coverage or NHK.
A public service announcement from the crew of
#TokyoVice
Season 1 had☝️ 8 episodes
This season: 10 episodes
2 more to go
The next episode before the finale is on March 28 my 55th birthday
There will be no cliffhanger
It all comes to an end
@TokyoViceHBOMax
The Japanese word for meaningful wrok
“karoshi” could be the key to work-life balance!
But what is it?
Well, once you’ve mastered it, you’ll never have to worry about retirement.
#過労死
@unseenjapan
@GaijinMommy
You have not experienced the “real” Japan
until the city rejects your garbage bag because it was “the old designated garbage bag”
and local community association guy brings you back the garbage
and explains the latest color codes with a photograph of the 20, 30, 40 liter bags
You have not experienced the “real” Japan until you're forced to open your bank account under your name as it's written on your residence card, in Roman letters....& then you try to log in online to the bank's system to discover it DOES NOT ACCEPT ROMAJI, ONLY KATAKANA.
When I first started as a police reporter in Japan, the cops and public were a tad weirded out by a foreign reporter on the beat
I got written up in a weekly magazine
It's now out out of print
I'm 54. Still here.
Except my knees are so bad I can't ride a bike (lol)
#TokyoVice
Twitter (X) users in Japan are angry over the decimation of the system that made it useful in previous disasters
@fluor_doublet
"Hey Elon! Stop filtering tweets and revert them back to chronological order. They won't serve restoring infrastructure during disasters this way."
Honoring a legend:
#TokyoVice
's detective 🕵🏼♂️ Katagiri-san, portrayed by Ken Watanabe was real-life hero Detective Chiaki Sekiguchi. A mentor, a friend, the finest cop in Saitama's organized crime task force, he was also an incredible Dad Your legacy lives on, Sekiguchi-san
RIP
People make fun of Saizeriya, Japan’s discount Italian restaurant chain, but a plate full of escargot for $2.70 is a bargain by any standard. And it’s really good.
The many words for “snow” in Japan
雪 (Yuki) - The most common word for snow.
•粉雪 (Kona Yuki) - Refers to powdery snow.
•湿雪 (Shime Yuki) - Denotes wet snow.
•新雪 (Shinsetsu) - Fresh snow.
•融雪 (Yūsetsu) - Melting snow.
•氷雪 (Hyo Setsu) - Ice snow.
•春雪 (Haru Yuki)…
S’il y a une maxime de connue chez les yakuza, c’est bien « Dès que tu arriveras au sommet, quelqu’un essaiera de t’en faire tomber. »
L’univers du journalisme est, malheureusement, très comparable au leur
(苦笑)
“I hate foreigners” (外国人嫌い)is trending on twitter in Japan because of statements President Biden made in which he points out Japan is facing many problems because the country is xenophobic and doesn’t welcome immigrants.
NHK translation below
Merry Christmas!
And Happy Holidays!
In the best spirit of the times, here is a benediction from Shanti Deva, a Buddhist philosopher and nice guy. (Slightly customized)
To everyone:
May all beings everywhere
Plagued by sufferings of body and mind
Obtain an ocean of happiness…
Everyone has their favorite character on
#TokyoVice
--mine isn't me
The actor playing Sato is phenomenal but I think Shun Sugata kills it as Ishida, the head of the Chihara-kai.
And he eerily captures the real like yakuza he's based on--"The Coach"
☟Read
Japan's Immigration Ministry used to call June:
"Month to Combat Illegal Foreign Workers"
with a huge sign in Shingawa station encouraging people to view alien workers with suspicion
It was too loud of a racist dog whistle
so they toned it down
added a mascot 😀
(2015/2023)
In Melbourne on a book tour for
#TokyoNoir
and what do I find?
#TokyoVice
"on the brink of cancellation" according to
@vulture
No one told me
My 2nd book
#TheLastYakuza
was optioned, so I thought Season 3 was a given
Thanks for watching and reading☟
S’il y a une maxime de connue chez les
#yakuza
, c’est bien « Dès que tu arriveras au sommet, quelqu’un essaiera de t’en faire tomber. »
L’univers du journalisme est, malheureusement, très comparable au leur.
