Chocolate Underground Imminent?
Japan cracks down on crack (plumber’s, not cocaine)
I was reading about Chocolate Underground, the upcoming online short series by Production I.G. and Prince of Tennis director Takayuki Hamana, when I remembered something I’d heard in the news recently, which might even be crazier than outlawed chocolate.
Japan, a country not known for its overweight people, has undertaken one of the most ambitious campaigns ever by a nation to slim down its citizenry
Japan of all places has imposed a national waistline standard for those 40 and up, and is enforcing that by penalizing companies and local governments who don’t comply.
Whether it’s just a a reactionary move by a society I don’t pretend to understand too well, or possibly a move to sneak health care into privatization (Japan’s economy hasn’t been in good shape for ages, and with the declining population, everyone’s gonna be old and using lots of public heathcare soon), it seems a bit on the scary side.
Besides sounding vaguely fascist, it gave me this thought: In the wake of the Akihabara murders, should Japan really be going through with new ways to (a) stress out and (b) ostracize more citizens? It’s ok, though, because they’re not called “fat” or “overweight.” It’s “metabo.” Ahhh. Well, carry the fuck on, then.
I’ll leave you with this picture from the article, which asks “Can you wear the same pants you wore when you were 20?”
blissmo | June 24th, 2008 at 1:43 am
Japan is too strict lols
djugashvili | June 24th, 2008 at 2:20 am
Can I? I still do! You can save a lot of money that way.
Chocolate Underground: Needs more Willy Wonka » Incredible Nothing! | June 24th, 2008 at 5:08 am
[...] Hmm… does this have something to do with this? [...]
Kabitzin | June 24th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Next up, ban all fairy tales.
otou-san | June 25th, 2008 at 12:31 am
Hey that sounds like a good idea for an anime.
Shin | June 25th, 2008 at 2:26 am
I’m so skinny that I’m still able to wear the same pair of pants which I had when I was 14.
newgeekphilosopher | June 26th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I’m 18, so I’m ahead of everybody in Japan by not being 20 yet, thus avoiding the guidelines set by this absurd health scheme…
usagijen | June 28th, 2008 at 11:14 am
I fail for missing this post, now I posted a copy-cat orz.
this law seems like a real joke, but not lol.
I wonder if they thought of the other repercussions of this law, like people suffering from anorexia nervosa in order to meet this requirement XD
otou-san | June 28th, 2008 at 11:49 am
@usagijen yeah there are so many things I can think of that can potentially go wrong from this. There are plenty of pressures on a modern urban Japanese person already, it just seems like someone’s going to take one “easy way out” or another, and none sound good.