Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

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Beckham in Japan

I’ve mentioned before on this site how David Beckham has managed to attain god-like status in Japan. He’s the lord of fashion, a hairstyling guru, and at times even a half-decent footballer. But in an attempt to embellish his CV even further, he’s recently taken on the role of chocolate covered foodstuff promoter.

Now Mr. Beckham has made some pretty woeful commercials for Japanese TV, but his latest offering in support of Fran chocolate is arguably his worst.

Brace yourself, and then click here for the full ad in all its misconceived glory. And as David philosophically suggests, be sweet!

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Some deranged fans and chocolate lovers last week

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Segway. No way!

On Thursday, the Tokyo police sent papers to prosecutors on a businessman’s use of the U.S. made Segway on a public road. During a promotional event, the 42 year-old import company president drove the Segway along Takeshitadori Street, in Tokyo’s fashionable Harajuku district.

Not a major crime you’d think, but the Segway is classified as a motorcycle under Japanese law. And as it’s not sufficiently equipped with brakes, lights, and indicators, it’s illegal. This means that the Segway can only be used in parks and University campuses.

An imported Segway costs somewhere in the region of 850,000 Yen (almost 4,400 pounds). It has to be said, that’s a lot of money for a quick race around the local park.

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A man speeding away from the police yesterday

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A dog is not just for Christmas. Or is it?

Take a look at the latest Aibo.

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Now I can understand people having misgivings about electronic pets, but believe me, Sony’s Aibo has something special. What that something is I don’t really know, but from a recent experience, it seems that the plastic pooch can produce the same reactions in people that a real dog does.

In the shop I found myself happily stroking Aibo, and after stepping back and observing others, the electronic dog produced the same reaction in everybody else. Without exception. People smiled, petted it, and in the end were reluctant to leave.

Strange? Maybe. True? Surprisingly, yes.

And not once did I see it attempt to sniff someone’s groin or hump a passerby’s leg.

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Policing the police

First the bad news.

Last year saw 433 police officers punished for misconduct. The reasons were varied, but coming in at number one was violating road traffic laws. This claimed 84 officers. Slightly more interesting was the second most popular activity. Namely, undermining public trust by misconduct related to drinking and sexual affairs. A whopping 77 officers were found guilty of this, but sadly details of each individual case weren’t released. And taking the third spot was theft, fraud, and embezzlement. Managing a fairly respectable 64.

As far as the good news is concerned, the total number of officers punished was down 135 from the previous year. That’s about it.