Here's one nice tip when traveling to Kyoto. Inari Shrine is beautiful to visit—but it is mobbed with tourists during the day.
However, it’s open all night and slightly lit up as well and that’s a wonderful time to visit. You can’t buy trinkets but you can enjoy the mystique
Here’s the thing—I understand that we live in a world where our parasocial relationships—what anime or TV shows we watch—mean a lot to us. We care about those characters like they were people we know.
We want to help them out when we can.
But they’re not real. I can write any…
The average age of a yakuza in Japan is now:
54.
I'm 54
I really feel like I'm fading out with these guys
They won't be missed by me
90% of the yakuza are tribal sociopathic scum
There were a few men of honor
At least one I admired
#TheLastYakuza
coming in October
Twitterdachi
Take a picture of residency card
Keep it on your phone.
If you lose your wallet with your card, report it to the police and apply for a new one immediately
If police try to detain you for not having card, show the photo
RT please↓
"It is unprecedented in Japanese history."
Japan has some of the strictest gun laws and shootings are rare. Bloomberg's
@opinion
columnist
@GearoidReidy
speaks after former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe was shot during a political event ( via
@BloombergTV
)
I like living and working in Japan. There are some politicians here who have put forth really good plans for integrating foreigners into the workforce and discouraging discrimination. But the current legacy of Abe/LDP government Is shortsighted institutionalized xenophobia.
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗺𝘆𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳, 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀' 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗻
I didn’t plan to say much but since I keep getting asked let me clarify the events
What a difference a stray “n” can make 😵
Saboten makes great breaded pork cutlets but you might want to avoid ordering this one.
PS. Find this menu before it’s fixed.
I was asked “Why does Sato, if he’s a yakuza, only have a half-sleeve (tattoo)?”
The answer is: because he hasn’t been a yakuza very long. He’s a newbie. Traditional tattoos done with an awl, are painful, expensive, take months
That’s why some yakuza called them 我慢 (endurance)
The near-finale of Tokyo Vice airs today, March 28th. It’s also my 55th birthday. To be honest, I’m feeling a lot more like Detective Katagiri, then young Adelstein these days. I’m good with that. With age, sometimes, comes wisdom. March 28th is a birthday I share with one…
With the HBO adaptation of
#TokyoVice
now popular the world over, here is the long-awaited sequel: Tokyo Noir.
"The book does a great job of portraying the mirrored twilight stage of both yakuza and the journalists who cover them. It makes for captivating…
The yakuza are overwhelmingly a male dominated criminal organizations. Some women have rose to power.
In March, the memoirs of one of the few women who could legitimately claim to have been a yakuza member, Nishimura Mako, will be published. Definitely worth a read.
Think on this
The yen is surging because there of reports the Bank Of Japan is finally going to radically change it’s monetary policy
It’s all a sham
It’s a planned distraction from the growing corruption scandal in the LDP
It’s standard Japan Inc practice to bury bad news
BREAKING NEWS:
𝙹𝚊𝚙𝚊𝚗 𝚛𝚎𝚘𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚜 𝙾𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝟷𝚜𝚝!
𝙰𝚌𝚝𝚞𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢.
Tourists OK!
And the 900 days of open xenophobia and nonsensical COVID19 restrictions will be replaced with subtle hostility and a grab for dollars because the yen is tanking!
Welcome!
The real target of Shinzo Abe’s assassin wasn’t Abe.
It was the cult that had backed him since 2006–and many in Japan’s ruling political party
The blowback echoes
Shinzo Abe’s Assassin Succeeds in Turning Japan Against ‘Cult’
Shinzo Abe was fascinated by violence
He wanted to scrap Japan's pacifist constitution & make it a military power
His favorite book & film: Eternal Zero, a kamikaze ode.
After retiring, he wanted to direct yakuza films
Today he was shot to death
That's a sad movie-script ending
Just part of my hotel room in Kyoto. 5,883 yen after all fees were paid. That’s $40
This is why I use
@bookingcom
frequently. The customer loyalty rewards are great. Bait and switch offers rare.
Very pleased.
Today marks my 32nd year in journalism! 🎉 Started as a police reporter in Saitama on April 15, 1993
From 2006-2009, investigated human trafficking in Japan for US State Department and handled corporate due diligence
Some work made a difference
I still love the job!
#TokyoVice
@wakachan02
米国人の勝手な思い込み.
文化を鑑賞して学ぶことは文化盗用(cultural appropriation)ではないが一部の米国人でそれも理解せずにすぐ「文化盗用」とすぐ叫ぶ。多くの日本人は外国人が伝統的な文芸や文化を学ぶことは素晴らしいと思っています。残念です。旦那に「It’s cool man. Go for it」と応援!
Translated
“My American husband tried his hand at Japanese calligraphy. When I posted his work on Facebook, an American friend of mine (who has no connection to Japanese culture whatsoever) commented, "That's cultural theft, so don't do that.” He was really bummed.
Rushing onto the train is DANGEROUS
Ask the dragon caught in the doors of the Tokyo subway
At least he wasn’t riding the Yamanote line at 11pm.
Every year, Tokyo Metro replaces the Chinese calendar animal on these safety posters.
The dragon didn’t listen, clearly
Here’s a rare and interesting photo of Daikaku Chodoin, 83, the founder and president of the United World Karate Association—with Michael Jackson—and the 7th generation leader of yakuza syndicate, Chairman Hareaki Fukuda (福田 晴瞭元総裁) of the Sumiyoshi-Kai. Taken in 1998 at…
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐘𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐳𝐚
will be published today in England!
It's a narrative history of the
#yakuza
told through the lives of several bosses. It will also illuminate the underworld portrayed in Season Two of
#TokyoVice
starting on February 8.
"Adelstein explains the…
The Japanese police can be friendly and helpful but they tend to regard all foreigners with suspicion.
So if you have to go to the police for anything, wear a suit. Have a copy of your Zairyu card (在留カード).
Be polite and patient.
Record the entire transaction.
Let’s talk about Japan’s labor shortage, declining companies, and low wages.. we’ll start about pointing out a weird similarity to the decline of the
#yakuza
This article explains why the Hangure (gangs) are not going to replace the once powerful yakuza
Usually the yakuza are depicted unrealistically
In
#TokyoVice
we did our best to show the business side of being a gangster
Ishida and Sato in Chihara-kai are based on people in these photos
If u want to know more checkout
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐘𝐚𝐤𝐮𝐳𝐚
☟
Every year 80,000 are reported missing in
#Japan
It’s the tip of the iceberg
Many vanish of their own free will
some by the hands of another
and some as if the Gods kidnapped them
Join our podcast as we search for:
The Evaporated
#神隠
What I’ve Learned In The 30 Years As A Reporter: The 12 Rules Of Being A Good Journalist In Japan
Whether you’re dealing with yakuza, politicians, serial killers, or shady journalists, there’s a way to be a better watchdog and not a lapdog
Between 2000-2004, 4
#yakuza
bosses got liver transplants at UCLA
They jumped the line
Hundreds more died waiting
FBI made a deal with powerful boss Tadamasa Goto, because he ratted out his pals
FBI wanted his intel because the Japanese police wouldn't share theirs
@fasc1nate
In 2001, a Yakuza mob boss named Tadamasa Goto gave a $100,000 donation to UCLA. In exchange, they gave him a liver transplant, allowing him to jump the queue. That same year, 186 people in the Los Angeles area died while waiting for a liver transplant. The FBI was also involved.
Last year, a dude broke into my home while my sweetheart & I were asleep
He took video too
including a shot of my naked ass
The Kyoto Police investigated, caught him
Today prosecutors let me know he gets 16 months in jail
I contacted the detective and thanked him!
#平穏無事
The Japanese government is now considering regulating host clubs due to victimization of the young women frequenting the clubs.
And I was only writing about this problem 9 years ago. 2014.
Change is slow.
June is crackdown on illegal aliens month in Japan!😀
You must always have a residence card or passport with you and show it to cops if they ask
Violations may result in a fine of up to 200,000 yen and/or to 2 years in jail
Take a photo with your phone, keep it there
22,000 people have signed this petition to allow foreigners, students, and workers into Japan
2 years is too long
Sign up and help out
以下のキャンペーンに賛同をお願いします!「内閣 総理大臣 へ :1日でも早く 外国人 留学生 や 労働者 等の 入国 許可を!」
Twitterdachi,
Many schools in Japan have archaic rules sometimes called ブラック校則—like demanding ALL students have black hair
Or that students can’t wear a coat, even in the dead of winter.
Are there even stranger ones?
Please share. Details appreciated
#ブラック校則
Thanks for tuning into
#TokyoVice
🎥 !
Whether there's a
#Season3
or not, I'm glad we wrapped without a cliffhanger🚫
More
#yakuza
and true-crime stories out there—you may have to read them instead of watching! 📚
Stay tuned🕵️♀️
#TheLastYakuza
#TokyoNoir
BTW filming of Season 2 of
#TokyoVice
is underway
The scripts are great
And hopefully, it will air before the 2023 leaves of autumn wither away
The show-runner & high-school friend
@stagewriter
& family joined us to say sayonara to 2022
Happy New Year!
@TokyoViceHBOMax
Here’s how to let the world know you’re a xenophobic and racist country run by clowns
Pass a law that makes “permanent residence” a joke.
Japanese government considering laws allowing those who miss tax or insurance payments be expelled
#
Here is a preview of my new book—which has already been published in France under the title Tokyo Detective. It will be coming out this summer as Tokyo Noir!
“The law is either a cure or a poison. It all depends on how you apply it. “
After losing his journalist job, Adelstein…
And after a terrifying earthquake in Japan today, what is trending on twitter:
人工地震 (human-made earthquake).
Here's the start of one trending conspiracy theory.
The first few lines read like this.
"Mysterious explosion sounds in Noto Town on the 31st, with all news…
One of the biggest sexist assholes in modern Japan is dead.
But once a man is no longer capable of reproduction they’re practically dead already (sarcasm)
Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara—I hope you’re reincarnated as a single mom in Adachi-Ku
Sayonara
🚨BREAKING: Japan begins releasing "treated" nuclear waste water from Fukushima into the ocean. Despite official assurances, 12 harmful radioactive elements remain. Past lessons unlearned, global community and local livelihoods at risk.🌊🐟☢️
#NuclearWater
The darkly comic sequel to
#TokyoVice
coming May 14
𝐓𝐨𝐤𝐲𝐨 𝐍𝐨𝐢𝐫: 𝐈𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐎𝐟 𝐉𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝
“If you want to do the job right, you have to take care of your friends. And remember the enemy of your enemy, is a friend”
#yakuza
#truecrime
And Japan wonders why they can’t attract qualified foreign labor to work here…..
With a sinking yen and rising xenophobia plus attempts to make “permanent residence” a joke
If not paying taxes is grounds for losing residence status,
Kishida & LDP cronies should be refugees⬇️
Here’s how to let the world know you’re a xenophobic and racist country run by clowns
Pass a law that makes “permanent residence” a joke.
Japanese government considering laws allowing those who miss tax or insurance payments be expelled
#
You finally have a right to an attorney in Japan: starting in April, attorneys can be present for police interrogations, something currently only allowed by police discretion in limited cases. Japan’s Federation of Bar Associations hopes the move reduces forced confessions.
I left my house today without putting on my noise canceling headphones and I realized something.
Most of Tokyo is a noisy hell.
If you actually pay attention to the sounds you are overwhelmed.
There are 1000 voices telling you what to do, what to avoid, as loudly as possible
I awoke at at 5:59.
Waffle House opens at 6am
I was the first customer today, got the best seat in the house, and for 15 minutes, I was the benevolent Pope Of Waffle House
An auspicious start to the day.
#WaffleHouse
“It’s forbidden to show your tattoos. Please hide them. Even if you’re a gentleman when you show tattoos in Japan it will terrify someone. Please understand.”
The subtext is “yakuza have tattoos and people are scared of them”